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Environment Setup

Installation and configuration guide for a Java development environment on Windows, macOS, and Linux: JDK 21, IDE, Git, and Maven.

Articles

# Lesson Content
01 Install JDK 21 Windows / macOS / Linux
02 Install IDE IntelliJ IDEA / Eclipse / VS Code
03 Terminal Basics Essential commands, running Java from CLI
04 Git and GitHub Version control, creating your first repo
05 Maven and Hello World Project structure, your first program

Checkpoint

You're ready to move on when you can:

  • Run java -version and see JDK 21
  • Write and run a Java program from both an IDE and the terminal
  • Commit and push code to GitHub
  • Understand the directory structure of a standard Java Maven project

Before You Start

Don't spend the whole day on setup

Get everything installed in one session, then start writing code in the next. Tweaking themes, fonts, and plugins is something you can do once you're comfortable with Java.

Errors are normal

Environment setup is the step where everyone hits at least one error. If you get stuck, read the error message carefully, search Google with the exact keywords, and check the Troubleshooting section in each lesson.