Scala for Java Developers

This talk with cover several features of Scala that make it unique from other programming languages. Where possible, we will look at Scala examples demonstrating certain programming concepts and also how these would be achieved with Java. The following topics will be covered:

• Type inference: the ability to smartly deduce the type of data and the return value of a function
• Singleton Object: the static keyword does not exist in Scala, instead the language implements a Singleton objet
• Import Anywhere: import statements can be added anywhere in the code
• Immutability: once a variable value has been set, it cannot be altered
• Lazy Evaluation: delaying the evaluation of an expression until it's value is needed
• Case Classes and Pattern Matching: Case classes are like regular classes but good for modelling immutable data, this feature maps well to pattern matching, which is a mechanism for check a value against a pattern
• Traits: a trait encapsulates method and field definitions which can be reused by mixing them into a class
• Tail recursion: Recursive function calls can be optimized by the Scala compiler in certain cases.

Speaker: Brad Miller

Brad Miller has been in the software industry for 16 years. He is
currently a Director of Software Engineering at IQVIA. He runs a team of
engineers that build large scale distributed systems using Scala, Akka,
and Kafka. He has a Bachelor's degree in MIS from Temple University and
an MS in Computer Science from Villanova University. When he's not in
front of a computer he spends his free time hiking, biking and kayaking
with his girlfriend, Katherine.

Venue Sponsor: Apex Systems (note that while the venue sponsor is Apex Systems, the meeting is taking place at the same conference room as usual at the posted address)

Apex Systems was founded in Richmond, Virginia in 1995 by Brian Callaghan, Win Sheridan and Jeff Veatch, three friends who met at Virginia Tech.

They were inspired to start Apex for three main reasons:

• To treat job seekers better.
• To provide a better staffing service for companies.
• To build a company where the best recruiters, sales staff and infrastructure specialists would want to work.​

Food Sponsor: Apex Systems!