Glossary - Java Software Solutions: Foundations of Program Design - page 657

functionality as pointers but without the need
for explicit dereferencing.
point-to-point connection— The link between
two networked devices that are connected
directly by a wire.
polyline— A shape made up of a series of con-
nected line segments. A polyline is similar to a
polygon, but the shape is not closed.
polymorphism— An object-oriented technique
by which a reference that is used to invoke a
method can result in different methods being
invoked at different times. All Java method
invocations are potentially polymorphic in that
they invoke the method of the object type, not
the reference type.
portability— The ability of a program to be
moved from one hardware platform to another
without having to change it. Because Java byte-
code is not related to any particular hardware
environment, Java programs are considered
portable. See also architecture neutral.
positive infinity— A special floating point value
that represents the “highest possible” value. See
also negative infinity.
postfix expression— An expression in which an
operator is positioned after the operands on
which it works. See also infix expression.
postfix operator— In Java, an operator that is
positioned behind its single operand, whose
evaluation yields the value prior to the opera-
tion being performed. Both the increment (++)
and decrement (- -) operators can be applied
postfix. See also prefix operator.
precedence— See operator precedence.
prefix operator— In Java, an operator that is
positioned in front of its single operand, whose
evaluation yields the value after the operation
has been performed. Both the increment (++)
and decrement (- -) operators can be applied
prefix. See also postfix operator.

primitive data type— A data type that is pre-
defined in a programming language.
printable characters— Any character that has a
symbolic representation that can be displayed
on a monitor or printed by a printer. See also
nonprintable characters.
private— A Java reserved word that serves as
a visibility modifier for inner classes as well as
methods and variables. A private inner class is
accessible only to members of the class in which
it is declared. Private methods and variables
are visible only in the class in which they are
declared.
procedural programming— An approach to
software design and implementation that is
centered around procedures (or functions)
and their interaction. See also object-oriented
programming.
processing stream— An I/O stream that per-
forms some type of manipulation on the data in
the stream. Sometimes called a filtering stream.
See also data stream.
program— A series of instructions executed by
hardware, one after another.
Program Design Language (PDL)— A language
in which a program's design and algorithms are
expressed. See also pseudocode.
programming language— A specification of the
syntax and semantics of the statements used to
create a program.
programming language statement— An indi-
vidual instruction in a given programming
language.
prompt— A message or symbol used to request
information from the user.
propagation— See exception propagation.
protected— A Java reserved word that serves as
a visibility modifier for inner classes as well as
methods and variables. A protected inner class