Welcome to this book on "Learning Java In 150 Steps".
I am Ranga Karanam, and I have more than two decades of programming experience.
I love Programming. One of the aims I had when I started in28minutes was to make learning programming easy. Thanks for helping us provide amazing courses to 300,000 learners across the world.
At In28Minutes, we ask ourselves one question every day: "How do we create awesome learning experiences?"
In this book, you will learn to write object oriented code with Java. You will be exposed to a lot of examples, exercises and tips. We will take up a lot of examples, and try and see how to write code for those in Java.
Help us improve this guide - Fork, Pull Requests, Shares and Likes are recommended!
- Chapter 01 - Introduction to Programming with Print-Multiplication-Table
- Chapter 02 - Understanding Methods
- Chapter 03 - Understanding the Java Platform
- Chapter 04 - Eclipse
- Chapter 05 - Object Oriented Progamming (OOP)
- Chapter 06 - Primitive Data Types
- Chapter 07 - Introducing Conditionals - if, switch and more
- Chapter 08 - Loops
- Chapter 09 - Reference Types
- Chapter 10 - Arrays and ArrayList
- Chapter 11 - Object Oriented Programming (OOP) - Revisited
- Chapter 12 - Introducing Collections
- Chapter 13 - Introducing Generics
- Chapter 14 - Introduction to Functional Programming
- Chapter 15 - Threads and Concurrency
- Chapter 16 - Introduction To Exception handling
- Chapter 17 - File Operations
- Chapter 18 - Concurrency : Advanced Topics
We did a study on why students give up on programming?
The popular answer was
Difficulty in writing their first program
Put yourselves in the shoes of a beginner and look at this typical Java Hello World Example.
package com.in28minutes.firstjavaproject;
public class HelloWorld
{
public static void main(String[] args) {
System.out.println("Hello World");
}
}A Programming Beginner will be overwhelmed by this. I remember how I felt when I saw this almost 20 years back. Stunned.
Why?
- There are a number of keywords and concepts - package, public, class, static, void, String[] and a lot more..
- What if the programmer makes a typo? Will he be able to fix it?
We believe that there has to be a better way to learn programming.
- Why don't we learn programming step by step?
- Why should it not be a lot of fun?
- Why don't we solve a lot of problems and learn programming as a result?
This is the approach we took to writing this guide and develop our introductory programming courses for Java and Python.
Do you know? The first 3 hours of our Java Course is available here.
Learning to program is a lot like learning to ride a bicycle. The first few steps are the most challenging ones.
Once you use this stepwise approach to solve a few problems, it becomes a habit.
In this book, we will introduce you to Java programming by taking on a few simple problems to start off.
Having fun along the way is what we will aim to do.
Are you all geared up, to take on your first programming challenge? Yes? Let's get started then!
Our first programming challenge aims to do, what every kid does in math class: reading out a multiplication table.
- Compute the multiplication table for
5, with entries from1to10. - Display this table.
5 * 1 = 5
5 * 2 = 10
5 * 3 = 15
5 * 4 = 20
5 * 5 = 25
5 * 6 = 30
5 * 7 = 35
5 * 8 = 40
5 * 9 = 45
5 * 10 = 50
As part of solving the multiplication table problem, you will be introduced to:
- JShell
- Statements
- Expressions
- Variables
- Literals
- Conditionals
- Loops
- Methods
In this step, we:
- Stated our first programming challenge, PMT-Challenge
- Identified basic Java concepts to learn, to solve this challenge
JShell is a programming tool, introduced in Java SE 9. JShell is a REPL interface. The term REPL refers to this:
- 'R' stands for Read; Read the input Java code
- 'E' means Eval; Evaluate the source code
- 'P' translates to Print; Print out the result
- 'L' indicates Loop; Loop around, and wait for the next input
How about starting off exploring Java? Are you game?
You can use https://tryjshell.org/ to run the code for the first 25 steps. Or you can Install Java 12+. Here's the troubleshooting section if you face problems.
Launch up command prompt or Terminal.
Let type in java -version on the terminal and press enter.
in28minutes$>java -version
java version "x.0.1"
Java(TM) SE Runtime Environment (build x.0.1+11)
Java HotSpot(TM) 64-bit Server VM (build x.0.1+11, mixed mode)
in28minutes$>
A successful execution displays the version of Java installed your system. You need to have atleast Java 9 to pursue this book.
You can launch JShell by typing jshell at your terminal.
in28minutes$>jshell
| Welcome to JShell version x.0.1
| For an introduction type: /help intro
jshell>When run, this command displays basic information about the installed JShell program. A jshell prompt then appears, which waits for your input.
The JShell command /help, with a parameter intro, gives you basic guidelines on how you use the tool.
jshell> /help intro
|
| intro
| The jshell tool allows you to execute Java code, getting immediate results.
| You can enter a Java definition (variable, method, class, etc), like: int x =8
| or a Java expression, like: x + x
| or a Java statement or import.
| These little chunks of Java code are called 'snippets'.
| There are also jshell commands that allow you to understand and
| control what you are doing, like: /list
|
| For a list of commands: /help
jshell>Type 3+4 at the Jshell prompt
jshell> 3 + 4
$1 ==> 7
jshell>This was your first real REPL cycle! When you type in 3 + 4, JShell evaluates it and prints the result.
The entity
$1is actually a variable name assigned to the result. We will talk about this later.
The /exit command terminates the JShell program, and we are back to the terminal prompt.
jshell> /exit
| Goodbye
in28minutes$>You can now effortlessly launch, feed code to, and exit from JShell!
in28minutes$> jshell
| Welcome to JShell version 9.0.1
| For an introduction type: /help intro
jshell> /exit
| Goodbye
in28minutes$>In this step, we learned:
- How to launch
JShellfrom our terminal, and run a few commands on it - How to run Java code on the
JShellprompt
Lets try to break down the PMT-Challenge problem to be able to solve it.
5 * 1 = 5
5 * 2 = 10
5 * 3 = 15
5 * 4 = 20
5 * 5 = 25
5 * 6 = 30
5 * 7 = 35
5 * 8 = 40
5 * 9 = 45
5 * 10 = 50
Here is how our draft steps look like
- Calculate
5 * 3and print result as15 - Print
5 * 3 = 15(15is result of previous calculation) - Do this ten times, once for each table entry (going from
1to10)
In this step, we:
- Broke down the PMT-Challenge problem into sub-problems
The first part of solving our PMT-Challenge is to calculate the product of 5 and another number, say 3.
Let's start up jshell and type 5 X 3.
in28minutes$> jshell
| Welcome to JShell version x.0.1
| For an introduction type: /help intro
jshell> 5 X 3
| Error:
| ';' expected
| 5 X 3
| ^
| Error:
| not a statement
| 5 X 3
| ^
| Error:
| ';' expected
| 5 X 3
| ^
| Error:
| missing return statement
| 5 X 3
| ^---^You probably look at the symbol 'X' as a multiplier, remembering your school days.
Java does not identify 'X' as the multiplication operator! Java supports multiplication, but only if you use its predefined operator, *.
Let's type in code shown below:
jshell> 5 * 3
$1 ==> 15
jshell>Success!
Let's look at some terminology:
5 * 3is an expression.5and3are operands. They are also called literals or constant values.*is an operator.
Java also has built-in operators to perform other numerical tasks, such as:
- Addition:
+ - Subtraction:
- - Division:
/ - Modulo arithmetic:
%
The following examples illustrate how to use them.
jshell> 5 * 10
$2 ==> 50
jshell> 5 + 10
$3 ==> 15
jshell> 5 - 10
$4 ==> -5
jshell> 10 / 2
$5 ==> 5
jshell>Your school math memories are still fresh, and the operators don't seem to disappoint either! +, - and / are your bread-and-butter operators.
% is the modulo operator, which gives you the remainder when integer division is performed.
jshell> 9 % 2
$6 ==> 1
jshell> 8 % 2
$7 ==> 0
jshell>Java allows you to use more than one operator within an expression.
Let's look at some simple expressions with multiple operators.
jshell> 5 + 5 + 5
$8 ==> 15
jshell> 5 + 10 - 15
$9 ==> 0
jshell> 5 * 5 + 5
$10 ==> 30
jshell> 5 * 15 / 3
$11 ==> 25Each of above expressions have two operators and three operands.
In this step, we:
- Learned how to construct numeric expressions
- Discovered that operators are predefined symbols
- Combined several operators to form larger expressions
At this stage, your smile tells us that you enjoy evaluating Java expressions. What if we tickle your mind a bit, to make sure it hasn't fallen asleep?
Okay, here comes a couple of programming exercises.
- Write an expression to calculate the number of minutes in a day.
- Write an expression to calculate the number of seconds in a day.
60 (minutes in an hour) multipled by 24 (hours in a day)
jshell> 60 * 24
$1 ==> 144060 (seconds in a minute) multipled by 60 (minutes in an hour) multipled by 24 (hours in a day)
$jshell>60 * 60 * 24
$1 ==> 86400Lets look at a few more examples to understand operators.
Let's type in 5 ** 6 followed by 5 $ 6 in JShell
jshell> 5 ** 6
| Error:
| Illegal start of expression
| 5 ** 6
| ^
jshell> 5 $ 6
| Error:
| ';' expected
| 5 $ 6
| ^
| Error:
| not a statement
| 5 $ 6
| ^
| Error:
| ';' expected
| 5 $ 6
| ^
jshell> 5 */ 6
| Error:
| Illegal start of expression
| 5 */ 6
| ^
JShell was not impressed with our efforts at all!
Java has a set of grammar rules, called its syntax. Code that does not follow these rules throw errors. The compiler informs you by listing the errors, and also provides hints on how you can correct them.
Now, why is an error being thrown?
Operators in Java are all predefined, and limited in number. * is a valid operator, whereas ** and $ were rejected, with error messages.
Let's look at another example:
jshell> 5 / 2
$1 ==> 2
jshell>Surprise, Surprise! JShell seems to evaluate 5 / 2 to 2 instead of 2.5. Where did we go wrong?
Read what follows, with the biggest magnifying lens you can find:
The result of an expression when evaluated, depends on the operator context. This context is determined by the operands passed to it
There are two kinds of numbers typically used in programming : integer (1,2,3,...) and floating-point (1.1,2.3, 56.7889 etc). These values are represented by different types in Java. Integers are commonly of type int, and the floating-point numbers are double by default.
In the expression 5/2, both 5 and 2 are of type int. So, the result is also of type int.
Let's try with a few floating point numbers:
jshell> 5.0 / 2.0
$2 ==> 2.5Both 5.0 and 2.0 are of type double, the result is double. We get a result of 2.5, as expected.
Let's do a mixed operation - using a floating point number and integer.
jshell> 5.0 / 2
$3 ==> 2.5
jshell>Among the types int and double, double is considered to be a wider type. When you perform a numeric operation between two types, the result will be of the wider type.
Let's look at few complex examples of expressions with more than one operator.
jshell> 5 + 5 * 6
$1 ==> 35
jshell> 5 - 2 * 2
$2 ==> 1
jshell> 5 - 2 / 2
$3 ==> 4
jshell>Surprised with the results? You might expect 5 + 5 * 6 evaluate to 10 * 6 i.e. 60. Howeever, we got 35!
We write English left-to-right, and carry this habit to calculations as well.
In expressions with multiple operators, the order of sub-expression evaluation depends on operator precedence.
The basic rules for operator precedence are actually quite simple (we will look at other rules a little later).
The operators in the set {*, /, %} have higher precedence than the operators in the set {+, -}.
In the expression 5 + 5 * 6 : 5*6 is evaluated first. So, 5 + 5 * 6 becomes 5 + 30 i.e. 35.
5 - 2 * 2 and 5 - 2 / 2 are evaluated by following the same rules.
Java provides syntax elements, called parentheses ( and ), to group parts of an expression.
jshell> (5 - 2) * 2
$4 ==> 6
jshell> 5 - (2 * 2)
$5 ==> 1
jshell>When you put an expression in parenthesis, it is evaluated first. (5 - 2) * 2 => 3 * 2 => 6.
Parentheses lead to better readability as they reduce confusion and help avoid errors.
The old adage A stitch in time saves nine rings very true here. Use parentheses to make your code easy to read, even when they might not be necessary.
In this step, we:
- Discovered that operators are all predefined
- Learned that result of operation depends on operand types
- Understood what operator precedence means
- Used parentheses to group parts of an expression
We have computed the product of two literals (as in 5 * 3) in earlier steps.
The next step is to print this result in a customized format - 5 * 3 = 15.
How do we do this?
Let try typing it in into JShell
jshell> 5 * 3 = 15
| Error:
| unexpected type
| required: variable
| found: value
| 5 * 3 = 15
| ^---^Hmm! Error.
How do we print text?
Java has a built-in utility method called System.out.println(), that displays text on the console.
jshell> System.out.println(3*4)
12We formed an expression, 3*4, and passed it to System.out.println(), which is a built-in Java method.
System.out.println(3*4) is an example of a statement. It is a method call.
The syntax rules for method calls are quite strict, and all its parts are mandatory.
jshell> System.out.println3*4)
| Error:
| ';' expected
| System.out.println3*4)
|___________________^
| Error:
| cannot find symbol
| symbol: variable println3
| System.out.println3*4)
| ^---------------------^
jshell> System.out.println 3*4
| Error:
| ';' expected
| System.out.println 3*4
| ^
| Error:
| cannot find symbol
| symbol: variable println
| System.out.println 3*4
| ^----------------^What if we want to print an entry of the Multiplication Table, as part of our solution to PMT-Challenge? In other words, how do we print the exact text 5 * 2 = 10 on the console?
jshell> System.out.println(5 * 2 = 10)
| Error:
| unexpected type
| required: variable
| found: value
| System.out.println(5 * 2 = 10)
|____________________^--------^You wanted to print 5 * 2 = 10 on the console. However, we see that we cannot pass 5 * 2 = 10 as an argument to System.out.println().
5 * 2 = 10 is not a single value. It is a piece of text with numeric characters, * and =.
In Java, we represent text using String. A String literal is a sequence of characters, enclosed within double quotes: " and ".
jshell> System.out.println("5 * 2 = 10")
| 5 * 2 = 10Congratulations! You have now figured out how to display not just numbers on the console, but text as well!
In this step, we:
- Were introduced to the
System.out.println()method for console output - Used this utility to print a single PMT-Challenge table entry
Try and solve the following exercises:
-
Print
Hello Worldonto the console. -
Print
5 * 3, as is. -
Print the calculated value of
5 * 3. -
Print the number of seconds in a day, using the
System.out.printlnmethod. -
Do a syntax revision for the code that you write for each of the above exercises. In your code, identify the following elements:
- Numeric and string literals
- Expressions
- Operators
- Operands
- Method calls
jshell> System.out.println("Hello World")
Hello World jshell> System.out.println("5 * 3")
5 * 3
jshell> jshell> System.out.println(5 * 3)
15 jshell> System.out.println(60 * 60 * 24)
86400The term whitespace refers to any sequence of continuous space, tab or newline characters.
Let's see a few examples of whitespace in action.
Whitespace affects the output when used in-and-around string literals.
jshell> System.out.println("Hello World")
Hello World
jshell> System.out.println("Hello World")
Hello World
jshell> System.out.println("HelloWorld")
HelloWorldWhitespace is ignored by the compiler when used around numeric expressions.
jshell> System.out.println(24 * 60 * 60)
86400
jshell> System.out.println(24 * 60 * 60)
86400
jshell>Java is case sensitive.
System.out.println() involve pre-defined Java elements : the System class name, the out variable name,and the println method name. All are case-sensitive. If any character in these names is used with a different case, you get an error.
jshell> system.out.println("Hello World")
| Error:
| package system does not exist
| system.out.println("Hello World")
| ^-------^
jshell> System.Out.println("Hello World")
| Error:
| cannot find symbol
| symbol: variable Out
| System.Out.println("Hello World")
| ^------------^
jshell> System.out.Println("Hello World")
| Error:
| cannot find symbol
| symbol: method Println(java.lang.string)
| System.out.Println("Hello World")
| ^---------------------^
jshell>Inside a string literal, the case of characters do not cause errors. The literal will be taken in and printed, as-is.
jshell> System.out.println("hello world")
hello world
jshell> System.out.println("HELLO WORLD")
HELLO WORLDAn escape character is a special symbol, used with another regular symbol to form an escape sequence. In Java, the '\' (back-slash) character plays the role of an escape character. This escape sequence changes the original usage of the symbols.
If you want to print the string delimiter, the " character, you need to escape it with a \. Without it, a " character within a string literal causes an error!
jshell> System.out.println("Hello "World")
| Error:
| ')' expected
| System.out.println("Hello "World")
| ^
jshell> System.out.println("Hello \"World")
Hello "World
jshell>The escape sequence \n inserts a newline.
jshell> System. out.println("Hello \n World")
Hello
World
jshell> System.out.println("Hello n World")
Hello n World
jshell> System.out.println("Hello\nWorld")
Hello
World
jshell>The escape sequence \t inserts a tab.
jshell> System.out.println("Hello \t World")
Hello World
jshell> System.out.println("Hello t World")
Hello t World
jshell> System.out.println("Hello\tWorld")
Hello World
jshell>How do you print a \?
jshell> System.out.println("Hello \ World")
| Error:
| illegal escape character
| System.out.println("Hello \ World")
You would need to escape it with another \. Printing \\ outputs the symbol \ to the console.
jshell> System.out.println("Hello \\ World")
Hello \ World
jshell> System.out.println("Hello \\\\ World")
Hello \\ WorldIn this step, we:
- Were introduced to method call syntax, with
System.out.println() - Discovered the uses of whitespace characters
- Learned about Java escape sequences
Let's look at method calls with a few more examples.
You know how to invoke a method with a single argument, courtesy System.out.println(3*4). Other scenarios do exist, such as
- Calling a method without any arguments
- Calling a method with several arguments
Let's check them out, using the built-in methods in Java Math class.
In method calls, parentheses are a necessary part of the syntax. Don't leave them out!
Math.random() prints a random real number in the range [0 .. 1], a different one on each call
jshell> Math.random
| Error:
| cannot find symbol
| symbol: Math.random
| Math.random
| ^------------- ^
jshell> Math.random()
$1 ==> 0.0424279106074651_
jshell> Math.random()
$2 ==> 0.8696879746593543
jshell> Math.random()
$3 ==> 0.8913591586787125How do we call Math.min with two parameters 23 and 45?
jshell> Math.min 23 45
| Error
| cannot find symbol
| symbol: variable min
| Math.min 23 45
| ^---------^
jshell> Math.min(23 45)
| Error
| ')' expected
| Math.min 23 45
| ---------------^While making method calls, the programmer must
- Enclose all the parameters within parentheses
- Separate individual parameters within the list, using the comma symbol '
,'.
jshell> Math.min(23, 45)
$4 ==> 23
jshell> Math.min(23, 2)
$5 ==> 2
jshell> Math.max(23, 45)
$6 ==> 45
jshell> Math.max(23, 2)
$7 ==> 2
jshell>Math.min() returns the minimum of two given numbers. Math.max() returns the maximum of two given numbers.
In this step, we:
- Understood how zero, or multiple parameters are passed during a method call
System.out.println() can accept one value as an argument at a maximum.
To display the multiplication table for 5 with a calculated value, we need a way to print both numbers and strings.
For this we would need to use another built-in method System.out.printf().
