Problem solving with Java

One of my first lab assignments in my Intro to Computer Programming class involved writing a program that prompted the user to input a temperature in Fahrenheit. From that temp., the program would them give back the temp that was input in Fahrenheit, in Celsius, and then would tell you how many degrees above or below freezing in Fahrenheit it was. I was able to write this program on my own without any outside help. I am pretty proud of that. The thing that struck me the most about writing this program was the capacity it gave me to do all kinds of different calculations. To do calculations by hand is possible, but it slows me down significantly. Especially if I am needing the answer to a calculation before being able to move on to something else. So I have begun to think about how I could write programs in Java to solve problems for myself, especially dealing with calculations. For example, in my beginning electronics class we learned how to calculate the size of resistors based on the color code. Now I can do those calculations, but it takes me a while, especially if I am just doing it in my head. But what if I could write a program that prompted me to input the colors present on the resistor, and the program would tell me what size resistor it was?? That would be cool!! As I thought about doing this, my mind began reeling with the possibilities of all kinds of electronic calculations I could have a program figure for me which would free up my time to do the funner part of electronics. I don't want to spend my time doing math, I want to build things. Java will help me solve some of my real-world problems.