???!!! por favor, digam que sim 
import java.util.*;
public class TesteList2 {
public static void main(String[] args) {
List li = new ArrayList();
}
}
/*
TesteList2.java:5: incompatible types
found : java.util.ArrayList
required: List
List li = new ArrayList();
^
1 error
*/
Compilador:
java version "1.4.2-beta"
Java™ 2 Runtime Environment, Standard Edition (build 1.4.2-beta-b19)
Java HotSpot™ Client VM (build 1.4.2-beta-b19, mixed mode)