When System.out.printf() is called with a single string argument, it prints some illegible information. For now, it suffices to know, that this information is about the built-in type java.io.PrintStream.
jshell> System.out.printf("5 * 2 = 10")
5 * 2 = 10$1 ==> java.io.PrintStream@4e1d422d
jshell>The good news is, that if we call the println() method on this, the illegible stuff disappears.
jshell> System.out.printf("5 * 2 = 10").println()
5 * 2 = 10The method System.out.printf() accepts a variable number of arguments:
- The first argument specifies the print format. This is a string literal, having zero or more format specifiers. A format specifier is a predefined literal (such as
%d), that formats data of a particular type (%dformats data of typeint). - The trailing arguments are expressions,
Lots of theory? Let's break it down. Let's look at an example.
jshell> System.out.printf("5 * 2 = %d", 5*2).println()
5 * 2 = 10
jshell>System.out.printf("5 * 2 = %d", 5*2).println() gives an output 5 * 2 = 10. %d is replaced by the calculated value of 5*2.
Let's play a little more with printf:
jshell> System.out.printf("%d %d %d", 5, 7, 5).println()
5 7 5Let's try to display a calculated value. In the example below 5*7 is calculated as 35.
jshell> System.out.printf("%d %d %d", 5, 7, 5*7).println()
5 7 35Let's use this to print the output in the format that we want to use for multiplication table:
jshell> System.out.printf("%d * %d = %d", 5, 7, 5*7).println()
5 * 7 = 35Congratulations. We are able to calculate 5*7 and print 5 * 7 = 35 successfully.
- Print the following output on the console:
5 + 6 + 7 = 18. Use three literals5,6,7. Calculate 18 as5 + 6 + 7.
jshell> System.out.printf("%d + %d + %d = %d", 5, 6, 7, 5 + 6 + 7).println()
5 + 6 + 7 = 18
jshell>In the example below, there are four format specifiers (%d) and only three value arguments 5, 6, 7.
jshell> System.out.printf("%d + %d + %d = %d", 5, 6, 7).println()
5 + 6 + 7 = | java.util.MissingFormatArgumentException thrown: Format specifier '%d'
| at Formatter.format (Formatter.java:2580)
| at PrintStream.format (PrintStream.java:974)
| at PrintStream.printf (PrintStream.java:870)
| at (#52:1)In a call to System.out.printf(), if the number of format specifiers exceeds the number of trailing arguments, the Java run-time throws an exception.
If the number of format specifiers is less than the number of trailing arguments, the compiler simply ignores the excess ones.
jshell> System.out.printf("%d + %d + %d", 5, 6, 7, 8).println()
5 + 6 + 7
jshell>String values can be printed in System.out.printf(), using the format specifier %s.
jshell> System.out.printf("Print %s", "Testing").println()
Print TestingEarlier, we used %d to print an int value. You cannot use %d to display floating point values.
jshell> System.out.printf("%d + %d + %d", 5.5, 6.5, 7.5).println()
| java.util.IllegalFormatConversionException thrown: d != java.lang.Double
| at Formatter$FormatSpecifier.failedConversion(Formatter.java:4331)
| at Formatter$FormatSpecifier.printInteger(Formatter.java:2846)
| at Formatter$FormatSpecifier.print(Formatter.java:2800)
| at Formatter.format(Formatter.java:2581)
| at PrintStream.format(PrintStream.java:974)
| at PrintStream.print(PrintStream.java:870)
| at #(57:1)Floating point literals (or expressions) can be formatted using %f.
jshell> System.out.printf("%f + %f + %f", 5.5, 6.5, 7.5).println()
5.500000 + 6.500000 + 7.500000
jshell>In this step, we:
- Discovered how to do formatted output, using
System.out.printf() - Stressed on the number and sequence of arguments for formatting
- Explored the built-in format specifiers for primitive types
In the previous steps, we worked out how to print a calculated value as part of our multiplication table.
jshell> System.out.printf("%d * %d = %d", 5, 1, 5 * 1).println()
5 * 1 = 5How do we print the entire multiplication table?
We can do something like this.
jshell> System.out.printf("%d * %d = %d", 5, 1, 5 * 1).println()
5 * 1 = 5
jshell> System.out.printf("%d * %d = %d", 5, 2, 5 * 2).println()
5 * 2 = 10
jshell> System.out.printf("%d * %d = %d", 5, 3, 5 * 3).println()
5 * 3 = 15
jshell> System.out.printf("%d * %d = %d", 5, 4, 5 * 4).println()
5 * 4 = 20
jshell>Too much work. Isn't it?
If you carefully observe the code, these statements are very similar.
What's changing? The number in the third and fourth parameter slots changes from 1 to 4.
Wouldn't it be great to have something to represent the changing value?
Welcome variables.
jshell> int number = 10
number ==> 10
jshell>In the statement int number = 10,
numberis a variable.- The literal
numberis the variable name. - The Java keyword
intspecifies the type ofnumber. - The literal
10providednumberwith an initial value. - This entire statement is a variable definition.
The effects of this variable definition are:
- A specific location in the computer's memory is reserved for
number. - This location can now hold data of type
int. - The value
10is stored here.
You can change the value of number variable:
jshell> number = 11
number ==> 11Above statement is called variable assignment.
An assignment causes the value stored in the memory location to change. In this case, 10 is replaced with the value 11.
You can look up the value of number variable.
jshell> number
number ==> 11You can change the value of a variable multiple times.
jshell> number = 12
number ==> 12
jshell> number
number ==> 12
Let's create another variable:
jshell> int number2 = 100
number2 ==> 100
jshell> number2 = 101
number2 ==> 101
jshell> number2
number2 ==> 101
jshell>The statement int number2 = 100 defines a distinct variable number2.
How do we use variables to simplify and improve the solution to PMT-Challenge?
Let's take a look.
jshell> System.out.printf("%d * %d = %d", 5, 4, 5*4).println()
5 * 4 = 20Let's define a variable i, and initialize it to 1.
jshell>int i = 1
i ==> 1
jshell> i
i ==> 1
jshell> 5*i
$1 ==> 5Let's update the multiplication table printf to use the variable i.
jshell> System.out.printf("%d * %d = %d", 5, i, 5*i).println()
5 * 1 = 5How do we print 5 * 2 = 10?
We update i to 2 and execute the same code as before.
jshell> i = 2
i ==> 2
jshell> 5*i
$2 ==> 10
jshell> System.out.printf("%d * %d = %d", 5, i, 5*i).println()
5 * 2 = 10
jshell>You can update the value of i to any number.
The previous statement would print the corresponding multiple with 5.
jshell> i = 3
i ==> 3
jshell> System.out.printf("%d * %d = %d", 5, i, 5*i).println()
5 * 3 = 15
jshell> i = 10
i ==> 10_
jshell> System.out.printf("%d * %d = %d", 5, i, 5*i).println()
5 * 10 = 50
jshell>By varying the value of i, we are able to print different multiples of 5 with the same statement.
Congratulations! You made a major discovery. Variables.
In this step, we:
- Understood the need for variables
- Observed what different parts of a variable definition mean
- Seen what goes on behind-the-scenes when a variable is defined
- Create three integer variables
a,bandc.- Write a statement to print the sum of these three variables.
- Change the value of
a, and then print this sum. - Then again, change the value of
band print this sum.
jshell>int a = 5
a ==> 5
jshell>int b = 7
b ==> 7
jshell>int c = 11
c ==> 11
jshell>System.out.printf("a + b + c = %d", a+b+c).println()
a + b + c = 23
jshell>a = 2
a ==> 2
jshell>System.out.printf("a + b + c = %d", a+b+c).println()
a + b + c = 20
jshell>b = 9
b ==> 9
jshell>System.out.printf("a + b + c = %d", a+b+c).println()
a + b + c = 22
jshell>
Variables should be declared before use.
jshell>newVariable
| Error:
| cannot find symbol
| symbol: newVariable
| newVariable
^------------^Java is a strongly typed programming language. This means two things:
- Every variable in a program must be declared, with a type.
- Values assigned to a variable should be:
- same type as the variable's type, or
- compatible with the variable's type
jshell> int number = 5.5
| Error:
| incompatible types: possible lossy conversion from double to int
| int number = 5.5
|_____________^---^
jshell>The variable number is an integer, mathematically a number. The constant 5.5 is a number as well.
Why does it result in error?
5.5 is a floating-point number of type double. We are trying to store a double inside a memory slot meant for int.
Let's consider another example:
jshell> int number = "Hello World"
| Error:
| incompatible types: java.lang.String cannot be converted to int
| int number = "Hello World"
|_____________^--------------^
jshell>number is an int variable, and we are trying to store a String value "Hello World". Not allowed.
In this step, we:
- Observed how declaring a variable is important
- Understood the compatibility rules for basic Java types
Giving a value to a variable, during its declaration, is called its initialization.
jshell> int number = 5
number ==> 5
jshell>The statement int number = 5 combines a declaration and the initialization of number.
The next statement int number2 = number is a little different.
jshell> int number2 = number
number2 ==> 5
jshell> number2
number2 ==> 5
jshell>The initial value for number2 is another variable, which is previously defined (number).
Here's what goes on behind the scenes with int number2 = number:
- A memory slot is allocated for
number2with size ofint. - Value stored in
number's slot is copied tonumber2's slot.
In example below, a = 100, c = a + b, a = c are called assignments.
jshell> int a = 5
a ==> 5
jshell> int b = 10
b ==> 10
jshell> a = 100
a ==> 100
jshell> int c
c ==> 0
jshell> c = a + b
c ==> 110
jshell> a = c
a ==> 110
jshell> int d = b + c
d ==> 120
jshell>Variable assignment is allowed to happen in multiple ways:
- From a literal value, to a variable, having compatible types. The statement
a = 100is one such example. - From a variable to another variable, of compatible types.The statement
a = cillustrates this case. - From a variable expression to a variable. This expression can be formed with variables and literals of compatible types, and is evaluated before the assignment. The statement
c = a + bbelow is an example of this.
An assignment to a constant literal is not allowed.
jshell> 20 = var
| Error:
| unexpected type
| required : variable
| found : value
| 20 = var
| ^^
jshell>In this step, we discussed how to provide variables with initial values and the basics of assigment.
The syntax rules for variable definition are quite strict. Do we have any freedom with the way we name variables? The answer is "yes", to some extent.
Here are the Java rules for variable names, in a nutshell:
A variable name can be a sequence, in any order, of
- Letters [
A-Z, a-z] - Numerical digits [
0-9] - The special characters '
$' ("dollar") and '_' ("underscore")
With the following exceptions:
- The name cannot start with a numerical digit [
0-9] - The name must not match with a predefined Java keyword
Let's now see what kinds of errors the compiler throws if you violate these naming rules.
Error : Using a invalid character -
jshell> int test-test
| Error:
| ';' expected
| int test-test
| ^Error : Starting name of a variable with a number
jshell> int 2test
| Error:
| '.class' expected
| int 2test
| ^
| Error:
| not a statement
| int 2test
| ^--^
| Error:
| unexpected type
| required: value
| found: class
| int 2test
| ^--^
| Error:
| missing return statement
| int 2test
| ^-------^
jshell>Error : Using a keyword as the name of variable
In Java, certain special words are called keywords. For example, some of the data types we looked at - int, double. These keywords cannot be used as variable names.
jshell> int int
...> ;
| Error:
| '.class' expected
| int int
| ^
| Error:
| unexpected type
| required: value
| found: class
| int int
| ^--^
| Error:
| missing return statement
| int int
| ^------...Good programmers write readable code. Giving proper names to your variables makes your code easy to read.
In a football scorecard application, using a name s for a score variable is vague. Something like score carries more meaning, and is preferred.
jshell> int s
s ==> 0
jshell> int score
score ==> 0
jshell>The Java community, with its wealth of experience, suggests that programmers follow some naming conventions. Above examples is one of these. Violation of these rules does not result in compilation errors. That's why, these are called conventions.
In Java, another convention is to use CamelCase when we have multiple words in variable name.
jshell> int noOfGoals
noOfGoals ==> 0noOfGoals is easier to read than noofgoals.
Both noOfGoals and NoOfGoals are equally readable.
But in Java, the convention followed is to start variable names with a lower case letter. So, for a variable, noOfGoals is preferred.
*** NOT RECOMMENDED***
jshell> int NoOfGoals
NoOfGoals ==> 0
Your variable names can be very long.
jshell> int iThinkThisIsQuiteALongName
iThinkThisIsQuiteALongName ==> 0
jshell> int iThinkThisIsSuchALongNameThatIMightNeverUseSuchALongNameAgain
iThinkThisIsSuchALongNameThatIMightNeverUseSuchALongNameAgain ==> 0However, avoid using very long variable names.
Use the shortest meaningful and readable name possible for your variables.
In this step, we:
- Explored the Java language rules for variable names
- Understood that there are conventions to guide us
- Looked at a popular variable naming conventions
The table below lists the primitive types in Java.
| Type of Values | Java Primitive Type | Size (in bits) | Range of Values | Example |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Integral Values | byte | 8 | -128 to 127 |
byte b = 5; |
| Integral Values | short | 16 | -32,768 to 32,767 |
short s = 128; |
| Integral Values | int | 32 | -2,147,483,648 to 2,147,483,647 |
int i = 40000; |
| Integral Values | long | 64 | -9,223,372,036,854,775,808 to 9,223,372,036,854,775,807 |
long l = 2222222222; |
| Floating-Point Values | float | 32 | approximately ±3.40282347E+38F. NOT very precise (avoid for financial/scientific math) | float f = 4.0f; |
| Floating-Point Values | double | 64 | approximately ±1.79769313486231570E+308. NOT very precise, but better than float (also avoid for financial/scientific math) | double d = 67.0; |
| Character Values | char | 16 | '\u0000 to '\uffff |
char c = 'A'; |
| Boolean Values | boolean | 1 | true or false |
boolean isTrue = false; |
Let's now look at how we create data of these types, and store them in memory.
We choose type for data, based on:
- The type of data we want to store
- The range of values we would want to store
Note: In the above examples, we used semi-colon
;character at the end. This is the Java statement separator, which is not mandatory inJShellfor single statements. However, it is a must when you use code editors and IDE's, to write Java code.
The only difference among the integer types is their storage capacity.
jshell> byte b = 5
b ==> 5
jshell> short s = 128
s ==> 128
jshell> int i = 40000
i ==> 40000
jshell> long l = 2222222222
l ==> 2222222222
jshell>double is the default type for floating type values with size 64 bits.
jshell> double d = 67.0
d ==> 67.0
float occupies 32 bits. float literals need to have a suffix 'f' (as in 4.0f).
jshell> float f = 4.0f
f ==> 4.0
If this suffix f is omitted, a floating-point number is assumed to be a double. You cannot store a 64 bit value into 32 bits.
jshell> float f2 = 4.0
| Error:
| incompatible types: possible lossy conversion from double to float
| float f2 = 4.0
| ^-^You can store float value in double. Remember, both types store similar kind of values and a float value is only 32 bits where as double has 64 bits.
jshell> double d2 = 67.0f
d2 ==> 67.0
The character type char can store a single character symbol. The symbol must be enclosed within a pair of single quotes, ' and '.
jshell> char c = 'A'
c ==> 'A'Following are a few char declaration errors: Not using single quotes and trying to store multiple characters.
jshell> char ch = A
| Error:
| cannot find symbol
| symbol: variable A
| char ch = A
| ^
jshell> char cab = 'AB'
| Error:
| unclosed character literal
| char cab = 'AB'
| ^
The concept of a boolean type is rooted in mathematical logic. The data type can store two possible values, true and false. Both are case-sensitive labels, but not enclosed in quotes.
jshell> boolean isTrue = false
isTrue ==> false
jshell> isTrue = true
isTrue ==> true
jshell> boolean isFalse = True
| Error:
| cannot find symbol
| symbol: variable True
| boolean isFalse = True
| ^--^
jshell> isFalse = False
| Error:
| cannot find symbol
| symbol: variable False
| isFalse = False
| ^---^boolean data are mostly used in expressions used to form logical conditions in your code. We will talk more about this - when we explore Java conditionals.
In this step, we:
- Looked at the primitive data types provided in Java
- Understood the categories into which these types are divided
- Saw what kind of data can be stored in each primitive type
How do we choose the data type for a variable? Let's look at a few examples.
Consider a sports broadcaster that writes a program to track football scores. In a football game there are two teams playing. A game is generally 90 minutes long, with extra time pushing it to 120 minutes at the most. Practically speaking, the scorelines are never huge. From a practical standpoint, the number of goals scored in a match would never exceed 7200 (the number of seconds in 120 minutes). Playing it a bit safe, a short data type would be enough to store the score of each side (though a byte would be more than enough).
jshell> short numTeamAGoals = 0
numTeamAGoals ==> 0
jshell> short numTeamBGoals = 0
numTeamBGoals ==> 0
jshell>We know that the global count of humans is well over 7 billion now, so the only integer data type that can store it is a long.
jshell> long globalPopulation = 7500000000;
globalPopulation ==> 7500000000
jshell>Rainfall is usually measured in millimeters (mm), and we know computing an average over 30 days is very likely to yield a floating-point number. Hence we can use a float, or for more accuracy, a double to store that average.
jshell> float avgJanRainfall = 31.77f;
avgJanRainfall ==> 31.77
jshell> double averageJanRainfall = 31.77
averageJanRainfall ==> 31.77
jshell>Classroom grades in high school are generally A, B, C , ....
For a program that generates a grade report, a char type would be the best bet.
jshell> char gradeA = 'A'
gradeA ==> 'A'
jshell> char gradeB = 'B'
gradeB ==> 'B'
jshell> char gradeC = 'C'
gradeC ==> 'C'
jshell> char gradeD = 'D'
gradeD ==> 'D'
jshell> char gradeF = 'F'
gradeF ==> 'F'
jshell>A boolean isNumEven is a good bet, with a default initial value of false. It can be changed to true if the number turns out to be even.
jshell> boolean isNumEven
isNumEven ==> false
jshell> isNumEven = true
isNumEven ==> true
jshell>In this step, we:
- Understood how to think while choosing a data type
- Explored cases for integer, floating-point, character and boolean data
We were first exposed to the assignment operator while discussing variable assignment.
We are allowed to use expressions to assign values to variables, using code such as c = a + b.
Let's look at a few additional ways assignment can be done.
jshell> int i = 10
i ==> 10
jshell> int j = 15
j ==> 15
jshell> i = j
i ==> 15
jshell>Let's consider the following example:
jshell> i = i * 2
i ==> 30
jshell>The same variable i appears on both the right-hand-side (RHS) and left-hand-side (LHS). How would that make any sense?
The expression on the RHS is independently evaluated first. The value we get is next copied into the memory slot of the LHS variable.
Using the logic above, the assignment i = i * 2 actually updates the value of i (initially 15) to 30 (doubles it).
Java also does the right thing when it encounters the puzzling statement i = i + i, where i is all over the place! The code doubles the value of i, and this reflects on the JShell output.
jshell> i = i + i
i ==> 60The next example is self explanatory.
jshell> i = i - i
i ==> 0
We have already seen increment by assignment:
jshell> int i = 0
i ==> 0
jshell> i = i + 1
i ==> 1
jshell> i = i + 1
i ==> 2
jshell> i = i + 1
i ==> 3
jshell>Conversely, the statement i = i - 1 is called a variable decrement. This can also be done repeatedly, and i changes value every time.
jshell> i = i - 1
i ==> 2
jshell> i = i - 1
i ==> 1
jshell> i = i - 1
i ==> 0
jshell>
In this step, we:
- Looked at the assignment operator
=in a more formal way - Looked at heavily used scenarios for assignment, such as increment and decrement
Now that we understand how to define, assign to, and use variables in expressions, it's time to push the boundaries a bit. The following examples explore how we could play around with variables in our code.
