Are Java Assertions Enabled?

A quick tip if you ever need to test whether assertions are enabled in Java, without having to throw and catch an assertion exception.

    boolean ASSERTIONS_ENABLED = false;

    assert ASSERTIONS_ENABLED = true;

This code sets ASSERTIONS_ENABLED to false and then, if and only if assertions are enabled then the assert expression will run. The assert expression sets ASSERTIONS_ENABLED to true and returns true. Thus no exception will be thrown.

Java 8 Early Access on OSX

Hurrah to Oracle and Apple. I had all but given up seeing the latest
production releases of Java appearing on OSX anytime soon. Today I
have been playing with the early access release of Java 8 on my mac. Fantastic
work, thank you!