By John Zukowski

Jython* is an interesting mix. In short, it provides a Java-compatible implementation of the Python programming language. Like the Java platform, Python comes as both an object-oriented, programming language and a set of standard libraries. What Jython adds is access to the standard Java libraries in addition to the Python libraries from programs written using the Python programming language. So, combining Java with Python gives you Jython.

Saying that Jython is just another object-oriented programming language with some standard libraries isn't saying much. Why another language? Well, like Python, Jython can be used for scripting various tasks. Instead of having to go through the edit, compile, run cycle, Jython is just edit and run. Actually, as you type, the code is executed, so technically it is just type. But Jython gives you an environment for creating quick little scripts for doing nearly anything that Java can do.

In this article, we'll take a look at how to get started developing with Jython. You'll learn how to setup your development environment, how to create your first "Hello, World" program, how to create a graphical "Hello, World" program, and how to do event handling with JavaBeans* communications from Jython programs.