There are two short-hand versions for increment. number++ denotes post-increment. Conversely, ++number means pre-increment.
Operator ++ can be applied only to variables of integer types, which are byte, short, int and long.
number++ is equivalent to the statement number = number + 1
jshell> int number = 5
number ==> 5
jshell> number++
$1 ==> 5
jshell> number
number ==> 6
jshell> ++number
$2 ==> 7
jshell> number
number ==> 7
jshell>number-- is post-decrement. On the other hand, --number is pre-decrement.
jshell> number--
$3 ==> 7
jshell> number
number ==> 6
jshell> --number
$4 ==> 5
jshell> number
number ==> 5
jshell>What is the difference between prefix and postfix vesions?
Although both prefix and postfix versions achieve the same visible result in above examples, there is a slight difference. We will explore this later.
The compound assignment operator combines the = with a numeric operator.
i += 2 : Add 2 to the current value of i
jshell> int i = 1
i ==> 1
jshell> i = i + 2
i ==> 3
jshell> i += 2
$1 ==> 5
jshell>i -= 1 : Subtract 1 from the current value of i
jshell> i
i ==> 5
jshell> i -= 1
$2 ==> 4
jshell> i
i ==> 4
jshell>i *= 4 : Multiply i with 4, and store the result back into i
jshell> i *= 4
$3 ==> 20
jshell> i
i ==> 20
jshell>i /= 4 : Divide i by 4, and store the result back into i
jshell> i /= 4
$4 ==> 5
jshell> i
i ==> 5
jshell>i %= 2 : Divide i by 2, and store the remainder back into i
jshell> i %= 2
$5 ==> 1
jshell> i
i ==> 1
jshell>In the step, we:
- Looked at the built-in Java increment and decrement operators
- Explored the side-effects of prefix and postfix versions of these operators
- Seen the advantages of compound assignment
- Shortcuts
- Toggling to limits of current prompt entry
- '
Ctrl+a' : to start of line - '
Ctrl+e' : to end of line
- '
- Moving up and down history of completed prompt inputs
- up-arrow key : move back in time
- down-arrow key : move forward in time
- Reverse-keyword-search
- Search for a term, in reverse order of JShell prompt inputs history : input '
Ctrl+r' - Scrolling within matches (in reverse order of history) : repeatedly input '
Ctrl+r'
- Search for a term, in reverse order of JShell prompt inputs history : input '
- Toggling to limits of current prompt entry
/exit: resets and exits the JShell session, clearing all stored variables values.- JShell internal variables :
$1,$2, and so on.- When expressions involving literals and/or previously declared variables are entered as-is, without assignment, those expressions are still evaluated. The result is stored in such an internal variable, and is available for use until the JShell session is reset.
- Variable Declaration rules relaxation
- Single Java statements need not be terminated with the separator '
;'. - If multiple statements are entered on a single line at the prompt, successive statements must be separated by the '
;'. However, the trailing ';' can still be omitted.
- Single Java statements need not be terminated with the separator '
In this step, we:
- Explored some useful keyboard shortcuts for
JShellcommands - Understood the idea behind
JShellinternal variables - Observed how
JShellreduces typing effort, by relaxing some coding rules
The PMT-Challenge needs us to print a total of 10 table entries. The for loop is a suitable iteration mechanism to get this done. The word loop means exactly what the English dictionary says.
As i varies from 1 through 10, do some stuff involving i
For the PMT-Challenge, do some stuff would be the call to System.out.printf().
The way a for loop is structured is:
for(initialization; condition; update) {
statement1;
statement2;
}Here's how above code runs
- Execute
initializationcode. - If
conditionevaluates to true, executestatements. Else, go out of loop. - Execute
update - Repeat 2 and 3
Does it sound complex? Let's break it down.
Let's start with understanding what condition is all about.
condition represents a logical value(a true or a false).
Turns out Java has a class of logical operators, which can be used with operands within logical expressions, evaluating to a boolean value.
While in school, you probably used the = symbol to compare numbers.
The world of Java is a little different. = is assignment operator. == is the comparison operator.
jshell> int i = 10
i ==> 10
jshell> i == 10
$1 ==> true
jshell> i == 11
$2 ==> falseThese are other comparison operators as well, such as < and >.
jshell> i < 5
$3 ==> false
jshell> i > 5
$4 ==> true<= and >= are simple extensions.
jshell> i <= 5
$4 ==> false
jshell> i <= 10
$5 ==> true
jshell> i >= 10
$6 ==> true
jshell>We would want to execute specific lines of code only when a condition is true.
Enter if statement.
An if statement is structured this way:
if (condition) {
statement;
}statement is executed only if condition evaluates to true.
Typically, all the code that we write is executed always.
In the example below, i is less than 5 is always printed.
jshell> int i = 10
i ==> 10
jshell> System.out.println("i is less than 5")
i is less than 5Using the if statement, we can control the execution of System.out.println("i is less than 5");.
jshell> if (i < 5)
...> System.out.println("i is less than 5");
jshell> The condition i < 5 will evaluate to false, since i is currently 10. Nothing is printed to console.
Let's change i to 4 and execute the if condition.
jshell> i = 4
i ==> 4
jshell> if (i < 5)
...> System.out.println("i is less than 5");
i is less than 5
jshell>i is less than 5 is printed to console.
By controlling the value stored in the variable i, we are able to control whether the statement System.out.println("i is less than 5"); actually runs.
Hurrah! We just achieved conditional execution!
Just as we can compare a variable with a literal, it is possible to compare the values of two variables. The same set of comparison operators, namely ==, <, >, <= and >= can be used.
jshell> int number1 = 5
number1 ==> 5
jshell> int number2 = 7
number2 ==> 7
jshell> if (number2 > number1)
...> System.out.println("number2 is greater than number1");
number2 is greater than number1
jshell> number2 = 3
number2 ==> 3
jshell> if (number2 > number1)
...> System.out.println("number2 is greater than number1");
jshell>In this step, we:
- Understood the need for a conditionals
- Were introduced to the concept of logical expressions, and conditional operators
- Explored usage of the Java
ifstatement
-
Create four integer variables
a,b,candd. Write anifstatement to print if the sum ofaandbis greater than the sum ofcandd. -
Store three numerical values as proposed angles of a triangle in integer variables
angle1,angle2andangle3. Create anifstatement to state whether these three angles together can form a triangle.Hint: A triangle is a closed geometric figure with three angles, whose sum must exactly equal
180 degrees. -
Have a variable store an integer. Create an
ifstatement to find out if it's an even number.Hint: Use operator
%.
jshell> int a = 5
a ==> 5
jshell> int b = 7
b ==> 7
jshell> int c = 4
c ==> 4
jshell> int d = 3
d ==> 3
jshell> if (a + b > c + d)
...> System.out.println("a and b together tower above c plus d");
a and b together tower above c plus d
jshell> jshell> int angleOne = 55
angleOne ==> 55
jshell> int angleTwo = 65
angleOne ==> 55
jshell> int angleThree = 60
angleOne ==> 55
jshell> if (angleOne + angleTwo + angleThree == 180)
...> System.out.println("The three angles together form a triangle");
The three angles together form a triangle
jshell> angleThree = 75
angleOne ==> 55
jshell> if (angleOne + angleTwo + angleThree == 180)
...> System.out.println("The three angles together form a triangle");
jshell> jshell> int num = 10
num ==> 10
jshell> if (num % 2 == 0)
...> System.out.println("The number is even");
The number is even
jshell> num++
num ==> 11
jshell> if (num % 2 == 0)
...> System.out.println("The number is even");
jshell>Let's look at a few more examples of if statements.
Here's a basic example of conditional execution.
jshell> int i = 5
i ==> 5
jshell> if (i == 5)
...> System.out.println("i is odd");
i is oddLet's add two statements to the second line.
jshell> if (i == 5)
...> System.out.println("i is odd"); System.out.println("i is prime");
i is odd
i is prime
jshell>Both text messages are printed out.
Let's change value of i to 6 and execute again.
jshell> i = 6
i ==> 6
jshell> if (i == 5)
...> System.out.println("i is odd"); System.out.println("i is prime");
i is prime
jshell>i is prime is printed to console. Why?
Why is this statement executed when the condition is false?
The if statement, by default, binds only to the next statement.
It does not control the execution of System.out.println("i is prime");, which in fact runs unconditionally, always.
Is there a way we can ensure conditional execution of a two statements? And more than two?
We seem to have pulled a rabbit out of the hat here, haven't we! The rabbit lies in the pair of braces : '{' and '}'.
They are used to group a sequence of statements together, into a block. Depending on the condition value (true or false), either all the statements in this block are run, or none at all.
jshell> int i = 5
i ==> 5
jshell> if (i == 5) {
...> System.out.println("i is odd");
...> System.out.println("i is prime");
...> }
i is odd
i is prime
jshell> i = 6
i ==> 6
jshell> if (i == 5) {
...> System.out.println("i is odd");
...> System.out.println("i is prime");
...> }
jshell>It is considered good programming practice to always use blocks in an if conditional. Here is an example:
if (i == 5) {
System.out.println("i is odd");
}A block can also consist of a single statement! This improves readability of code.
In this step, we:
- Saw the importance of using statement blocks with
ifconditionals - Understood how control flow can be made more readable
The PMT-Challenge needs us to print a total of 10 table entries. The for loop is a suitable iteration mechanism to get this done.
The word loop means exactly what the English dictionary says.
As i varies from 1 through 10, do some stuff involving i
for loop is built this way:
for(initialization; condition; update) {
statement1;
statement1;
}Here's how above code runs:
- Execute
initializationcode. - If
conditionevaluates to true, executestatements. Else, go out of loop. - Execute
update - Repeat 2 and 3
We've already seen these components in isolation:
- initialization :
int i = 1 - condition :
i <= 10 - update :
i++
Let's now put them together to get the bigger picture. Here is how it might look:
for (int i = 1; i <= 10; i++) {
System.out.println("Hello World");
}This loop, when executed, prints the message "Hello World" on a separate line, for a total of 10 times.
We need to replace the "Hello World" message with the console print of a table entry. This print is controlled by i taking values from 1 through 10.
jshell> int i
i ==> 0
jshell> for (i=0; i<=10; i++) {
...> System.out.printf("%d * %d = %d", 5, i, 5*i).println();
...> }
5 * 1 = 5
5 * 2 = 10
5 * 3 = 15
5 * 4 = 20
5 * 5 = 2
5 * 6 = 30
5 * 7 = 35
5 * 8 = 40
5 * 9 = 45
5 * 10 = 50- The first step is the initialization:
i = 1. - After this, the statement
System.out.printf("%d * %d = %d", 5, i, 5*i).println();is executed once. - Then, the update occurs:
i++. - Immediately after, the condition
i<=10is evaluated. It returnstrue. Progress happens. Since it is aforloop, the statement is executed again. - Thereafter, this sequence is executed until
igets a value of11(due to successive updates). - The moment
ireaches11, , the condition becomesfalse. The looping within theforterminates.
Meanwhile, the Multiplication Table for 5, for entries 1 through 10 has been displayed!
Now, wasn't that really elegant? It sure was!
Let's pat ourselves on the back for having reached this stage of learning. This elegant, yet powerful technique (loops) is used in almost every Java program that's written.
In this step, we:
- Observed why we need a looping construct, such as the
for - Understood the mechanism of a
forloop - Used a
forloop in iteration, to solve our PMT-Challenge
- Repeat the entire process at arriving at the Multiplication Table Print problem, now for the number
7. Start with a freshJShellsession, if you're still using an existing one for quite some time (Rinse, and repeat!). - Use the final solution to print Multiplication Tables for
6and10. - Print the integers from
1to10. - Print the integers from
10to1. - Print the squares of the integers from
1to10. - Print the squares of the first
10even integers. - Print the squares of the first
10odd integers.
jshell> int i
i ==> 0
jshell> for (i=0; i<=10; i++) {
...> System.out.printf("%d * %d = %d", 6, i, 6*i).println();
...> }
6 * 1 = 6
6 * 2 = 12
6 * 3 = 18
6 * 4 = 24
6 * 5 = 30
6 * 6 = 36
6 * 7 = 42
6 * 8 = 48
6 * 9 = 54
6 * 10 = 60
jshell> i = 0
i ==> 0
jshell> for (i=0; i<=10; i++) {
...> System.out.printf("%d * %d = %d", 10, i, 10*i).println();
...> }
10 * 1 = 10
10 * 2 = 20
10 * 3 = 30
10 * 4 = 40
10 * 5 = 50
10 * 6 = 60
10 * 7 = 70
10 * 8 = 80
10 * 9 = 90
10 * 10 = 100 jshell> for (int i=1; i<=10; i++) {
...> System.out.printf(i).println();
...> }
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10This is the first time we are using i--. Isn't this interesting?
jshell> for (int i=10; i>0; i--) {
...> System.out.printf(i).println();
...> }
10
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1 jshell> for (int i=1; i<=10; i++) {
...> System.out.printf(i*i).println();
...> }
1
4
9
16
25
36
49
64
81
100update of a for loop can do a lot of things. Here, we are using i += 2.
jshell> for (int i=2; i<20; i += 2)
...> System.out.printf(i*i).println();
...> }
4
16
36
64
100
144
196
256
324
400 jshell> for (int i=1; i<=19; i += 2) {
...> System.out.printf(i*i).println();
...> }
1
9
25
49
81
121
169
225
289
361In the conceptual form of the for construct:
for (initialization; condition; updation) {
statement;
statement;
//...
statement;
}It may surprise you that each one of initialization, condition, updation and statements block is optional. They can all be left out individually, in combination, or all altogether!! Let's examine a few interesting cases in code.
- Empty initialization, Empty Statement
Increments the control variable in quick succession until the condition evaluates to false.
jshell> int i = 1
i ==> 1
jshell> for (; i<=10; i++);
jshell> i
i ==> 11
jshell>- Multiple initializations, Empty Statement
You can have multiple statements in initialization and update separated by ,.
jshell> int j
i ==> 11
jshell> for (i=1, j=2; i<=10; i++, j++);
jshell> i
i ==> 11
jshell> j
j ==> 12
jshell>In the example below, i is incremented and j is decremented.
jshell> for (i=1, j=2; i<=10; i++, j--);
jshell> i
i ==> 11
jshell> j
j ==> -8
jshell>- Infinite Loop
An infinite loop is one where the condition is left empty. An empty condition always evaluates to true. Since a for loop only terminates when the condition becomes false, such a loop this never terminates.
It can only be terminated externally with a keyboard interrupt (CTRL + c).
jshell> for (;;);
^C
jshell>- Statement Block in for
As in case of the if conditional statement, we can have statement blocks in for loops as well. As before, we enclose the statement set between braces ('{' and '}'). The statements are executed repeatedly, in the same order as they appear in the block.
jshell> for (i=1; i<=5; i++) {
...> System.out.println("No 1");
...> System.out.println("No 2");
...> }
No 1
No 2
No 1
No 2
No 1
No 2
No 1
No 2
No 1
No 2In this step, we saw that all components of a for loop are optional:
- initialization
- condition
- updation
- statement block
Before we go further, let's quickly get a Big Picture of what we are doing here!
A computer is a machine that does a job for you and me. It is can be used to run tasks that we find complicated, time-consuming, or even boring! For instance, a laptop can play music from a CD, videos from the web, or fire a print job.
We have mobile phones around us, which are mini versions of computers. Then there are others, ranging from blood-sugar monitors to weather-forecast systems. Computers surround us, wherever we go!
Any computer is made up of two basic layers:
- The hardware: Consists of all the electronic and mechanical parts of the computer, including the electronic circuits.
- The software: Describes the instructions fed into the computer, which are stored and run on its hardware.
If the human body were a computer,
- Its hardware would consist of the various organs (such as limbs, blood and heart)
- Its software would be the signals from the nervous system, which drive these organs.
Computer programming involves writing software instructions to run tasks on a computer. The user who gives these instructions is called the programmer. Often, computer programming involves solving challenging, and very interesting problems.
In the previous steps, we introduced you to the basic Java language concepts and constructs.
We solved a programming challenge, the PMT-Challenge using basic Java constructs.
We used JShell REPL to learn the following concepts, Step by-step:
- Expressions, Operators and Statements
- Variables and Formatted Output
- Conditionals and Loops
At each step, we applied fresh knowledge to enhance our solution to the PMT-Challenge
Hope you liked the journey thus far. Next sections delve deeper into Java features, using the same Step by-step approach. We will catch up again soon, hopefully!
Feeling good about where you are right now? You just created an elegant, yet powerful solution to the PMT-Challenge, using:
- Operators, variables and expressions
- Built-in formatted output
- Conditionals for control-flow, and
- Iteration through loops
And guess what we ended up with? A good-looking display of a Multiplication Table! There's a good chance people in your circles want to see it, use it and maybe share it among their friends.
However, some might be unhappy that it works only for 5, and not for 8 and 7. Maybe it would, but then they would need to type in those lines of code again. This might disappoint them, and your new found popularity would slide downhill.
Surely a more elegant solution exists, a pattern waiting to unravel itself.
Exist it does, and the mechanism to use it lies with Java methods. A method is a feature that allows you to group together a set of statements, and give it a name. This name represents the functionality of that set, which can be re-used when necessary.
A method is essentially a routine that performs a certain task, and can do it any number of times it is asked to. It may also return a result for the task it performs. The syntax for a method definition is along these lines:
ReturnType methodName () {
method-body
}
Where
methodNameis the name of the routinemethod-bodyis the set of statements- a pair of braces
{and}enclosemethod-body ReturnTypeis the type ofmethodName's return value
In this step, we:
- Examined the need for labeling code, and its reuse
- Learned that a Java method fits the bill
- Saw how a method definition looks like, conceptually
We will start off, by writing a simple method that prints "Hello World" twice on your screen.
jshell> void sayHelloWorldTwice() {
...> System.out.println("Hello World");
...> System.out.println("Hello World");
...> }
| created method sayHelloWorldTwice()A little bit of theory:
- Above code for the method is called method definition.
voidindicates that the method does not return any computed result - We will examine return values from methods, a little later.
When the code ran, it didn't exactly welcome us twice, did it? All we got was a boring message from JShell, mumbling created method sayHelloWorldTwice().
That's because defining a method does NOT execute its statement body.
Since the statement block is not stand-alone anymore, its functionality needs to be invoked. This is done by writing a method call.
Let's look at a few examples for method calls.
jshell> sayHelloWorldTwice
| Error:
| cannot find symbol
| symbol: variable sayHelloWorldTwice
| sayHelloWorldTwice
| ^----------------^
jshell> sayHelloWorldTwice()
Hello World
Hello World
All that we had to do was to add parantheses to name of the method.
The trailing '
;' can be left out inJShell, and is another example of syntax rules being relaxed.
Method names need to follow the same rules as variable names.
In this step we:
- Got our hands dirty coding our first method
- Learned that defining and invoking methods are two different steps
Let's now reinforce our basic understanding of methods, by trying out a few exercises.
