basic classpath theory

[jimbo jawgar]

Hi
Can someone give me a concise statement of classpath theory, plus answer the following

TIA

In windows XP there are user variables and systems variables, should/may both contain Classpath? If both, should they be identical?

What is the affect of a preliminary dot & semo-colon ie .; ?

I am doing a course/assignment running java web server 1.0.1. For this purpose I have (user) classpath set

.;C:\DATA\JFW\Java SDK\lib\tools.jar;C:\jswdk1_0_1-win\jswdk-1.0.1\lib\servlet.jar;C:\jswdk1_0_1-win\jswdk-1.0.1\lib\jspengine.jar

Should I have additional directories?

[Joel McNary]

The questions posed sound like homework questions, so no direct answers, please.....

As far as basic CLASSPATH theory, see How to Set the Classpath

Whether the USER and SYSTEM classpaths can be duplicated and/or should be identical, try experimenting. Set the values, drop down to a command prompt, and type "SET CLASSPATH" Note that you will have to open a new command prompt every time you change the environment settings.

The '.;' question is far simpler -- in Windows (and Unix/Linux), what does the '.' mean? (It's the name of a directory). Try going to a Command prompt and typing "cd ." Compare that to the results of a "cd .." Take a look at your classpath provided and determine what the semi-colon does -- it seems to separate things, no?

Insofar as to whether you should have additional directories in your classpath, that depends on what classes you want to have accessible. Consult the documentation for the web server that youare trying to install for further details (although a webserver is likely to set up its own classpath and ignore the system's...use the configuration files on the web server to change that classpath.)
[ November 07, 2004: Message edited by: Joel McNary ]