When you learn a new language, you want to learn more than just words. You want to learn how to make sentences that are useful for everyday life, and you're going to compare your new language with your mother tongue. It works in the same way when you learn a new programming language. After you've learned the syntax, you want to learn common constructs and you'll want to compare it to the language you already know. Scala is one of the most popular new languages on the JVM, and is going to be more and more important in the coming years. This talk is for the busy Java developer who's interested in Scala and who wants to get beyond just learning the syntax. In this talk, you will learn how Scala compares to Java, and how you do common tasks the Scala way, so that you can get going with Scala in a practical way. You will also learn about the principles behind Scala's features, so that you really understand what they mean and how you can use them effectively.