-
Write and execute a method named
sayHelloWorldThriceto printHello Worldthrice. -
Write and execute a method that prints the following four statements:
I've created my first variableI've created my first loopI've created my first methodI'm excited to learn Java
jshell> void sayHelloWorldThrice() {
...> System.out.println("Hello World");
...> System.out.println("Hello World");
...> System.out.println("Hello World");
...> }
| created method sayHelloWorldThrice()
jshell> sayHelloWorldThrice()
Hello World
Hello World
Hello World
jshell> void sayFourThings() {
...> System.out.println("I've created my first variable");
...> System.out.println("I've created my first loop");
...> System.out.println("I've created my first method");
...> System.out.println("I'm excited to learn Java");
...> }
| created method sayFourThings()
jshell> sayFourThings()
I've created my first variable
I've created my first loop
I've created my first method
I'm excited to learn Java jshell> void sayHelloWorldTwice() {
...> System.out.println("Hello World");
...> System.out.println("Hello World");
...> }
| created method sayHelloWorldTwice()The /methods command lists out the methods defined in the current session.
jshell> /methods
| void sayHelloWorldTwice()
jshell>
The /list command lists the code of the specified method.
jshell> /list sayHelloWorldTwice
59 : void sayHelloWorldTwice() {
System.out.println("HELLO WORLD");
System.out.println("HELLO WORLD");
}
jshell>The /edit command allows you to modify the method definition, in a separate editor window.
jshell> /edit sayHelloWorldTwice
| modified method sayHelloWorldTwice
jshell> sayHelloWorldTwice()
HELLO WORLD
HELLO WORLD
jshell>The /save method takes a file name as a parameter. When run, it saves the session method definitions to a file.
jshell> /save backup.txt
jshell> /exit
| Goodbye
in28minutes$>In this step, we explored a few JShell tips that make life easier for you while defining methods
We wrote the method sayHelloWorldTwice to say Hello World twice. In the programming exercise, we wanted to print Hello World thrice and we wrote a new method sayHelloWorldThrice.
Imagine you're in the Java classroom, where your teacher wants to test your Java skills by saying:
"I want you to print Hello World an arbitrary number of times".
Now, that probably would test your patience as well!
How to write a method to print Hello World an arbitrary number of times?
The thing to note is the word "arbitrary", which means the method body should have no clue! This number has to come from outside the method, which can only happen with a method call.
External input to a method is given as a method argument, or parameter.
To support arguments during a call, the concept of a method needs to be tweaked to:
ReturnType methodName(ArgType argName) {
method-body
}The only addition to the concept of a method, is the phrase
ArgType argName
within the parentheses. argName represents the argument, and ArgType is its type. The next example should clear the air for you.
Let's look at a method definition using an argument numOfTimes.
jshell> void sayHelloWorld(int numOfTimes) {
...> }
| created method sayHelloWorld(int)Let's try to call the method.
jshell> sayHelloWorld()
| Error:
| method sayHelloWorld in class cannot be applied to given types;
| required : int
| found : no arguments
| reason : actual and formal argument lists differ in length
| sayHelloWorld(
|^-----------------^
jshell> sayHelloWorld(1)
jshell>Method call must include the same number and types of arguments, that it is defined to have. sayHelloWorld() is an error because sayHelloWorld is defined to accept one parameter. sayHelloWorld(1) works.
However, the method does not do anything. Isn't it sad?
The next example will show you how method body code can access arguments passed during a call. Not only that, the argument values can be used during computations.
void sayHelloWorld(int numOfTimes) {
System.out.println(numOfTimes);
}System.out.println(numOfTimes) prints the value of argument passed.
A method can be invoked many times within a program, and each time different values could be passed to it. The following example will illustrate this fact.
jshell> sayHelloWorld(1)
1
jshell> sayHelloWorld(2)
2
jshell> sayHelloWorld(4)
4
jshell> /edit sayHelloWorld
| modified method sayHelloWorld(int)
jshell>Code inside a method can be any valid Java code! For instance, you could write code for iteration, such as a for loop.
Let's look at an example:
void sayHelloWorld(int numOfTimes) {
for (int i=1; i<=numOfTimes; i++) {
System.out.println(numOfTimes);
}
}In the above example, we printed numOfTimes a total of numOfTimes for each method call.
We print 2 two times and 4 four times.
jshell> sayHelloWorld(2)
2
2
jshell> sayHelloWorld(4)
4
4
4
4
jshell>We wanted to print "Hello World" multiple times. Let's update the method:
void sayHelloWorld(int numOfTimes) {
for (int i=1; i<=numOfTimes; i++) {
System.out.println("Hello World");
}
}Isn't this cool?
jshell> sayHelloWorld(1)
Hello World
jshell> sayHelloWorld(2)
Hello World
Hello World
jshell> sayHelloWorld(4)
Hello World
Hello World
Hello World
Hello World
jshell>You can now proudly demonstrate this code to your Java instructor. Your program can print "Hello World" an arbitrary number of times!
What started off giving you a headache, will probably keep you in her good books, for the rest of your course!
Armed with this confidence booster, let's now see how Java treats mistakes you may make. .
Java is a strongly typed language, with strict rules laid out for type compatibility. We saw that with variables, and how they play out with expressions and assignments. The same type compatibility rules are enforced by the compiler, when it needs to match the arguments from method calls with method definition.
jshell> sayHelloWorld("value")
| Error:
| incompatible types: java.lang.String cannot be converted to int
| sayHelloWorld("value")
| ^-----^
jshell> sayHelloWorld(4.5)
| Error:
| incompatible types: possibly lossy conversion from double to int
| sayHelloWorld(4.5)
| ^-^
jshell>In this step, we:
- Understood why Java supports method arguments, and how we may use them
- Observed how method arguments lead to convenience and reuse
- Decided to abide by type compatibility for actual arguments
- Write a method
printNumbers(int n)that prints all successive integers from1ton. - Write a method
printSquaresOfNumbers(int n)that prints the squares of all successive integers from1ton.
jshell> void printNumbers(int n) {
...> for(int i=0; i< n; i++) {
...> System.out.println(i);
...> }
...> }
| created method printNumbers(int)
jshell>
jshell> void printSquaresOfNumbers(int n) {
...> for(int i=0; i< n; i++) {
...> System.out.println(i*i);
...> }
...> }
| created method printSquaresOfNumbers(int)
jshell>A method, in its own right, provides an elegant way to name and reuse a code block. In addition, its behavior can be controlled with parameters.
Can we top-up the existing solution to the PMT-Challenge, with even more elegance? You're right, we're talking about:
- Writing a method to print the multiplication table for 5.
- Using this method to print the multiplication table for any number.
Want to take a look? Dive right in.
Here's what we did earlier:
jshell> for (int i=1; i<=10; i++) {
...> System.out.printf("%d * %d = %d", 5, i, 5*i).println();
...> }
5 * 1 = 5
5 * 2 = 10
5 * 3 = 15
5 * 4 = 20
5 * 5 = 25
5 * 6 = 30
5 * 7 = 35
5 * 8 = 40
5 * 9 = 45
5 * 10 = 50Let's wrap this in a method:
void printMultiplicationTable() {
for (int i=1; i<=10; i++) {
System.out.printf("%d * %d = %d", 5, i, 5*i).println();
}
}You can call it to print 5 table.
jshell> printMultiplicationTable()
5 * 1 = 5
5 * 2 = 10
5 * 3 = 15
5 * 4 = 20
5 * 5 = 25
5 * 6 = 30
5 * 7 = 35
5 * 8 = 40
5 * 9 = 45
5 * 10 = 50
jshell>
In this step, we:
- Revisited the PMT-Challenge solution we had earlier
- Enclosed its logic within a method definition,
printMultiplicationTable() - Haven't fully explored its power yet!
The real power of a definition such as printMultiplicationTable() is when we arm it with arguments. Not verbal arguments, but "value" ones. That's right!
We will modify printMultiplicationTable() to have it accept a parameter, which would make it more flexible.
void printMultiplicationTable(int number) {
for (int i=1; i<=10; i++) {
System.out.printf("%d * %d = %d", number, i, number*i).println();
}
}We can now print the multiplication table of any number, by calling the method printMultiplicationTable(number).
jshell> printMultiplicationTable(6)
6 * 1 = 6
6 * 2 = 12
6 * 3 = 18
6 * 4 = 24
6 * 5 = 30
6 * 6 = 36
6 * 7 = 42
6 * 8 = 48
6 * 9 = 54
6 * 10 = 60
jshell>
Nothing new to explain here. We have only combined stuff you have been learning so far, most recently adding the flavor of methods to the existing code.
Soak in the power, simplicity and elegance of this program, folks!
It turns out we can call both versions of the method, printMultiplicationTable() and printMultiplicationTable(5) :
jshell> printMultiplicationTable()
5 * 1 = 5
5 * 2 = 10
5 * 3 = 15
5 * 4 = 20
5 * 5 = 25
5 * 6 = 30
5 * 7 = 35
5 * 8 = 40
5 * 9 = 45
5 * 10 = 50
jshell>and
jshell> printMultiplicationTable(5)
5 * 1 = 5
5 * 2 = 10
5 * 3 = 15
5 * 4 = 20
5 * 5 = 25
5 * 6 = 30
5 * 7 = 35
5 * 8 = 40
5 * 9 = 45
5 * 10 = 50
jshell>You can have multiple methods with same name but different number of parameters. This is called method overloading.
In this step, we:
- Enhanced the logic of
printMultiplicationTable()by passing arguments - Added flexibility to the PMT-Challenge solution
- Were introduced to the concept of method overloading
It is possible, and pretty useful, to define methods that accept more than one argument.
We have already seen how to call two in-built Java methods, Math.max and Math.min, which accept 2 arguments each.
Time now to enrich our understanding, by writing one such method ourselves as well.
A method void sum(int, int) that computes the sum of two integers, and prints their output.
jshell> void sum(int firstNum, int secondNum) {
...> int sum = firstNum + secondNum;
...> System.out.println(sum);
...> }
| created method sum(int, int)
jshell> sum(5, 10)
15
jshell>A method void sum(int, int, int) that computes the sum of three integers, and prints their output.
jshell> void sum(int firstNum, int secondNum, int thirdNum) {
...> int sum = firstNum + secondNum + thirdNum;
...> System.out.println(sum);
...> }
| created method sum(int,int,int)
jshell> sum(5, 10, 15)
30There are overloaded methods. They have same name sum and have different number of arguments.
In this step, we:
- Used our understanding of method overloading to define our own methods
A method can also be coded to return the result of its computation. Such a result is called a return value.
A lot of built-in Java methods have return values, the most notable we have seen being Math.min() and Math.max().
jshell> Math.max(15, 25)
$1 ==> 25
jshell> $1
$1 ==> 25Math.max() does return a value, which is stored in the JShell variable $1.
A return mechanism is quite important, as it provides you the flexibility of:
- Sharing computed results with other code and methods
- Improving the breaking down of a problem, into sub-problems
The next example explains how you can collect a method's return value.
jshell> int max = Math.max(15, 25)
max ==> 25
jshell> max
max ==> 25
jshell>We are storing the return value in a variable int max.
We could define our own method that returns a value, in a similar manner. In the method sumOfTwoNumbers above, instead of displaying sum at once, we could return it to the calling-code.
jshell> int sumOfTwoNumbers(int firstNum, int secondNum) {
...> int sum = firstNum + secondNum;
...> return sum;
...> }
| created method sumOfTwoNumbers(int,int)
jshell> sumOfTwoNumbers(1, 10)
$2 => 11The statement return sum; is called a return statement.
When the code sum = sumOfTwoNumbers(1, 10) is run, sum collects the result returned by sumOfTwoNumbers(). You could now print sum on the console, store it in another variable, or even invoke a different method by passing it as an argument!
jshell> sum = sumOfTwoNumbers(1, 10)
sum => 11_
jshell> sum = sumOfTwoNumbers(15, 15)
sum => 30
jshell>
In this step, we:
- Understood the need for a return mechanism with methods
- Explored the syntax for a return statement
- Wrote our own method
sumOfTwoNumbers()with a return value, and saw how it became more flexible
Let's now try a few exercises on methods that return values.
- Write a method that returns the sum of three integers.
- Write a method that takes as input two integers representing two angles of a triangle, and computes the third angle. Hint: The sum of the three angles of a triangle is 180 degrees.
jshell> int sumOfThreeNumbers(int firstNum, int secondNum, int thirdNum) {
...> int sum = firstNum + secondNum + thirdNum;
...> return sum;
...> }
| created method sumOfThreeNumbers(int,int, int)
jshell> jshell> int getThirdAngle(int firstAngle, int secondAngle) {
...> int sumOfTwo = firstAngle + secondAngle;
...> return 180 - sum;
...> }
| created method getThirdAngle(int,int)
jshell>
In this section, we introduced you to the concept of methods in Java.
- We understood that methods are routines that perform a unit of computation. They group a set of statements together into a block, and need to be run by being invoked, through a method call.
- We can define methods that accept no arguments, a single argument and multiple arguments.
- A method can also be defined to return results of its computation, and this makes it your program more flexible.
JShell is amazing to start with the basics of Java programming. It abstracts all complexities behind writing, compiling and running Java code.
What's happening behind the screens? Let's find out.
A computer only understands binary code, which are sequences of 0’s and 1’s (called bits). All instructions to a computer should be converted to 0’s and 1’s before execution.
When we wrote our code in JShell, how was it converted to binary code?
We write our programs in a high-level language, such as Java, as it is easier to learn, remember and maintain.
Who converts it to binary code?
Typically, Compiler is a program which understands the syntax of your programming language and converts it into binary code.
Java designers wanted it to be Platform independent. Compile the code once and run it anywhere.
However, different Operating Systems have different instruction sets - different binary code.
Java provides an interesting solution:
- All Java compilers translate source code to an intermediate representation ( bytecode ).
- To run Java programs (bytecode), you need a JVM (Java Virtual Machine).
- JVM understands bytecode and runs it.
- There are different JVM's for different operating systems. Windows JVM converts bytecode into Windows executable instructions. Linux JVM converts bytecode into Linux executable instructions.
The Java compiler translates Java source code to bytecode, which is stored as a .class file on the computer.
In this step, we:
- Understood the role of the Java compiler in translating source code
- Realized the need for an Intermediate Representation (IR) such as bytecode
- Understood how the (Compiler + JVM + OS) combination ensure source code portability
First, let's understand the concept of a class.
Let's consider an example:
A Country is a concept. India, USA and Netherlands are examples or instances of Country.
Similarly, a class is a template. Objects are instances of a class.
We will discuss more about class and object in the section on Object Oriented Programming.
The syntax to create a class, and its objects, is very simple.
jshell> class Country {
...> }
created class CountryLet's create an instance of the class:
jshell> Country india = new Country();
india ==> Country@6e06451eThe syntax is simple - ClassName objectName = new ClassName().
india is an object of type Country, and is stored in memory at a location indicated by 6e06451e.
Let's create a few more instances of the class:
jshell> Country usa = new Country();
usa ==> Country@6e1567f1
jshell> Country netherlands = new Country();
netherlands ==> Country@5f134e67
jshell>india, usa and netherlands are all different objects of type Country.
We actually left the contents of the class Country bare.
A class does often include both data (member variables) and method definitions. More on this at a relevant time.
Let's consider another example:
jshell> class Planet {
...>}
created class Planet
jshell> Planet planet = new Planet();
planet ==> Planet@56ef9176
jshell> Planet earth = new Planet();
earth ==> Planet@1ed4004b
jshell> Planet planet = new Planet();
venus ==> Planet@25bbe1b6We can also create a class for a different concept, like a Planet.
Planet is now a different template. planet, earth and venus are instances of Planet class.
In this step, we:
- Saw how
classcreation actually creates a new type - Understood how to create instances of classes - objects
A method defined within a class, denotes an action than can be performed on objects of that class.
Let's define a method inside Planet - to revolve()!
jshell> class Planet {
...> void revolve() {
...> System.out.println("Revolve");
...> }
...> }
replaced class Planet
update replaced variable planet, reset to null
update replaced variable earth, reset to null
update replaced variable venus, reset to nullSyntax of revolve() is similar to other methods we've created before.
The
classtemplate got updated as a result of adding new method. Earlier instancesplanet,earthandvenusgot reset tonullas they are based on the old template
Let's re-instantiate a few objects.
jshell> Planet earth = new Planet();
earth ==> Planet@192b07fd
jshell> Planet planet = new Planet();
venus ==> Planet@64bfbc86
jshell>How do we call the revolve method?
jshell> Planet.revolve();
| Error:
| non-static method revolve() cannot be referenced from a static context
| Planet.revolve();
|^-----------------^
jshell> earth.revolve();
Revolve
jshell> venus.revolve();
Revolve
jshell>Our attempt to perform revolve() did not work with the syntax Planet.revolve() as it is not a static method (more on that in a later section).
Invoking revolve() through syntax such as earth.revolve() succeeds, because earth is an object of type Planet.
In this step, we:
- Learned how to add a method definition to an existing
class - Discovered how to invoke it, on objects of the
class
So far, we have enjoyed creating classes and defining methods within them, all with our friendly neighborhood JShell.
JShell kind of spoiled us kids, by relaxing some Java syntax rules, invoking the compiler on our behalf, and also running the code like room service.
The time has come for us frog princes to outgrow the proverbial well. Yes, you're right! Time to start writing code in a proper code editor, and smell the greener grass on that side.
Let's start with creating a new source code file - 'Planet.java'. Choose any folder on your hard-disk and create the file shown below:
Planet.java
class Planet {
void revolve() {
System.out.println("Revolve");
}
}You can get the code that we wrote earlier in JShell for
Planetby running the command/list Planet, and copying the code.
You can use any text editor of your choice, for now.
The source file name must match the class name it contains. Here, we must name the file Planet.java.
The next course of action would be to compile this code (Stage 2). For that, exit out of JShell, and run back to your system terminal or command prompt. Now, see what plays out!
jshell> /exit
| Goodbyecd to the folder where you have created the file Planet.java
in28minutes$> cd in28Minutes/git/JavaForBeginners/
command-prompt> ls
Planet.java
Check Java version.
command-prompt> java -version
java version "x.0.1"
Java(TM) SE Runtime Environment (build x.0.1+11)
Java HotSpot(TM) 64-bit Server VM (build x.0.1+11, mixed mode)
You can compile java code using javac Planet.java. You can see that a new file is created Planet.class. This contains your bytecode.
command-prompt> javac Planet.java
command-prompt> ls
Planet.class Planet.java_
You can run the class using command java Planet.
command-prompt> java Planet
Error: Main method not found inside class Planet, please define the main method as
public static void main(String[] args)
or a JavaFX application class must extend javax.application.Application
command-prompt> Why is there an error? Let's discuss that in the next step.
In this step, we:
- Ventured out of
JShellinto unexplored territory, to write source code - Learned how to invoke the compiler to compile source files, from the terminal
In the previous step, we compiled Planet.java. In this step, let's run the bytecode generated, which lies inside Planet.class.
Console Commands
command-prompt> ls
Planet.class Planet.java
command-prompt> java Planet
Error: Main method not found inside class Planet, please define the main method as
public static void main(String[] args)
or a JavaFX application class must extend javax.application.Application
command-prompt>The code may have compiled without any errors, but what's the use if we cannot run the program to see what stuff it's got!
The main() method is essential to run code defined within any class.
The definition of main() needs to have this exact synatx:
public static void main(String[] args) { /* <Some Code Goes In Here> */ }
A few details:
voidis its return typemainis its nameargsis its formal argument. Here, it's an array ofString.- `public
andstatic``` are reserved Java keywords. More on these later sections.
Let's add one such definition within the Planet code. Open up your text editor and add the main method as shown below.
Planet.java
class Planet {
void revolve() {
System.out.println("Revolve");
}
public static void main(String[] args) {
}
}Let's run it now:
command-prompt> java Planet
Error: Main method not found inside class Planet, please define the main method as
public static void main(String[] args)
or a JavaFX application class must extend javax.application.ApplicationWhy is there no change in result?
