Why don’t they just…?! The Deliberations Behind Evolving Java

Room 1

There are many nifty features that Java could have but doesn’t. Why, though, how hard can it be to implement them? Why don’t they just…

  • let us add fields to records?
  • add ?. for null-safe member selection?
  • add extension methods?
  • remove the need for semicolons?
  • introduce immutable collections?
  • make Stream handle exceptions?
  • turn Optional into a proper monad?

After this talk, you’ll know. And have gained insight into the deliberations behind the decisions that evolve Java and why nothing can “just” be implemented.