Java 1.8 Feature

Java 1.8 Feature: 

Java 1.8, also known as Java SE 8 (Standard Edition 8), introduced several new features and enhancements to the Java programming language. Some of the notable features in Java 1.8 are:

Lambda Expressions: One of the most significant additions in Java 8 is the support for lambda expressions. Lambda expressions provide a concise way to represent anonymous functions and enable functional programming in Java.

Stream API: The Stream API provides a new abstraction for processing collections of data in a functional programming style. It allows developers to perform operations such as filtering, mapping, reducing, and sorting on collections with improved readability and efficiency.

Default Methods: Java 8 introduced the concept of default methods in interfaces. Default methods allow interfaces to have concrete methods with default implementations, providing backward compatibility for existing interfaces while allowing them to evolve and add new methods.

Optional Class: The Optional class is a container class that may or may not contain a non-null value. It helps prevent null pointer exceptions by explicitly indicating the absence of a value. It encourages developers to handle the absence of a value in a more controlled and expressive way.

Method References: Method references provide a way to refer to methods or constructors without invoking them. They can be used to simplify lambda expressions and make code more readable, especially when passing method references as arguments to functional interfaces.

Date/Time API: Java 8 introduced a new date and time API that provides a more comprehensive and flexible way to handle date and time values. The new API, located in the java.time package, offers improved support for date and time calculations, formatting, and parsing.

Default Time Zone: Prior to Java 8, the default time zone was system-dependent. In Java 8, the default time zone is the UTC (Coordinated Universal Time) time zone, unless specified otherwise.