Java is a powerful, cross-platform, object-oriented programming language suitable for writing anything from a distributed application that runs on a corporate network to a database-driven Web site to host your personal photo gallery. To make it easier to learn, the Java language was designed to resemble some of the most popular programming languages in use today, most notably C/C++. If you re not a C/C++ expert, however (and most Web developers aren t), the language can be a little intimidating. In this article, I ll bring you up to speed on the basic syntax of the Java language, including variables, data types, operators, and control structures.