Barry Burd: Teaching Java as an Art Form

Jim Grisanzio from Java Developer Relations talks with Barry Burd, a computer science teacher, an author, and the co-leader for two Java User Groups (JUGs). Barry is based in New Jersey and he’s taught at the undergraduate level for decades. His journey with Java began in 2004 when he attended small user group meetings of just five or six people. Those gatherings, once part of the Amateur Computer Group of New Jersey, have evolved into the Garden State Java User Group and the New York Java SIG, which now regularly feature Java Champions and prominent speakers from the Java development community. The transformation of the two JUGs on the East Coast of the U.S. reflects the broader growth of the entire Java ecosystem globally. 

Barry's teaching philosophy centers on passion, enthusiasm, and visualization. He works to help students see programming concepts as complete mental pictures rather than just syntax. His classroom approach emphasizes active interactions with as many questions as possible. He tries to create what he calls a party atmosphere rather than a boring traditional lecture setting. He believes strongly in meeting students where they are and encouraging those who love the material while supporting those whose passions may lie elsewhere.

What distinguishes Barry's perspective is his view of computer science as an art form. He frequently compares elegant code to works of art. He asks students who question the practical value of certain technical concepts whether they would ask the same question in a course about the Mona Lisa. This artistic perspective extends to his appreciation of Java as well. He marvels at the language's thoughtful design, where features fit together as a unified whole rather than random pieces of technology thrown together haphazardly.

Java's appeal for Barry grows from multiple sources. The language's backward compatibility has been crucial for his work as an author and a teacher. He says that only one program broke across multiple editions of his books over the years. He contrasts this long term stability with other platforms that change frequently and force him to spend time fixing previously working code. The elegance and careful thought behind Java's design resonates deeply with him. He appreciates the early decisions about inheritance and interfaces and the entire evolution of Java from the engineers under the stewardship of architects like Brian Goetz at Oracle.

Barry says that the six-month release cycle introduced in recent years has injected new life into the Java ecosystem. He sees the platform as self-sustaining now with strong leadership that shows no signs of fading. Living near New York City, he says that financial institutions depend on Java's industrial strength reliability for obvious reasons. The technology serves two audiences well, he says, those who need rock-solid, enterprise-grade systems and those like himself who appreciate the beauty of well-crafted software.

When asked why Java is so great, Barry says: "I guess the other reason is that it's good for industrial strength programming. People in the area of the world where I live in, close to New York City, in the financial district, rely on it. It's just not breakable the way other platforms are."

If you ever have a chance to take a software development class from Barry Burd, take it. You’ll love it. 

Barry Burd

https://x.com/allmycode

https://www.linkedin.com/in/barry-burd/recent-activity/all/

Jim Grisanzio 

https://x.com/jimgris 

https://grisanzio.com 

Duke's Corner Java Podcast 

https://dukescorner.libsyn.com/site/ 

https://grisanzio.com/duke/