I'd say you must have 2 strategies for learning, esp in our dynamic and volatile IT field: big picture (horizontal) and details (vertical).

To have a clear big picture of the major trends in the industry, keep an eye on major java sites such as theserverside.com and read  some weblogs. This will give you an idea of what to focus on for the coming months and years. Then dig into the details based on which java field your current employer is active in. For example you may be working in a company that's active in web app development. The kind of technologies you must pay attention to are quite different from those used in banking, or cloud computing, or internet mashup sites and so on. You have to specialize in only one of them, at least for a while. Or in other words as said in this great book (media.pragprog.com/titles/mjwti/generalist.pdf) you have to be both a generalist and a specialist. Know everything, and know a few things very well.