Getting connected - Java application to PostgreSQL

I have a simple Java Application running on Windows 2000 I am working on at home. Initially it accessed data in an Access database via Jdbc:Odbc, but I detest Microsoft and their database is a limited, non SQL standard, particularly ugly and unreliable beast.

Now that I have installed PostgreSQL and installed some data, I want to point my application to it. Once I have a simple connection, I can make some progress on development of both client and server ends.

There are several bits to put in place. Has someone assembled a simple document to help people make this transition? If so please let me know.

I see the Postmaster needs to be running. Does that happen when you start the pgAdmin application from the Start menu?

Yours sincerely

Peter Cook