After changing your Java source file, you need to compile the code again to create a new class file.
command-prompt> javac Planet.java
command-prompt> ls
Planet.class Planet.java_
Let's try it again.
command-prompt> java Planet
command-prompt>
We got a blank stare from the terminal. Why?
What did we write in the main method? Nothing.
public static void main(String[] args) {
}Let's fix it. We need to edit Planet.java once again!
Planet.java
class Planet {
void revolve() {
System.out.println("Revolve");
}
public static void main(String[] args) {
Planet earth = new Planet();
earth.revolve();
}
}Console Commands
command-prompt> javac Planet.java
command-prompt> ls
Planet.class Planet.java
command-prompt> java Planet
Revolve
command-prompt>Bingo! We finally got what we wanted to see!
In this step, we:
- Learned that we need a
main()method to run a Java program - Discovered that after every code update, we need to compile that source file
In this step, let's play with Planet source code. Get ready for a comedy of errors, by trial-and-error!
Below is the source code for Planet that worked so well for us:
Planet.java
class Planet {
void revolve() {
System.out.println("Revolve");
}
public static void main(String[] args) {
Planet earth = new Planet();
earth.revolve();
}
}Here starts our nut-job.
Change method name from main to main1
Planet.java
class Planet {
void revolve() {
System.out.println("Revolve");
}
public static void main1(String[] args) {
Planet earth = new Planet();
earth.revolve();
}
}Console Commands
command-prompt> javac Planet.java
command-prompt> java Planet
Error: Main method not found inside class Planet, please define the main method as
public static void main(String[] args)
or a JavaFX application class must extend javax.application.Application
command-prompt>Don't mess with the method-name of main().
Other parts also need to remain the same, such as:
- The return-type:
void - Argument type:
String[] - The presence of keywords
publicandstatic.
Remove semicolons after statements Planet earth = new Planet() and earth.revolve().
Planet.java
class Planet {
void revolve() {
System.out.println("Revolve");
}
public static void main(String[] args) {
Planet earth = new Planet()
earth.revolve()
}
}Console Commands
command-prompt> javac Planet.java
Planet.java:6: error: ';' expected
Planet earth = new Planet()
|_______________________^
Planet.java:7: error: ';' expected
earth.revolve()
|_____________^
2 errors
command-prompt>The ; symbol is the Java statement separator, which is mandatory.
It is not needed in JShell but mandatory when you write separate Java source files.
Make a typo Planet earth = new Plane();
Planet.java
class Planet {
void revolve() {
System.out.println("Revolve");
}
public static void main(String[] args) {
Planet earth = new Plane();
earth.revolve();
}
}Console Commands
command-prompt> javac Planet.java
Planet.java:6: error: cannot find symbol
Planet earth = new Plane();
|________________^
symbol: class Plane
location: class Planet
1 error
command-prompt>We misspelled Planet as Plane, and the compiler trapped this error. It shows us a red flag with a message to help us correct our mistake.
Call a non existing method earth.revolve1();.
Planet.java
class Planet {
void revolve() {
System.out.println("Revolve");
}
public static void main(String[] args) {
Planet earth = new Planet();
earth.revolve1();
}
}Console Commands
command-prompt> javac Planet.java
Planet.java:7: error: cannot find symbol
earth.revolve1();
|_____^
symbol: method revolve1()
location: variable earth of type Planet
1 error
command-prompt>We misspelled the name of the revolve() method, to revolve1(). Rightly, got rapped on our knuckles by the compiler.
In this step, we:
- Learned that the best way to learn about language features is to play around with working code
- Observed that
JShellsimplifies coding for us, even relaxing some syntax rules - Concluded that developing Java code in code-editors is an empowering feeling!
What are JVM, JRE and the JDK?
Apart from the fact that all start with a 'J', there are important differences in what they contain, and what they do.
The following list gives you a bird's eye view of things.
The JVM runs your program bytecode.
JRE = JVM + Libraries + Other Components
- Libraries are built-in Java utilities that can be used within any program you create.
System.out.println()was a method injava.lang, one such utility. - Other Components include tools for debugging and code profiling (for memory management and performance).
JDK = JRE + Compilers + Debuggers
- JDK refers to the Java Development Kit. It's an acronym for the bundle needed to compile (with the compiler) and run (with the JRE bundle) your Java program.
An interesting way to remember this organization is:
-
JDK is needed to Compile and Run Java programs
-
JRE is needed to Run Java Programs
-
JVM is needed to Run Bytecode generated from Java programs
Let's check a couple of scenarios to test your understanding.
Scenario 1: You give Planet.class file to a friend using a different operating system. What does he need to do to run it?
First, install JRE for his operating system. Run using java Planet on the terminal. He does not need to run javac, as he already has the bytecode.
Scenario 2: You gave your friend the source file Planet.java. What does he need to do to run it?
Install JDK of a compatible version. Compile code using javac Planet.java. Run java Planet on his terminal.
In summary
-
Application Developers need ==> JDK
-
Application Users need ==> JRE
In this step, we:
- Understood the differences in the scope-of-work done by the JVM, JRE and JDK
- Realized how each of them could be invoked by different terminal commands, such as javac and java.
TODO - Need Revision
-
Features of the Eclipse IDE (Integrated Development Environment)
- Installation & Configuration
- Workspace Creation & Configuration
- Project Creation & Organization
- JRE Version Selection and Included Libraries
- Eclipse Java Perspectives
- Source Files Organization into Folders
- Packages?
- IDE User Interface Description
- Perspective
- Views
- Console Content and Display Options
-
Creating a new Java
classin Eclipse (And related source file)-
Package name
- A Java solution to solving a problem could be composed of several application components. It is considered good programming arctice to identify a class for each distinct component. Package is the Java way to organize classes in source code.
- Analogy: Eatables in a Refrigerator (Freezer, Chill-Tray, Vegetable-Tray, Bottle-Rack)
-
Public method stub : can be used to create a default
public static void main(String[] args)signature -
(Include Snapshots)
- Class creation pop-up, with selected options
- Default generated source code in editor window
-
Customizing the generated source code to our needs
- Syntax Highlighting
- Keywords
- Built-in Types
- Constant literals: numbers, strings
- Auto-suggest feature of eclipse as code is being typed in
- Syntax Highlighting
-
The "Run as --> Java Application" Option to compile-and-run the source code
- Option is avaibale only for classes that have a main() method
-
Execution of the Multiplication Table Program can be done Step by-step. That is, the entire application dies not execute at one go, printing the final output onto the console. We can stall its flow at several steps, by taking control of its execution using the Eclipse IDE. This is possible in a special mode of Eclipse, called Debug Mode.
The process is called Debugging, because this mode is heavily used not just to have fun seeing what happens, but also to detect and fix software bugs. A bug is a defect in the program being written, that leads to its incorrect execution. The process of removing bugs is called debugging. Humans being humans, programming errors are but natural, and a debug mode in the IDE is worth its wight in gold to the programmer. Here is how Eclipse facilitates debugging of Java applications.
-
Prior to debugging application, we need to set few Break-Points. A Break-Point is a statement in the source of the program, before which execution under debug mode is suspended, and control is passed to the programmer.
-
The overall state of the data in the suspended program is available to the programmer at that particular break-point. He/she gets to specify one or more break-points in the program, and when the execution is suspended, a list of possible actions can be performed, including:
- Reading & modifying data variables
- Resuming program execution
- Re-executing current statement
- Skipping all statements till the next break-point
and others.
-
The Eclipse IDE provides a very user-friendly and intuitive interface to the programmer for controlling execution of a program in Debug Mode (Provide Snapshots of IDE at various stages of Debug Mode execution).
- Setting and Removing a Break-point (also Toggling)
- Stepping over a method call, or into and out of a method body (during a method call)
- Stepping into
int print()andint print(int)andint print(int,int,int)gives us interesting infromation, but stepping intoSystem.out.printfcan freak you out! So, you may want to step over it.
- Stepping into
- For nested method calls, examine the method call Stack Trace (Call child, call parent relationship)
- Example :
int print(),int print(int)andint print(int,int,int)method call chain ofclass MultiplicationTable.
- Example :
- Viewing and Modifying current state of data variables, at a break point
- Stepping through from one statement to another in the source code
- As we step through, observe the view displaying changes in data variable values
- Example of
forloop control variablei, inside methodint print(int,int,int)ofclass MultiplicationTable - Observe that execution exits from the
forloop when the conditioni<=10is no longertrue.
- Re-executing a line of code
- Skipping execution of all statements till next break-point
- Ignoring all remaining breakpoints, resume execution of code till completion
- Code Text Editor Shortcuts
- New Project/Class Creation Shortcuts
- Search for a Class
Variables just declared, but used without an initialization, will flag a compilation error in an IDE! But not so, it seems, in JShell. In regular software, variable initialization at point of declaration (called a "defintion", as we already know) is mandatory.
jshell> int i = 2
$1 ==> 2
jshell> int i = 4
$2 ==> 4
jshell> long i = 1000
$3 ==> 1000
jshell>When the following code (similar to the one given to JShell) is compiled manually or by IDEs such as Eclipse, it will flag errors!
package com.in28minutes.firstjavaproject;
public class RedefineTestRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
int i = 2;
int i = 4;
long i = 1000;
System.out.println(i);
}
}That is because Java source code is governed by strict Scope Rules.
Let's have another look at where we have reached with our solution, to the PMT-Challenge problem. Only now, let's change the code arrangement.
MultiplicationTable.java
package com.in28minutes.firstjavaproject;
public class MultiplicationTable {
public static void print() {
for(int i=1; i<=10;i++) {
System.out.printf("%d * %d = %d", 5, i, 5*i).println();
}
}
}MultiplicationRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.firstjavaproject;
public class MultiplicationRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
MultiplicationTable table = new MultiplicationTable();
table.print();
}
}Console Output
5 * 1 = 5
5 * 2 = 10
5 * 3 = 15
5 * 4 = 20
5 * 5 = 25
5 * 6 = 30
5 * 7 = 35
5 * 8 = 40
5 * 9 = 45
5 * 10 = 50
- We have now split the code into two source files:
- MultiplicationTable.java: Houses the
MultiplicationTableclassdefinition, with some methods we need. - MultiplicationRunner.java: Acts as the client of the
MultiplicationTableclass, to invoke its functionality. It defines amain()method, that instantiates aMultiplicationTableobject, and invokes itsprint()method.
- MultiplicationTable.java: Houses the
- After this code was rearranged, we still got it to work!
- We now want to enhance our current solution to this challenge, even though we've come a long way. "Once you get the whiff of success, sky is the limit!". Here is the changes we need:
- Pass the number whose table needs to be printed, as an argument
- Pass the (continuous) range of numbers, whose index entries in the table are to be printed. (For example, printing the table entries for
6, with entries for indexes between15to30).
One way to achieve all this, would involve overloading the print() method. The next example is one such attempt.
Overloading print() works for us, and we now support three ways in which to display any table:
public static void print() {
for(int i=1; i<=10;i++) {
System.out.printf("%d * %d = %d", 5, i, 5*i).println();
}
}Console Output
5 * 1 = 5
5 * 2 = 10
5 * 3 = 15
5 * 4 = 20
5 * 5 = 25
5 * 6 = 30
5 * 7 = 35
5 * 8 = 40
5 * 9 = 45
5 * 10 = 50
The default table for 5, with entries fixed within 1 to 10.
public static void print(int number) {
for(int i=1; i<=10;i++) {
System.out.printf("%d * %d = %d", number, i, number*i).println();
}
}Console Output
8 * 1 = 8
8 * 2 = 16
8 * 3 = 24
8 * 4 = 32
8 * 5 = 40
8 * 6 = 48
8 * 7 = 56
8 * 8 = 64
8 * 9 = 72
8 * 10 = 80
Printing a table for any number, but with entries fixed between 1 and 1.
public static void print(int number, int from, int to) {
for(int i=from; i<=to;i++) {
System.out.printf("%d * %d = %d", number, i, number*i).println();
}
}Console Output
6 * 11 = 66
6 * 12 = 72
6 * 13 = 78
6 * 14 = 84
6 * 15 = 90
6 * 16 = 96
6 * 17 = 102
6 * 18 = 108
6 * 19 = 114
6 * 20 = 120
Displaying a table for any number, with entries for any range
The full code:
MultiplicationTable.java
package com.in28minutes.firstjavaproject;
public class MultiplicationTable {
public static void print() {
for(int i=1; i<=10;i++) {
System.out.printf("%d * %d = %d", 5, i, 5*i).println();
}
}
public static void print(int number) {
for(int i=1; i<=10;i++) {
System.out.printf("%d * %d = %d", number, i, number*i).println();
}
}
public static void print(int number, int from, int to) {
for(int i=from; i<=to;i++) {
System.out.printf("%d * %d = %d", number, i, number*i).println();
}
}
}MultiplicationRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.firstjavaproject;
public class MultiplicationRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
MultiplicationTable table = new MultiplicationTable();
table.print();
table.print(8);
table.print(6, 11, 20);
}
}There is an issue with the code for class MultiplicationTable. In the final print format, what if we are asked to replace the multiplication symbol '*' with an 'X', so that school kids like it better? Since there are three calls to System.out.printf(), one in each print() version, we make three changes.
MultiplicationTable.java
package com.in28minutes.firstjavaproject;
public class MultiplicationTable {
public static void print() {
for(int i=1; i<=10;i++) {
System.out.printf("%d X %d = %d", 5, i, 5*i).println();
}
}
public static void print(int number) {
for(int i=1; i<=10;i++) {
System.out.printf("%d * %d = %d", number, i, number*i).println();
}
}
public static void print(int number, int from, int to) {
for(int i=from; i<=to;i++) {
System.out.printf("%d X %d = %d", number, i, number*i).println();
}
}
}Console Output
5 X 1 = 5
5 X 2 = 10
5 X 3 = 15
5 X 4 = 20
5 X 5 = 25
5 X 6 = 30
5 X 7 = 35
5 X 8 = 40
5 X 9 = 45
5 X 10 = 50
8 * 1 = 8
8 * 2 = 16
8 * 3 = 24
8 * 4 = 32
8 * 5 = 40
8 * 6 = 48
8 * 7 = 56
8 * 8 = 64
8 * 9 = 72
8 * 10 = 80
6 X 11 = 66
6 X 12 = 72
6 X 13 = 78
6 X 14 = 84
6 X 15 = 90
6 X 16 = 96
6 X 17 = 102
6 X 18 = 108
6 X 19 = 114
6 X 20 = 120
- Humans make mistakes. The programmer missed out on changing the format symbol in the code for
void print(int, int), but we don't recommend punishment. He could be overworked, or could only be the maintainer of code someone else wrote years ago! The point is not to blame human flaws (there are many), but to show how code duplication causes errors. This issue arises frequently with overloaded methods, point blank. - Instead of trying to change human nature, can we change our software? Let's have a closer look at
print():- The method
void print()prints the multiplication table for5only, in the default range1to10. - The method
void print(int)outputs the table for any number, but only in the fixed range from1to10. - The method
void print(int,int,int)displays the table for any number, in any range of entries.
- The method
There is something huge we observe in the previous example. All overloaded versions of print() have nearly the same code!
print(int)has wider usage potential thanprint(). The latter is a special case, as it prints only the for5. We can achieve whatprint()does, by passing a fixed parameter value of5toprint(int). It's simple: invokeprint(int)withinprint(), by passing5to it.- The point to note is, that a more specialized function can be implemented-in-terms-of a more general function.
Let's now reorganize this part of the code.
MultiplicationTable.java
public static void print() {
print(5);
}
public static void print(int number) {
for(int i=1; i<=10;i++) {
System.out.printf("%d * %d = %d", number, i, number*i).println();
}
}MultiplicationRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.firstjavaproject;
public class MultiplicationRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
MultiplicationTable table = new MultiplicationTable();
table.print();
table.print(8);
}
}Console Output
5 * 1 = 5
5 * 2 = 10
5 * 3 = 15
5 * 4 = 20
5 * 5 = 25
5 * 6 = 30
5 * 7 = 35
5 * 8 = 40
5 * 9 = 45
5 * 10 = 50
8 * 1 = 8
8 * 2 = 16
8 * 3 = 24
8 * 4 = 32
8 * 5 = 40
8 * 6 = 48
8 * 7 = 56
8 * 8 = 64
8 * 9 = 72
8 * 10 = 80
When we call a method inside another, the method call statement is replaced by its body (with actual arguments replacing the formal ones). In the new definition of int print() above, the code executed during the call will be:
for(int i=1; i<=10;i++) {
System.out.printf("%d * %d = %d", 5, i, 5*i).println();
}- The method
int print(int,int,int)is a more general version ofint print(int). We can achieve what the latter computes, by passing fixed range of indexes, namely1and10, as arguments to the former. have look into he code that follows.
MultiplicationTable.java
public static void print(int number) {
print(number, 1, 10);
}
public static void print(int number, int from, int to) {
for(int i=from; i<=to;i++) {
System.out.printf("%d X %d = %d", number, i, number*i).println();
}
}MultiplicationRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.firstjavaproject;
public class MultiplicationRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
MultiplicationTable table = new MultiplicationTable();
table.print(8);
table.print(6, 11, 20);
}
}Console Output
8 * 1 = 8
8 * 2 = 16
8 * 3 = 24
8 * 4 = 32
8 * 5 = 40
8 * 6 = 48
8 * 7 = 56
8 * 8 = 64
8 * 9 = 72
8 * 10 = 80
6 * 11 = 66
6 * 12 = 72
6 * 13 = 78
6 * 14 = 84
6 * 15 = 90
6 * 16 = 96
6 * 17 = 102
6 * 18 = 108
6 * 19 = 114
6 * 20 = 120
- This example merely extended what we did in the previous example. We will will take this extension one level further now! Yes, you guessed right. We will implement
print()in terms ofprint(int,int,int).
MultiplicationTable.java
public static void print() {
print(5, 1, 10);
}
public static void print(int number, int from, int to) {
for(int i=from; i<=to;i++) {
System.out.printf("%d X %d = %d", number, i, number*i).println();
}
}MultiplicationRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.firstjavaproject;
public class MultiplicationRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
MultiplicationTable table = new MultiplicationTable();
table.print();
table.print(6, 11, 20);
}
}Console Output
5 * 1 = 5
5 * 2 = 10
5 * 3 = 15
5 * 4 = 20
5 * 5 = 25
5 * 6 = 30
5 * 7 = 35
5 * 8 = 40
5 * 9 = 45
5 * 10 = 50
6 * 11 = 66
6 * 12 = 72
6 * 13 = 78
6 * 14 = 84
6 * 15 = 90
6 * 16 = 96
6 * 17 = 102
6 * 18 = 108
6 * 19 = 114
6 * 20 = 120
-
By extending the same logic of code reuse, the method
int print(int,int,int)can be used to implement the logic ofint print(). Just pass in a number parameter5, as well as the fixed range parameters1and10, in a call to the former.int print()is thus implemented-in-terms-ofint print(int,int,int). -
Our new version of
class MultiplicationTablelooks like this:
MultiplicationTable.java
package com.in28minutes.firstjavaproject;
public class MultiplicationTable {
public static void print() {
print(5, 1, 10);
}
public static void print(int number) {
print(number, 1, 10);
}
public static void print(int number, int from, int to) {
for(int i=from; i<=to;i++) {
System.out.printf("%d X %d = %d", number, i, number*i).println();
}
}
}- The logic of the
class MutliplicationRunnerdoes not change at all:
MultiplicationRunner.java:
package com.in28minutes.firstjavaproject;
public class MultiplicationRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
MultiplicationTable table = new MultiplicationTable();
table.print();
table.print(8);
table.print(6, 11, 20);
}
}Console Output
5 * 1 = 5
5 * 2 = 10
5 * 3 = 15
5 * 4 = 20
5 * 5 = 25
5 * 6 = 30
5 * 7 = 35
5 * 8 = 40
5 * 9 = 45
5 * 10 = 50
8 * 1 = 8
8 * 2 = 16
8 * 3 = 24
8 * 4 = 32
8 * 5 = 40
8 * 6 = 48
8 * 7 = 56
8 * 8 = 64
8 * 9 = 72
8 * 10 = 80
6 * 11 = 66
6 * 12 = 72
6 * 13 = 78
6 * 14 = 84
6 * 15 = 90
6 * 16 = 96
6 * 17 = 102
6 * 18 = 108
6 * 19 = 114
6 * 20 = 120
Neat, isn't it! To make our program school kid friendly, we just need to change one character in the code, take a peek below.
