1. The modern Java development environment for Windows

1.1. Package manager

Windows has a popular package manager named Choco. I recommend to read the technical documentation and install it.

To install openJDK in your computer with Choco, type:

choco install jdk8
In the future, we will recommend the installation of OpenJDK 11, but at the moment, we detect an issue between OpenJDK & Gradle, so I prefer to recommend to install Java 8.

To install OpenJDK 11:

choco install openjdk

1.2. Java Virtual Machine

To program with Java is necessary to install in your laptop a Java Development Kit (JDK).

A Java Development Kit (JDK) is a program development environment for writing Java applications. It consists of a runtime environment that "sits on top" of the operating system layer as well as the tools and programming that developers need to compile, debug, and run applications written in the Java language.

Once you have installed Java JDK, check the installation:

java -version

You should view the following output:

java version "1.8.0_181"
Java(TM) SE Runtime Environment (build 1.8.0_181-b13)
Java HotSpot(TM) Client VM (build 25.181-b13, mixed mode)

To check if you are able to compile Java files, create a new file with the name of HelloWorld.java and copy and paste on it the following content:

public class HelloWorld {

    public static void main(String[] args) {
        // Prints "Hello World" to the terminal window.
        System.out.println("Hello World");
    }

}

Save the file and open in a terminal to type the following commands:

javac HelloWorld.java
java HelloWorld

You should read: HelloWorld in the terminal.

Further information about OpenJDK

1.3. Build Systems

Modern Java development use dependencies stored on Software Repositories. It is a good idea if you install the popular build Systems as Maven & Gradle for Java. This project is modular and it deliver multiple dependencies.

Using choco, it is possible install Maven & Gradle easily:

choco install maven
choco install gradle

Further information about Maven & Gradle.

1.4. Java IDE

To develop a single Java file, maybe you could use a simple Text Editor but current Java IDE offers several funcionalities to help you in the process to develop software with Java. In the market, the most popular Java IDE are IntelliJ & Eclipse.

choco install intellijidea-community
choco install eclipse

Further information about IntelliJ & Eclipse

1.5. Source Control Management

Git is a popular technology to manage code. Many ideas that you see on Internet are stored on Git repositories so manage this technology is necessary.

You could use the Version control features from IntelliJ or use a dedicated tool like SourceTree