Introduction to Java Programming, Brief, 8e consists of the first 20 chapters from the Comprehensive version of Introduction to Java Programming. It introduces fundamentals of programming, problem-solving, object-oriented programming, and GUI programming. The Brief version is suitable for a CS1 course.

Regardless of major, students will be able to grasp concepts of problem-solving and programming thanks to Liang's fundamentals-first approach, students learn critical problem solving skills and core constructs before object-oriented programming. Liang's approach includes application-rich programming examples, which go beyond the traditional math-based problems found in most texts. Students are introduced to topics like control statements, methods, and arrays before learning to create classes. Later chapters introduce advanced topics including graphical user interface, exception handling, I/O, and data structures. Small, simple examples demonstrate concepts and techniques while longer examples are presented in case studies with overall discussions and thorough line-by-line explanations. In the Eighth Edition, only standard classes are used.