MultiplicationTable.java:
package com.in28minutes.firstjavaproject;
public class MultiplicationTable {
public static void print() {
print(5, 1, 10);
}
public static void print(int number) {
print(number, 1, 10);
}
public static void print(int number, int from, int to) {
for(int i=from; i<=to;i++) {
System.out.printf("%d X %d = %d", number, i, number*i).println();
}
}
}Console Output
5 X 1 = 5
5 X 2 = 10
5 X 3 = 15
5 X 4 = 20
5 X 5 = 25
5 X 6 = 30
5 X 7 = 35
5 X 8 = 40
5 X 9 = 45
5 X 10 = 50
8 X 1 = 8
8 X 2 = 16
8 X 3 = 24
8 X 4 = 32
8 X 5 = 40
8 X 6 = 48
8 X 7 = 56
8 X 8 = 64
8 X 9 = 72
8 X 10 = 80
6 X 11 = 66
6 X 12 = 72
6 X 13 = 78
6 X 14 = 84
6 X 15 = 90
6 X 16 = 96
6 X 17 = 102
6 X 18 = 108
6 X 19 = 114
6 X 20 = 120
Software Development is an iterative process. The best code that we want to write does not happen at one go. It starts off at a certain level, and can always be improved. More importantly, such improvements needs to be remembered, to be applied again at different points in the same program, and across programs. This process is called Code Refactoring. Thought we'd keep you posted.
In this step, we:
- Explored how to reorganize the code for PMT-Challenge into a
class - Understood that overloading works the same way for
classmethods - Observed that code reuse is possible across overloaded versions of a
classmethod
How do you design great Object Oriented Programs?
Let's find out
Recommended Videos:
- Object Oriented Progamming - Part 1 - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NOD802rMMCw
- Object Oriented Progamming - Part 2 - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i6EztA-F8UI
Let's consider a few examples before we get to Object Oriented Progamming.
Humans think in a step by step process.
Let's say I've to take a flight from London to New York. This is how I would think:
- Take a cab to London Airport
- Check in
- Pass Security
- Board the flight
- Wish the Hostess
- Take Off
- Cruise
- Land
- Get off the plane
- Take a cab to ..
Procedural programming is just a reflection of this thought process. A procedural program for above process would look something like this:
takeACabToLondonAirport();
checkIn();
passSecurity();
boardPlane();
wishHostess();
takeOff();
cruiseMode();
land();
getOffPlane();
//...Object Oriented Programming (OOP) brings in a new thought process around this.
How about thinking in terms of the different Actors? How about storing data related to each actor right beside itself? How about giving them some responsiblity and let them do their own actions?
Here's how our program would look like when we think in terms of different actors and give them data and responsibilities
Person
name
boardFlight(Plane flight), wishHostess (Hostess hostess), getOffFlight(Plane flight)
AirPlane
altitude, pilot, speed, flightMode
takeOff(), cruiseMode(), land()
Hostess
welcome()Do not worry about the implementation details. Focus on the difference in approaches.
We have encapsulated data and methods into these entities, which are now called objects. We have defined object boundaries, and what it can (and cannot) do.
An object has
- State : Its data
- Behavior : Its operations
The position of an Airplane can change over time. The operations that can be performed on an Airplane include takeOff(), land() and cruiseMode(). Each of these actions can change its position. Therefore, an object's behavior can affects its own state.
It's now time to introduce you to some core OOP terms, which will make our future discussions easier.
Let's visit and enhance the Planet example we had written a few sections ago. This time, let's also explore the conceptual angle.
Planet
class Planet
name, location, distanceFromSun // data / state / fields
rotate(), revolve() // actions / behavior / methods
earth : new Planet
venus : new PlanetLet's look at some OOP terminology.
A class is a template. An object is an instance of a class. In above example, Planet is a class. earth and venus are objects.
name,locationanddistanceFromSuncompose object state.rotate()andrevolve()define object's behavior.
Fields are the elements that make up the object state. Object behavior is implemented through Methods.
Each Planet has its own state:
name: "Earth", "Venus"location: Each has its own orbitdistanceFromSun: They are at unique, different distances from the sun
Each has its own unique behavior:
rotate(): They rotate at different rates (and in fact, different directions!)revolve(): They revolve round the sun in different orbits, at different speeds
In this step, we:
- Understood how OOP is different from Prodedural Programming
- Learned about a few basic OOP terms
In each of the following systems, identify the basic entities involved, and organize them using object oriented terminology:
- Online Shopping System
- Person
Customer
name, address
login(), logout(), selectProduct(Product) ShoppingCart
items
addItem(), removeItem() Product
name, price, quantityAvailable
order(), changePrice() Person
name, address, hobbies, work
walk(), run(), sleep(), eat(), drink()In this series of examples, we want to model your pet mode of transport, a motorbike. We want to create motorbike objects and play around with them.
We will start with two java files:
- MotorBike.java, which contains the
MotorBikeclassdefinition. Thisclasswill encapsulate our motorbike state and behavior - MotorBikeRunner.java, with
class MotorBikeRunnerholding amainmethod, our program's entry point
MotorBike.java
package com.in28minutes.oops;
public class MotorBike {
//behavior
void start() {
System.out.println("Bike started!");
}
}MotorBikeRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.oops;
public class MotorBikeRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
MotorBike ducati = new MotorBike();
MotorBike honda = new MotorBike();
ducati.start();
honda.start();
}
}Console Output
Bike started!
Bike started!
We started off creating a simple MotorBike class with a start method. We created a couple of instances and invoked the start method on them.
We created two classes because we believe in Seperation of Concerns:
MotorBikeclass is responsible for all its data and behavior.MotorBikeRunnerclass is responsible for running MotorBike examples.
In this step, we:
- Defined a
MotorBikeclassallowing us to further explore OOP concepts in the next steps
- Write a small Java program to create a
Bookclass, and then create instances to represent the following book titles:- "The Art Of Computer Programming"
- "Effective Java"
- "Clean Code"
Book.java
public class Book {
private String title;
public void setTitle(String bookTitle) {
title = bookTitle;
}
public String getTitle() {
return title;
}
}BookRunner.java
public class BookRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
Book taocp = new Book();
taocp.setTitle("The Art Of Computer Programming");
Book ej = new Book();
ej.setTitle("Effective Java");
Book cc = new Book();
cc.setTitle("Clean Code");
System.out.println(taocp.getTitle());
System.out.println(ej.getTitle());
System.out.println(cc.getTitle());
}
}Console Output
The Art Of Computer Programming
Effective Java
Clean Code
An object encapsulates both state and behavior.
State defines "the condition of the object at a given time". State is represented by member variables.
In the MotorBike example, if we need a speed attribute for each MotorBike, here is how we would include it.
MotorBike.java
package com.in28minutes.oops;
public class MotorBike {
int speed;
void start() {
System.out.println("Bike started!");
}
}
MotorBikeRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.oops;
public class MotorBikeRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
MotorBike ducati = new MotorBike();
MotorBike honda = new MotorBike();
ducati.start();
honda.start();
ducati.speed = 100;
honda.speed = 80;
ducati.speed = 20;
honda.speed = 0;
}
}Console Output
Bike started!
Bike started!
int speed; within MotorBike, defines a member variable.
It can be accessed within objects such as ducati and honda, by qualifying it with the object name (ducati or honda).
ducati.speed = 100;
honda.speed = 80;
ducati has its own value for speed, and so does honda. These values are independent of each other. Changing one does not affect the other.
- Update the
Bookclasscreated previously to include a member variable namednoOfCopies, and demonstrate how it can be set and updated independently for each of the three titles specified earlier.
TODO
In the previous step. we were merrily modifying the speed attribute within the ducati and honda objects directly, from within the main() program.
public class MotorBikeRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
//... Other code
ducati.speed = 100;
honda.speed = 0;
}
}This did work fine, but it breaks the fundamental principle of encapsulation in OOP.
"A method of one object, should not be allowed to directly access the state of another object. To do so, such an object should only be allowed to invoke methods on the target object".
In other words, a member variable should not be directly accessible from methods declared outside its class.
MotorBike.java
package com.in28minutes.oops;
public class MotorBike {
private int speed;
void start() {
System.out.println("Bike started!");
}
void setSpeed(int speed) {
this.speed = speed;
}
}MotorBikeRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.oops;
public class MotorBikeRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
MotorBike ducati = new MotorBike();
MotorBike honda = new MotorBike();
ducati.start();
honda.start();
ducati.setSpeed(100);
honda.setSpeed(80);
ducati.setSpeed(20);
honda.setSpeed(0);
}
}Console Output
Bike started!
Bike started!
By declaring speed as private, we provide MotorBike with something called access control. Java keywords such as public and private are called access modifiers. They control what external objects can access within a given object.
Let's look at this.speed = speed; in the body of method setSpeed():
- An member variable always belongs to a specific instance of that
class. - A method argument behaves just like a local variable inside that method.
- To differentiate between the two,
thisis used. The expressionthis.speedrefers to the member variablespeedof aMotorbikeobject.setSpeed()would be invoked on that very object.
Code written earlier within MotorBikeRunner, such as ducati.speed = 100; would now result in errors! The correct way to access and modify speed is to invoke appropriate methods such as setSpeed(), on MotorBike objects.
- Update the
classBookto make sure it no longer breaks Encapsulation principles.
TODO
In this step, we:
- Learned about the need for access control to implement encapsulation
- Observed that Java provides access modifiers (such as
publicandprivate) for such control - Understood the need for
get()andset()methods to access object data
Encapsulation is needed to protect an object's state from direct access by other objects. We were able to protect the state of MotorBike objects by declaring speed to be private. We have created a sort of rigid situation here, since the private declaration of speed forbids even a get access. How do we address this issue? Again, the answer is to provide a method for reading the current speed.
MotorBike.java
package com.in28minutes.oops;
public class MotorBike {
//Same as before
int getSpeed() {
return this.speed;
}
}MotorBikeRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.oops;
public class MotorBikeRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
MotorBike ducati = new MotorBike();
MotorBike honda = new MotorBike();
ducati.start();
honda.start();
ducati.setSpeed(100);
honda.setSpeed(80);
System.out.printf("Current Ducati Speed is : %d", ducati.getSpeed()).println();
System.out.printf("Current Honda Speed is : %d", honda.getSpeed()).println();
}
}Console Output
Bike started!
Bike started!
Current Ducati Speed is : 100
Current Honda Speed is : 80
Defining a method such as getSpeed() allows us to access the currentspeed of a MotorBike object.
int getSpeed() {
return this.speed;
}
Eclipse has a very handy feature. When the state elements (member variables) of a class have been defined, it can generate default get() and set() methods for each of them. You would want to use this regularly, to save on time and typing effort.
Right click on class > Generate Source > Generate Getters and Setters
In this step, we:
- Understood how access control forces us to provide
get()methods as well - Explored a few Eclispe tips to generate
get()andset()versions for eachclassattribute
What happens if a data element inside an object is not initialized with a value?
MotorBike.java
//Same as beforeMotorBikeRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.oops;
public class MotorBikeRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
MotorBike honda = new MotorBike();
System.out.printf("Current Honda Speed is : %d", honda.getSpeed()).println();
}
}Console Output
Current Honda Speed is : 0
When we instantiate an object, all its state elements are always initialized, to the default values of their types. Inside MotorBike, speed is declared to be an int, and so is initialized to 0. This happens even before any method of MotorBike is called, including start().
You can see that honda.getSpeed() printed 0 even though we did not explictly initialize it.
Default
In this step, we:
- Learnt that default values are assigned to object member variables.
At the heart of encapsulation, is the need to protect object's state. From whom? Other objects.
Let's look at an example to understand Encapsulation better.
MotorBike.java
package com.in28minutes.oops;
public class MotorBike {
private int speed;
public void start() {
System.out.println("Bike started!");
}
public void setSpeed(int speed) {
this.speed = speed;
}
public int getSpeed() {
return this.speed;
}
}MotorBikeRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.oops;
public class MotorBikeRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
MotorBike ducati = new MotorBike();
ducati.start();
ducati.setSpeed(-100);
System.out.printf("Current Ducati Speed is : %d", ducati.getSpeed()).println();
}
}Console Output
Bike started!
Current Ducati Speed is : -100
For a motorbike, -100 might be an invalid speed. Currently, we do not have any validation. Having a method setSpeed allows us to add validation.
Let's see how to do that.
MotorBike.java
package com.in28minutes.oops;
public class MotorBike {
//Other code as is
public void setSpeed(int speed) {
if(speed > 0)
this.speed = speed;
}
}MotorBikeRunner.java
//Same as beforeThe output of this snippet is:
Bike started!
Current Ducati Speed is : 0
setSpeed() checks if(speed > 0) and does not update speed for negative values.
This is not perfect solution because the caller of the
setSpeedmethod assumes that he was successful. Ideally, we should throw an Exception indicating validation error. We will talk about Exceptions later.
In this step, we:
- Explored the first advantage of encapsulation - A provision for adding data validation
- Highlighted how such validation can be done, using the
Motorbikeexample
We've understood quite a few things about encapsulation under OOP.
Suppose at different points of time, we want to increase the speeds of both Honda and Ducati bikes by a fixed amount, say 100 mph. The logic would be simple, right? Fetch the current speed of each bike, increment that fetched value by 100, and then set the new value back into that bike's speed. The following example puts the above logic into action.
MotorBike.java
// No ChangeMotorBikeRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.oops;
public class MotorBikeRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
MotorBike ducati = new MotorBike();
MotorBike honda = new MotorBike();
ducati.start();
honda.start();
ducati.setSpeed(100);
System.out.printf("Earlier Ducati Speed is : %d", ducati.getSpeed()).println();
System.out.printf("Earlier Honda Speed is : %d", honda.getSpeed()).println();
int ducatiSpeed = ducati.getSpeed();
ducatiSpeed = ducatiSpeed + 100;
ducati.setSpeed(ducatiSpeed);
int hondaSpeed = honda.getSpeed();
hondaSpeed = hondaSpeed + 100;
honda.setSpeed(hondaSpeed);
System.out.printf("Later Ducati Speed is : %d", ducati.getSpeed()).println();
System.out.printf("Later Honda Speed is : %d", honda.getSpeed()).println();
}
}The output of this snippet is:
Bike started!
Bike started!
Earlier Ducati Speed is : 100
Earlier Honda Speed is : 0
Later Ducati Speed is : 200
Later Honda Speed is : 100
Notice the repeated code within MotorBikeRunner? The code for updating the speed of ducati, is almost the same as that for honda. Remember at the start of this book, we said something like this:
"The goal of any computer program is to make a task easier, less cumbersome and more elegant for the programmer."
OOP achieves all thus through encapsulation! The idea is to encapsulate repeated logic within a method, and pass object-specific information to it as arguments. The next example shows you one way of doing it.
MotorBike.java
package com.in28minutes.oops;
public class MotorBike {
//Other code same as before
public void increaseSpeed(int howMuch) {
this.speed = this.speed + howMuch;
}
}MotorBikeRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.oops;
public class MotorBikeRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
MotorBike duati = new MotorBike();
MotorBike honda = new MotorBike();
ducati.start();
honda.start();
ducati.setSpeed(100);
System.out.printf("Earlier Ducati Speed is : %d", ducati.getSpeed()).println();
System.out.printf("Earlier Honda Speed is : %d", honda.getSpeed()).println();
ducati.increaseSpeed(100);
honda.increaseSpeed(100);
System.out.printf("Later Ducati Speed is : %d", ducati.getSpeed()).println();
System.out.printf("Later Honda Speed is : %d", honda.getSpeed()).println();
}
}The output of this snippet is:
Bike started!
Bike started!
Earlier Ducati Speed is : 100
Earlier Honda Speed is : 0
Later Ducati Speed is : 200
Later Honda Speed is : 100
The method increaseSpeed() has been added to MotorBike. It can be invoked on the ducati and honda objects.
Let's now add a feature to MotorBike, by which speed can be decreased.
MotorBike.java
package com.in28minutes.oops;
public class MotorBike {
// Other methods same as before
public void decreaseSpeed(int howMuch) {
this.speed = this.speed - howMuch;
}
}MotorBikeRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.oops;
public class MotorBikeRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
MotorBike ducati = new MotorBike();
MotorBike honda = new MotorBike();
ducati.start();
honda.start();
ducati.setSpeed(100);
System.out.printf("Earlier Ducati Speed is : %d", ducati.getSpeed()).println();
System.out.printf("Earlier Honda Speed is : %d", honda.getSpeed()).println();
ducati.increaseSpeed(100);
honda.increaseSpeed(100);
ducati.decreaseSpeed(50);
honda.decreaseSpeed(50);
System.out.printf("Later Ducati Speed is : %d", ducati.getSpeed()).println();
System.out.printf("Later Honda Speed is : %d", honda.getSpeed()).println();
ducati.decreaseSpeed(200);
honda.decreaseSpeed(200);
System.out.printf("Final Ducati Speed is : %d", ducati.getSpeed()).println();
System.out.printf("Final Honda Speed is : %d", honda.getSpeed()).println();
}
}The output of this snippet is:
Bike started!
Bike started!
Earlier Ducati Speed is : 100
Earlier Honda Speed is : 0
Later Ducati Speed is : 150
Later Honda Speed is : 50
Final Ducati Speed is : -50
Final Honda Speed is : -150
The method decreaseSpeed() has been added to MotorBike. It can be invoked on the ducati and honda objects inside the main() method of MotorBikeRunner.
On of the things you can observe again is Negative Speed Values. Our validation needs to be improved.
MotorBike.java
package com.in28minutes.oops;
public class MotorBike {
//Same as before
public void increaseSpeed(int howMuch) {
if(this.speed + howMuch > 0)
this.speed = this.speed + howMuch;
}
public void decreaseSpeed(int howMuch) {
if(this.speed - howMuch > 0)
this.speed = this.speed - howMuch;
}
}MotorBikeRunner.java
//Same as beforeThe output of this snippet is:
Bike started!
Bike started!
Earlier Ducati Speed is : 100
Earlier Honda Speed is : 0
Later Ducati Speed is : 150
Later Honda Speed is : 50
Final Ducati Speed is : 150
Final Honda Speed is : 50
We have achieved data validation, because attempts to decrease the speed of ducati and honda below 0 are now ignored.
But this has come at a cost, which is code bloat.
How do we reduce duplication?
MotorBike.java
package com.in28minutes.oops;
public class MotorBike {
//Other methods same as before
public void setSpeed(int speed) {
if(speed > 0)
this.speed = speed;
}
public void increaseSpeed(int howMuch) {
setSpeed(this.speed + howMuch);
}
public void decreaseSpeed(int howMuch) {
setSpeed(this.speed - howMuch);
}
}MotorBikeRunner.java
//Same as beforeThe output of this snippet is:
Bike started!
