Java threads for the beginner

Question

I've been trying to explain Java threading to a colleague who has never been exposed to multi-threaded applications, but apparently I'm not a very good teacher.

Can anyone recommend a good online or offline resource that can explain threading in a simple, step-by-step manner? I know it's a complex topic, but surely there exists an article, book, or other explanation that can result in an "Aha! I get it, finally!" moment.

Answer 1

Take a look at the Concurrency lesson in Sun's Java Tutorials. It's kind of big, but it's broken up nicely.

Answer 2

Here is an old but good one, got me the Aha, I get it effect

http://www.javaworld.com/javaworld/jw-04-1996/jw-04-threads.html

Answer 3

I would point him in the direction of the official tutorial, where this subject is discussed here.

It was the official java tutorial that got me started, and I'm not even a serious Java developer...

Answer 4

apart from the offical sun tutorial you may check these out

http://www.devshed.com/c/a/Java/The-Basics-of-Multiple-Threads-in-Java/

http://www.javabeginner.com/learn-java/java-threads-tutorial

Answer 5

After the simple tutorials, I strongly recommend getting Brian Goetz's book "Java Concurrency in Practice" if the colleague might pursue multi-threaded programming.

Answer 6

If you're using Swing also check SwingWorker:

http://java.sun.com/docs/books/tutorial/uiswing/concurrency/worker.html