Bike started!
Earlier Ducati Speed is : 100
Earlier Honda Speed is : 0
Later Ducati Speed is : 150
Later Honda Speed is : 50
Final Ducati Speed is : 150
Final Honda Speed is : 50
The idea behind this solution is, that an update is the same as a set() operation. Since setSpeed() already has a validation check, it can be called inside both increaseSpeed() and decreaseSpeed() with appropriate parameters.
In this way, the validation logic would be reused across update methods.
Be always careful. Duplication of logic makes your code difficult to maintain.
In this step, we:
- Started exploring the next advantage of encapsulation - code reuse
- Mapped this understanding to the
MotorBikeexample, building on data validation
- Use an encapsulation technique to write methods for the
Bookclass, that- Increase the number of books
- Decrease the number of books
BookRunner.java
public class BookRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
Book taocp = new Book();
taocp.setTitle("The Art Of Computer Programming");
Book ej = new Book();
ej.setTitle("Effective Java");
Book cc = new Book();
cc.setTitle("Clean Code");
System.out.println(taocp.getTitle());
System.out.println(ej.getTitle());
System.out.println(cc.getTitle());
taocp.increaseCopies(10);
ej.increaseCopies(15);
cc.increaseCopies(20);
taocp.decreaseCopies(5);
ej.decreaseCopies(10);
cc.decreaseCopies(15);
System.out.println(taocp.getNumberOfCopies());
System.out.println(ej.getNumberOfCopies());
System.out.println(cc.getNumberOfCopies());
}
}Book.java
public class Book {
private String title;
private int numberOfCopies;
public void setTitle(String bookTitle) {
title = bookTitle;
}
public String getTitle() {
return title;
}
public void setNumberOfCopies(int numberOfCopies) {
if(numberOfCopies > 0) {
this.numberOfCopies = numberOfCopies;
}
}
public int getNumberOfCopies() {
return numberOfCopies;
}
public void increaseCopies(int howMuch) {
setNumberOfCopies(numberOfCopies + howMuch);
}
public void decreaseCopies(int howMuch) {
setNumberOfCopies(numberOfCopies - howMuch);
}
}Console Output
The Art Of Computer Programming
Effective Java
Clean Code
5
5
5
When we create Ducati and Honda motorbikes, we may want to configure them with some start speeds.
Suppose our whim is that a Ducati bike starts with 100 mph, and a Honda with 200 mph.
MotorBike.java
package com.in28minutes.oops;
public class MotorBike {
private int speed;
MotorBike(int speed) {
if(speed > 0)
this.speed = speed;
}
//Same as before
}MotorBikeRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.oops;
public class MotorBikeRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
MotorBike ducati = new MotorBike(100);
MotorBike honda = new MotorBike(200);
ducati.start();
honda.start();
System.out.printf("Earlier Ducati Speed is : %d", ducati.getSpeed()).println();
System.out.printf("Earlier Honda Speed is : %d", honda.getSpeed()).println();
}
}The output of this snippet is:
Bike started!
Bike started!
Earlier Ducati Speed is : 100
Earlier Honda Speed is : 200
We defined a single-argument constructor for MotorBike, whosw definition looks like this:
public MotorBike(int speed){ /* Constructor Code Goes Here */ }
The constructor is a method, whose name is the same as the class name. All Java rules for a method apply to constructors as well. Constructor cannot be directly called.
A constructor is always invoked when a class object is created, using the new keyword. A constructor for a class could accept zero, one or more than one arguments. Let's next write some full-blooded code for a MotorBike constructor.
In this step, we were introduced to the concept of a class constructor
- Rewrite the
Bookclasssolution by using a constructor, which accepts an integer argument specifying the initial number of copies to be published:- "The Art Of Computer Programming" : 100 copies
- "Effective Java" : 75 copies
- "Clean Code" : 60 copies
BookRunner.java
public class BookRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
Book taocp = new Book(100);
taocp.setTitle("The Art Of Computer Programming");
Book ej = new Book(75);
ej.setTitle("Effective Java");
Book cc = new Book(60);
cc.setTitle("Clean Code");
System.out.println(taocp.getTitle());
System.out.println(taocp.getNumberOfCopies());
System.out.println(ej.getTitle());`
System.out.println(ej.getNumberOfCopies());
System.out.println(cc.getTitle());
System.out.println(cc.getNumberOfCopies());
}
}Book.java
public class Book {
private String title;
private int numberOfCopies;
public Book(int numberOfCopies) {
this.numberOfCopies = numberOfCopies;
}
public void setTitle(String bookTitle) {
title = bookTitle;
}
public String getTitle() {
return title;
}
public int getNumberOfCopies() {
return numberOfCopies;
}
}Console Output
The Art Of Computer Programming
100
Effective Java
75
Clean Code
60
We enjoyed defining the MotorBike class and checking out the behavior of its instances, ducati and honda.
When we started off , we created instances of MotorBike classes using:
MotorBike ducati = new MotorBike();
Did you notice something familiar? Doesn't the expression new MotorBike() look like a constructor call?
As it turns out, it is a constructor call on MotorBike!
When we define a class in Java (even a seemingly empty one), some behind-the-scene magic happens. Consider one such class Cart:
class Cart {
};This class has neither state, nor behavior. When we try to create instances of this "empty" class:
class CartRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
Cart cart = new Cart();
}
}The code seems to compile, execute and get initialized quite smoothly! What happens is, that the compiler silently generates a default constructor for Cart.
A default constructor is one that accepts no arguments. It is as if the Cart class were defined this way:
class Cart {
public Cart() {
}
};A constructor may also have overloaded definitions.
Let's now try to create MotorBike instances with default initialization, just as we did with Cart.
MotorBike.java
package com.in28minutes.oops;
public class MotorBike {
private int speed;
MotorBike(int speed) {
if(speed > 0)
this.speed = speed;
}
}MotorBikeRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.oops;
public class MotorBikeRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
MotorBike ducati = new MotorBike(100);
MotorBike honda = new MotorBike(200);
MotorBike yamaha = new MotorBike();
}
}Console Output
Compiler Error
The compiler flags an error with MotorBikeRunner.java! MotorBike yamaha = new MotorBike(); is failing compilation. Why?
No default constructor is generated here! If you provide any constructor definition in a class, the compiler will not add a default constructor. Do them all yourself, if you don’t like what I do for you! is what it yells back.
If you need the default constructor, you can explicitly add it.
MotorBike.java
package com.in28minutes.oops;
public class MotorBike {
//state
private int speed;
//behavior
MotorBike() {
this(5);
}
MotorBike(int speed) {
if(speed > 0)
this.speed = speed;
}
}MotorBikeRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.oops;
public class MotorBikeRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
MotorBike ducati = new MotorBike(100);
MotorBike honda = new MotorBike(200);
MotorBike yamaha = new MotorBike();
System.out.printf("Earlier Yamaha Speed is : %d", yamaha.getSpeed()).println();
}
}The output of this snippet is:
Earlier Yamaha Speed is : 5
We defined a zero-argument constructor MotorBike(), to enable default object initialization. But what are we doing in its body with the statement this(5);?
We have called the constructor MotorBike(int), qualified with the this keyword, within Motorbike().
Earlier, we looked at basic Java types (including int, double and boolean), and got a little familiar with them.
We used literal values, declared variables and formed expressions using them.
Java primitive types include:
- Integer Types
byteshortintlong
- Floating-Point Types
floatdouble
- Character Type
char
- Logical Type
boolean
In this section, let's play with each of these types to understand them further.
Integers are not much of a mystery, are they? They've been part of us since our school days, and we normally prefer them over other numbers (they scare us less!).
Java supports them with ease, and we have coded quite a few examples using them, already.
Java also has a wrapper class corresponding to each of them, which make their primitive versions more versatile. The wrapper classes we are talking about are:
Byte: forbyteShort: matchingshortIntegercorresponding tointLong: aboutlong
Let's see how we can work with them.
Look at all the information these tiny classes hold for you! As they say, "fore-warned is fore-armed". Depending on the data (range and size) your program handles, you decide which types to use, to store them.
jshell> Byte.SIZE
$1 ==> 8
jshell> Byte.BYTES
$2 ==> 1
jshell> Byte.MAX_VALUE
$3 ==> 127
jshell> Byte.MIN_VALUE
$4 ==> -128
jshell> Short.BYTES
$5 ==> 2
jshell> Integer.BYTES
$6 ==> 4
jshell> Long.BYTES
$7 ==> 8
jshell> Short.MAX_VALUE
$8 ==> 32767
jshell> Integer.MAX_VALUE
$8 ==> 2147483647
jshell> int i = 100000;
i ==> 100000
jshell> long l = 50000000000;
| Error:
| integer number too large: 50000000000
| long l = 50000000000;
|_________^
jshell> long l = 50000000000l;
l ==> 50000000000
jshell>Problems will (and should) arise if we attempt to store large data into smaller bins. The compiler warns the programmer about such issues by flagging errors. However, if the programmer is aware of the risks and intends to go ahead, explicit casts are her tools to push the code through.
Operations in the other direction (storing a smaller data value in a larger bin), is a piece of cake for the compiler. Such a conversion is called an implicit cast.
Attempting to store a long value into an int variable will give us a compiler error. However, you can use an explicit cast, such as i = (int) l;.
jshell> int i = 100000;
i ==> 100000
jshell> long l = 50000000000l;
l ==> 50000000000
jshell> i = l;
| Error :
| incompatible types: possible lossy conversion from long to int
| i = l;
|_____^
jshell> i = (int) l;
i ==> -1539607552
jshell> l = i;
l ==> -1539607552
jshell>
The compiler is not responsible for the type-safety of this statement. The onus is on me, the programmer.
Remember our earlier statement on possible incorrect program behavior? As you can see, a different value got stored in i.
In this step, we:
- Explored the wrapper classes present for the primitive integer types
- Understood the different capacities and data ranges of these types
- Examined how to use explicit and implicit casts
In a decimal system, the allowed digits are 0 through 9. When a value of 10 is encountered, the number of digits increases by 1, and its representation is "10".
Those familiar with number systems would know that decimal is not the only system that computers understand.
Other number systems that the Java language supports are Octal (Base-8) and Hexadecimal (Base-16).
In an Octal system, the allowed digits are 0 through 7, and a value 8 is represented by "010". The leading 0 is added only to distinguish the octal format from the decimal one.
In a Hexadecimal system, the allowed digits are 0 through 9, followed by a through f (or A through F). A value of 16 is represented by "0x10". Here, a leading 0x is added to help the compiler recognize Hexa decimal representation.
Let's see how Java supports these three number systems.
There are no number-system specific integer types in Java! The same int type is used to store decimal, octal and hexadecimal values.
If we adhere to to number system conventions about valid digits and understand the compiler hints, we get no surprises.
jshell> int eight = 010;
eight ==> 8
jshell> int sixteen = 0x10;
sixteen ==> 16
jshell> int fifteen = 0xf;
fifteen ==> 15
jshell> int eight = 08;//8 is invalid octal digit
| Error:
| integer number too large : 08
| int eight = 08;
|___________^
jshell> int big = 0xbbaacc;
big ==> 12298956
jshell>There are two kinds of assignments:
- Literal-to-variable assignment: With
short s = 123456;, the data is clearly out of range (this is known at compile-time). The compiler flags an error. - Variable-to-variable assignment: Consider
sh = in;. The value stored inint inat that stage was4567, which is well within the range of theshorttype. The compiler chooses not to take chances and flags an error. This can again be preempted with a explicit castsh = (short) in.
jshell> byte b = 128;
| Error:
| incompatible types: possible lossy conversion from int to byte
| byte b = 128;
|_________^--^
jshell> short s = 123456;
| Error:
| incompatible types: possible lossy conversion from int to short
| short s = 123456;
|__________^-------^
jshell> short sh = 3456;
sh ==> 3456
jshell> int in = 4567;
in ==> 3456
jshell> sh = in;
| Error:
| incompatible types: possible lossy conversion from int to short
| sh = in;
|______^
jshell> sh = (short) in;
sh ==> 4567
jshell> int num = sh;
num ==> 4567
jshell>We already had a glimpse of arithmetic operators for the integer types:
+-*/%++(both prefix and post-fix increment)--(both prefix and post-fix increment)
The increment and decrement operators are an interesting case, as they are actually short-hands for multiple statements. When we use their prefix and post-fix versions, we need to look out for side-effects.
With post-fix increment, such as in int j = i++;, the increment takes place after the assignment is done. j gets the value before increment.
jshell> int i = 10;
i ==> 10
jshell> int j = i++;
j ==> 10
jshell> i
i ==> 11When prefix increment is involved, as with int n = ++m;, the increment is carried out before the assignment. n gets the value after increment.
jshell> int m = 10;
m ==> 10
jshell> int n = ++m;
n ==> 11
jshell> m
m ==> 11With post-fix decrement, as with int l = k--;, the decrement occurs after the assignment is done. As far as prefix decrement is concerned, such as in int q = --p;, the decrement is performed before the assignment.
jshell> int k = 10;
k ==> 10
jshell> int l = k--;
l ==> 10
jshell> k
k ==> 9
jshell> int p = 10;
p ==> 10
jshell> int q = --p;
q ==> 9
jshell> p
p ==> 9
jshell>In this step, we:
- Looked at the number-systems supported in Java for integers
- Examined how prefix and post-fix versions work for increment and decrement operators
-
Create a Java
classBiNumberthat stores a pair of integers, and has the following functionality:- Can be created by passing its initial two numbers to store
- Must Support Addition and Multiplication operations on the stored integers
- An operation to double the values of both numbers
- Operations to access each number individually
In short, we must be able to write code like this in the main method of our runner class:
BiNumber numbers = new BiNumber(2, 3);
System.out.println(numbers.add());
System.out.println(numbers.multiply());
numbers.double();
System.out.println(numbers.getNumber1());
System.out.println(numbers.getNumber2());BiNumber.java
package com.in28minutes.primitive.datatypes;
public class BiNumber {
private int number1;
private int number2;
public BiNumber(int number1, int number2) {
this.number1 = number1;
this.number2 = number2;
}
public int add() {
return number1 + number2;
}
public int multiply() {
return number1 * number2;
}
public void doubleValue() {
number1 *= 2;
number2 *= 2;
}
public int getNumber1() {`
return number1;
}
public int getNumber2() {
return number2;
}
public void setNumber1(int number1) {
this.number1 = number1;
}
public void setNumber2(int number2) {
this.number2 = number2;
}
}BiNumberRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.primitive.datatypes;
public class BiNumberRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
BiNumber numbers = new BiNumber(2, 3);
System.out.println(numbers.add());
System.out.println(numbers.multiply());
numbers.doubleValue();
System.out.println(numbers.getNumber1());
System.out.println(numbers.getNumber2());
}
}Console Output
5
6
4
6
You would recall there are two types in Java to support floating-point numbers:
double: The default type for floating-point literals, with a capacity of 8 bytesfloat: A narrower, less precise representation for floating-point data. It has a capacity of 4 bytes.
Let's quickly refresh what we know, with a few code snippets.
Default floating point type in Java is double. A float literal must be accompanied with a trailing f or F.
jshell> float f = 34.5;
| Error:
| incomaptible types: possible lossy conversion from double to float
| float f = 34.5;
|_________^---^
jshell> float f = 34.5f;
f ==> 34.5
jshell> float fl = 34.5F;
fl ==> 34.5
jshell> double d = 34.5678;
d ==> 34.5678
jshell> float flo = d;
| Error:
| incomaptible types: possible lossy conversion from double to float
| float flo = d;
|__________^
jshell> float flo = (float) d;
flo ==> 34.567
jshell>You can use operators ++, -- and % on double.
jshell> double dbl = 34.5678;
dbl ==> 34.5678
jshell> dbl++
$3 ==> 34.5678
jshell> dbl
dbl ==> 35.5678
jshell> dbl--
dbl ==> 35.5678
jshell> dbl % 5
dbl ==> 4.567799999999998You would need an explicit cast to convert a float to an integer value int i = (int)f.
jshell> float f = 34.5678f;
f ==> 34.5678
jshell> int i = f;
| Error:
| incomaptible types: possible lossy conversion from float to int
| int i = f;
|_______^
jshell> int i = (int)f;
i ==> 34
jshell> float fl = i;
fl ==> 34.0
jshell>In this step, we:
- Saw how we create literals and variables of the floating-point types
- Understood the differences between
doubleandfloat
Compact though they are, double and float are not very precise representations of floating-point numbers.
In fact, they are not used in computations that require high degrees for accuracy, such as scientific experiments and financial applications. The next example shows you why.
jshell> 34.56789876 + 34.2234
$1 ==> 68.79129875999999The literal expression 34.56789876 + 34.2234 should evaluate to 68.79129876. Above addition is not really accurate.
This is due to a flaw in floating-point representations, used in the double and float types.
The BigDecimal class was introduced in Java to tide over these problems.
Accuracy of BigDecimal representation is retained only when String literals are used to build it.
jshell> BigDecimal number1 = new BigDecimal("34.56789876");
number1 ==> 34.56789876
jshell> BigDecimal number2 = new BigDecimal("34.2234");
number2 ==> 34.2234_A BigDecimal type can be used to create only immutable objects. The values in an immutable object cannot be changed after creation.
You can see that the value of number1 is not changed on executing number1.add(number2). To get the result of the sum, we create a new variable sum.
jshell> number1.add(number2);
$2 ==> 68.79129876
jshell> number1
number1 ==> 34.56789876
jshell> BigDecimal sum = number1.add(number2);
sum ==> 68.79129876In this step, we:
- Learned that
doubleandfloatare not very precise data types - Were introduced to the
BigDecimalbuilt-in data type - Understood that
BigDecimalis immutable - Saw that accuracy is best achieved when you construct
BigDecimaldata using string literals
Let's look at a few other operations defined in the BigDecimal class.
All BigDecimal operations support only BigDecimal operands.
jshell> BigDecimal number1 = new BigDecimal("11.5");
number1 ==> 34.56789876
jshell> BigDecimal number2 = new BigDecimal("23.45678");
number2 ==> 23.45678
jshell> number1.add(number2);
$1 ==> 34.95678BigDecimal does not jell well with primitive types.
jshell> int i = 5;
i ==> 5
jshell> number1.add(i);
| Error:
| incompatible types: int cannot be converted to java.math.BigDecimal
| number1.add(i);
|_____________^We can add, multiple, divide or subtract BigDecimal values.
jshell> number1.add(new BigDecimal(i));
$2 ==> 16.5
jshell> number1.multiply(new BigDecimal(i));
$3 ==> 67.5
jshell> number1.divide(new BigDecimal(100));
$4 ==> 0.115
jshell>In this step, we:
- Explored the
BigDecimalmethods for doing some basic arithmetic - Found that
BigDecimalhas constructors accepting most basic Java numeric types
Write a Program that does a Simple Interest computation for a Principal amount. Recall that the formula for such a calculation is:
Total amount (TA) = Principal Amount (PA) + ( PA * Simple Interest (SI) Rate * Duration In Years (N))
In essence, write a SimpleInterestCalculator class that can be used in the following manner:
SimpleInterestCalculator calculator = new SimpleInterestCalculator("4500.00", "7.5");
BigDecimal totalValue = calculator.calculateTotalValue(5); //5 year duration
System.out.println(totalValue);SimpleInterestCalculatorRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.primitive.datatypes;
import java.math.BigDecimal;
public class SimpleInterestCalculatorRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
SimpleInterestCalculator calculator = new SimpleInterestCalculator("4500.00", 7.5");
BigDecimal totalValue = calculator.calculateTotalValue(5); //5 year duration
System.out.println(totalValue);
}
}SimpleInterestCalculator.java
package com.in28minutes.primitive.datatypes;
import java.math.BigDecimal;
public class SimpleInterestCalculatorRunner {
BigDecimal principal;
BigDecimal interest;
public SimpleInterestCalculator(String principal, String interest) {
this.principal = new BigDecimal(principal);
this.interest = new BigDecimal(interest).divide(new BigDecimal(100));
}
public BigDecimal calculateTotalValue(int noOfYears)
//Total Value = Principal + Principal * Interest* Years
BigDecimal totalValue = prinipal.add(principal.multiply(interest).multiply(new BigDecimal(noOfYears)));
return totalValue;`
}
}Console Output:
6187.50000
The Java import statement is Required in each source file that uses a class from another package. Hence, both SimpleInterestCalculator.java (class definition) and SimpleInterestCalculatorRunner.java (runner class definition) need to import class java.math.BigDecimal.
package java.lang.* is imported by default.
The .* suffix indicates that all classes in the package java.lang are being imported.
In this step, we:
- Used
BigDecimalvalues in a stand-alone Java program - Learnt how to make use of built-in Java packages, through the
importstatement
The Java boolean data type is one that holds only one of two values: true or false. Both labels are case-sensitive. We have seen examples of built-in comparison operators, such as ==, != and >, that evaluate expressions to give us boolean results. Let us do a quick recap of some of these.
Relational Operators are used mainly for comparison. They accept operands of non-boolean primitive data types, and return a boolean value.
jshell> int i = 7;
i ==> 7
jshell> i > 7;
$1 ==> false
jshell> i >= 7;
$2 ==> true
jshell> i < 7;
$3 ==> false
jshell> i <= 7;
$4 ==> true
jshell> i == 7;
$5 ==> true
jshell> i == 8;
$6 ==> false
jshell>
Java also has logical operators that are used in expressions. Logical operators expect boolean operands. Expressions involving these are used for forming boolean conditions in code, including within if, for and while statements. The prominent logical operators are:
&&: logical AND||: OR!: NOT
Let's learn how we use them in our code.
We would want to find if i is between 15 and 25. An expression i >= 15 && i <= 25 can be used. Details below.
jshell> int i = 17;
i ==> 17
jshell> i >= 15
$1 ==> true
jshell> i <= 25
$2 ==> true
jshell> i >= 15 && i <= 25
$3 ==> true
jshell> i == 30;
i ==> 30
jshell> i >= 15 && i <= 25
$4 ==> false
jshell> i == 5;
i ==> 30
jshell> i >= 15 && i <= 25
$5 ==> falseAn expression with&& evaluates to true only if both its boolean operands evaluate to true.
jshell> true && true
$6 ==> true
jshell> true && false
$7 ==> false
jshell> false && true
$8 ==> false
jshell> false && false
$9 ==> false
jshell>The next example helps us visualize truth tables for the prominent logical operators.
jshell> true || true
$1 ==> true
jshell> true || false
$2 ==> true
jshell> false || true
$3 ==> true
jshell> false || false
$4 ==> false
jshell> true ^ true
$5 ==> false
jshell> true ^ false
$6 ==> true
jshell> false ^ true
$7 ==> true
jshell> false ^ false
$8 ==> false
jshell> !true
$9 ==> false
jshell> !false
$10 ==> true
jshell> int x = 6;
x ==> 6
jshell> !(x > 7)
$11 ==> true
jshell>In this step, we:
- We're introduced to the
booleanprimitive type - Understood where logical operators are used in Java programs
- Explored the truth-tables of commonly used logical operators
Consider code below. The expression j > 15 && i++ > 5 evaluates to false as expected. j>15 is false as j has a value of 15.
jshell> int j = 15;
j ==> 15
jshell> int i = 10;
i ==> 10
jshell> j > 15 && i++ > 5
$1 ==> false
jshell> j
j ==> 15
jshell> i
i ==> 10You can also observe that the value of i remains unchanged 10.
Why? Because i++ > 5 was not even evaluated.
Why? && is lazy. It saw that j > 15 is false. Irrespective of the result of second expression, the result of this && would be false. So, it does NOT evaluate the second expression.
A more detailed explanation
The expression j > 15 && i++ > 5 was scanned from left to right. As the first operand to && evaluated to false, the compiler got lazy. && avoids evaluating expressions that don't affect the final result. The optimization has a name: Short-Circuit Evaluation, also called lazy evaluation.
The logical operator & is another version of the logical AND operation, that does away with lazy evaluation.
Both operands to & are always evaluated.
jshell> j > 15 & i++ > 5
$1 ==> false
jshell> j
j ==> 15
jshell> i
i ==> 11
jshell>Similarly, the logical OR operator also has two versions:
- The
||operator we saw earlier. This exhibits lazy evaluation. - The
|operator, without lazy evaluation.
It is bad programming practice for our code to depend on the compiler's lazy evaluation. It makes code less readable, and can hide difficult-to-fix software bugs. It obviously adds to the code maintenance burden, so don't do it unless you like being in your peers' bad books.
In this step, we:
- Examined conditions involving logical operators, that had lazy evaluation
- Observed that the lazy evaluation depends on the operator's truth-table
- Saw versions of the operators without lazy evaluation
- Learned that code depending on lazy-evaluation, is less readable
Earlier, we explored how we could store basic keyboard characters(called ascii-code characters), such as:
- Upper-Case and lower-case letters (A-Z, a-z)
- Numeric characters (0-9)
- Punctuation and other special characters (such as ',', '$', '{', etc.)
Turns out Java supports a much larger family of character encoding sets, called Unicode. All Unicode characters can be input to, understood and processed by, as well as output from your code.
Not all Unicode characters can be input from your keyboard. But Java allows you to handle their values from your code, if you deal correctly with their format.
jshell> char ch = '"';
ch ==> '"'
jshell> char c = '\u0022';
c ==> '"'Integer values can be stored in char variables. If the value is within a meaningful range, it also corresponds to the ascii value of a keyboard character.
jshell> char cn = 65;
cn ==> 'A'Integer arithmetic can be performed on char data.
jshell> cn++
$1 ==> 'A'
jshell> cn
$2 ==> 'B'
jshell> ++cn
$3 ==> 'C'
jshell> cn + 5
$4 ==> 72
jshell> cn
cn ==> 'C'
jshell> (int)cn
cn ==> 67
jshell>In this step, we:
- Were introduced the the
chardata type - Learned that Unicode takes the character set beyond your keyboard
- An ascii character is
charvalue, encoded by an integer value
- Write a Java class
MyCharthat is a special type ofchar. An object of typeMyCharis created round an inputchardata element, and has operations that do the following:- Check if the input character is a:
- Numeric Digit
- Letter of the Alphabet
- Vowel (Either upper-case or lower-case)
- Consonant (Either upper-case or lower-case) NOTE: A letter is a consonant if not a vowel
- Print all the letters of the Alphabet in
- Upper-Case
- Lower-Case
- Check if the input character is a:
In Essence, a runner class for MyChar would have its main method run code similar to:
MyChar myChar = new MyChar('c');
System.out.println(myChar.isDigit());
System.out.println(myChar.isAlphabet());
System.out.println(myChar.isVowel());
System.out.println(myChar.isConsonant());
myChar.printLowerCaseAlphabets();
myChar.printUpperCaseAlphabets();MyCharRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.primitive.datatypes;
public class MyCharRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
MyChar myChar = new MyChar('c');
System.out.println(myChar.isVowel());
}
}MyChar.java
package com.in28minutes.primitive.datatypes;
public class MyChar {
private char ch;
public MyChar(char ch) {
this.ch = ch;
}
public boolean isVowel() {
if(ch == 'a' || ch == 'e' || ch == 'i' || ch == 'o' || ch == 'u') {
return true;
}
if(ch == 'A' || ch == 'E' || ch == 'I' || ch == 'O' || ch == 'U') {
return true;
}
return false;
}
}Console Output :
false
MyCharRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.primitive.datatypes;
public class MyCharRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
MyChar myChar = new MyChar('c');
System.out.println(myChar.isDigit());
System.out.println(myChar.isVowel());
}
}MyChar.java
package com.in28minutes.primitive.datatypes;
public class MyChar {
private char ch;
public MyChar(char ch) {
this.ch = ch;
}
public boolean isVowel() {
if(ch == 'a' || ch == 'e' || ch == 'i' || ch == 'o' || ch == 'u') {
return true;
}
if(ch == 'A' || ch == 'E' || ch == 'I' || ch == 'O' || ch == 'U') {
return true;
}
return false;
}
public boolean isDigit() {
if(ch >= 48 && ch <= 57) {
return true;
}
return false;
}
}Console Output :
false
false
MyCharRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.primitive.datatypes;
public class MyCharRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
MyChar myChar = new MyChar('c');
System.out.println(myChar.isDigit());
System.out.println(myChar.isAlphabet());
System.out.println(myChar.isVowel());
System.out.println(myChar.isConsonant());
myChar.printLowerCaseAlphabets();
myChar.printUpperCaseAlphabets();
}
}MyChar.java
package com.in28minutes.primitive.datatypes;
public class MyChar {
private char ch;
public MyChar(char ch) {
this.ch = ch;
}
public boolean isVowel() {
if(ch == 'a' || ch == 'e' || ch == 'i' || ch == 'o' || ch == 'u') {
return true;
}
if(ch == 'A' || ch == 'E' || ch == 'I' || ch == 'O' || ch == 'U') {
return true;
}
return false;
}
public boolean isConsonant() {
if(isAlphabet() && !(isVowel())) {
return true;
}
return false;
}
public boolean isDigit() {
if(ch >= 48 && ch <= 57) {
return true;
}
return false;
}
public boolean isAlphabet() {
if(ch >= 97 && ch <= 122) {
return true;
}
if(ch >= 65 && ch <= 90) {
return true;
}
return false;
}
public void printLowerCaseAlphabets() {
for(char ch='a'; ch <= 'z'; ch++) {
System.out.println(ch);
}
}
public void printUpperCaseAlphabets() {
for(char ch='A'; ch <= 'Z'; ch++) {
System.out.println(ch);
}
}
}Console Output :
false
true
false
true
a
b
c
d
e
f
g
h
i
j
k
l
m
n
o
p
q
r
s
t
u
v
w
x
y
z
A
B
C
D
E
F
G
H
I
J
K
L
M
N
O
P
Q
R
S
T
U
V
W
X
Y
Z
In this section, we built on our knowledge of the primitive Java types.
- We first got familiar with built-in wrappers for the integer types, that store useful type information.
- Going from the integer to the floating-point types, we examined type compatibility, and how the compiler warns you about common pitfalls. We used explicit casts to force type conversions, and learned that implicit type conversions are quite common.
- We moved on to the
BigDecimalclass, a floating-point type with greater precision and accuracy. - Next in line was
boolean, where we built on what we know of logical expressions. We focused on the logical operators, more so on short-circuit evaluation of their expressions. - We saw how dependency on side-effects, and on lazy evaluation, is not a good programming practice.
- Finally, we got to the
chartype, and were pleasantly surprised to know, that the keyboard is not the limit.
Decision making is a part of our daily lives. Computers do tasks for humans, so even programs need to make decisions. They do this by checking logical conditions, which evaluate to boolean values.
In the following steps, we will explore the following conditional statements:
ifif-elseif-else if-elseswitch
What better way to master these basics, than using them to solve a programming challenge?
Here we go!
- Ask the User for input:
- Enter two numbers
- Choose the arithmetic to do on those:
- Add
- Subtract
- Multiply
- Divide
- Perform the Operation
- Publish the Result
An example scenario could be:
Enter First Number
2
Enter Second Number
4
1 - Add
2 - Subtract
3 - Multiply
4 - Divide
Enter your choice of operation
3
The Result Is : 8
In this step, we:
- Discussed how input affects the control-flow of a program
- Listed out the conditionals available with Java
- Selected a programming challenge to help us learn about conditions
An if statement is the most basic way to manage control-flow in a program. A boolean condition is tested, and if found to be true, some code is executed. Otherwise, that code is not run.
- "Do Something when
conditionistrue"
Conceptually, the if statement looks like this:
if(condition) {
<if-body>
}An if-else statement improves over the plain if. We can now choose between executing two pieces of code, depending on what condition evaluates to.
- "Do Something when
conditionistrue, something else whenconditionisfalse"
An if-else statement boils down to the following:
if(condition) {
<if-body>
} else {
<else-body>
}If condition is found to be true, the statement block <if-body> is executed, otherwise <else-body> is run.
Let's now look at a examples that make use of these conditionals.
In this example:
- we have used compound comparison operators such as
<=and>=, which also evaluate tobooleanvalues. - Also used, are logical operators such as
&&and||, which both accept and return values of typeboolean.
jshell> int i = 3;
i ==> 3
jshell> if(i==3) {
..>> System.out.println("True");
..>> }
True
jshell> if(i<2) {
..>> System.out.println("True");
..>> }
jshell> if(i<=3 || i >= 35) {
..>> System.out.println("True");
..>> }
True
jshell> if(i<=3 && i >= 35) {
..>> System.out.println("True");
..>> }if-else allows us to specify code to execute when a condition is false.
jshell> if(i==3) {
..>> System.out.println("True");
..>> } else {
..>> System.out.println("i is not 3");
..>> }
True
jshell> i = 5;
i ==> 5
jshell> if(i==3) {
..>> System.out.println("True");
..>> } else {
..>> System.out.println("i is not 3");
..>> }
i is not 3
jshell>IfStatementRunner.java
com.in28minutes.ifstatement.examples;
public class IfStatementRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
//int i=25;
int i=26;
if(i == 25) {
System.out.println("i = 25");
} else {
System.out.println("i != 25");
}
}
}Console Output
i != 25
We would want to test a number for 3 conditions - value is 24, value is 25 or value is not 24 and 25. Let's consider the code from the example below.
IfStatementRunner.java
com.in28minutes.ifstatement.examples;
public class IfStatementRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
// if i is 25, print i = 25
//if i is 24, print i = 24
//otherwise, print i != 25 and i != 24
int i=25;
if(i == 25) {
System.out.println("i = 25");
}
if(i == 24) {
System.out.println("i = 24");
} else {
System.out.println("i != 25 and i != 24");
}
}
}Console Output
i = 25
i != 25 and i != 24
What just happened here? The value of i is set to 25 within the program, so like in the previous example, only i = 25 should have been printed.
Why the extra print?
We started off trying to check fro 3 possibilities:
* i being equal to 25
* i being equal to 24
* Neither of the above
We get wrong output, because i == 25 in first if is independent from i == 24 in the if-else that follows it.
Our decision making is not continuous. We need a tighter conditional to deal with more than two alternatives. We will explore this topic in the next step.
In this step, we:
- Learned about the
ifandif-elseconditionals - Tried out a few examples to see how they are used
The if-else if-else statement solves the issue we faced, while trying to test more than two conditions.
Let's see an example.
IfStatementRunner.java
com.in28minutes.ifstatement.examples;
public class IfStatementRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
// if i is 25, print i = 25
//if i is 24, print i = 24
//otherwise, print i != 25 and i != 24
int i=25;
if(i == 25) {
System.out.println("i = 25");
} else if(i == 24) {
System.out.println("i = 24");
} else {
System.out.println("i != 25 and i != 24");
}
}
}Console Output
i = 25
Let's now try giving i a different value, say 24.
IfStatementRunner.java
com.in28minutes.ifstatement.examples;
public class IfStatementRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
// if i is 25, print i = 25
//if i is 24, print i = 24
//otherwise, print i != 25 and i != 24
//int i=25;
int i=24;
if(i == 25) {
System.out.println("i = 25");
} else if(i == 24) {
System.out.println("i = 24");
} else {
System.out.println("i != 25 and i != 24");
}
}
}Console Output
i = 24
- With
iholding24, a different condition (the one coresponding toi == 24) evaluates totrue.
Let's now try to get a match with the else clause, the only one unexplored so far.
IfStatementRunner.java
com.in28minutes.ifstatement.examples;
public class IfStatementRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
// if i is 25, print i = 25
//if i is 24, print i = 24
//otherwise, print i != 25 and i != 24
//int i=24;
int i=26;
if(i == 25) {
System.out.println("i = 25");
} else if(i == 24) {
System.out.println("i = 24");
} else {
System.out.println("i != 25 and i != 24");
}
}
}Console Output
i != 25 and i != 24
When i is given a value of 26, the first two conditions are false. Hence, the code in the else gets executed.
one, and only one clause among those present in an if-else if-else statement ever evaluates to true. Also, the code block corresponding to the matched clause will get executed. This is ensured even if conditions are duplicated, or overlap. In that scenario, only the first such condition, downward from the if in sequence, will evaluate to true. The remaining possible matches are not even checked.
In this step, we:
- Learned about the
if-else if-elseconditional - Found out how to test when each different clause gets executed
- Understood the guarantees made by Java regarding the conditional's code execution
Try and guess the outputs of the following puzzles.
public class puzzleRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
puzzleOne();
}
public static void puzzleOne() {
int k = 15;
if(k > 20) {
System.out.println(1);
} else if(k > 10) {
System.out.println(2);
} else if(k < 20) {
System.out.println(3);
} else {
System.out.println(4);
}
}
}Answer:
2
public class puzzleRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
puzzleTwo();
}
public static void puzzleTwo() {
int l = 15;
if(l < 20)
System.out.println("l < 20");
if(l > 20)
System.out.println("l > 20");
else
System.out.println("Who Am I?");
}
}Answer:
l < 20
Who Am I?
public class puzzleRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
puzzleThree();
}
public static void puzzleThree() {
int m = 15;
if(m > 20)
if(m < 20)
System.out.println("m > 20"); else
System.out.println("Who Am I?");
}
}Answer:
Nothing is printed. Because the code is structured this way.
if(m > 20) {
if(m < 20)
System.out.println("m > 20");
else
System.out.println("Who Am I?");
} jshell> int i = 0;
i ==> 3
jshell> if(i) {
..>> System.out.println("i");
..>> }
| Error:
| incompatible types: int cannot be converted to boolean
| if(i)
|____^
jshell> if(i=1) {
..>> System.out.println("i");
..>> }
| Error:
| incompatible types: int cannot be converted to boolean
| if(i=1)
|____^-^
jshell> if(i==1) {
..>> System.out.println("i");
..>> }
jshell>Answer:
Compiler Error
public class puzzleRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
puzzleFive();
}
public static void puzzleFive() {
int number = 5;
if(number < 0)
number = number + 10;
number++;
System.out.println(number);
}
}**Answer : **
6
In the absence of explicit blocks, Only the statement next to the if statement is considered to be part of the if statement block.
Look at the statement of Menu-Challenge once again:
- Ask the User for input:
- Enter two numbers
- Choose an Arithmetic Operation to perform on them:
- Add
- Subtract
- Multiply
- Divide
- Perform the Operation
- Publish the Result
We have a good idea about how the if-else if-else conditional works.What we don't know, however, is how a such a conditional would behave when fed with random input. To test those scenarios out, the next step would be to learn how to take console input, from within our code.
We will do just that, in our next example.
Java provides a built-in class named Scanner, to scan user input from the console. Roping in this utility would require you, the programmer, to do the following:
importthejava.util.Scannerclasswithin your code (here, we were writing code in the Eclipse IDE)- Create a
scannerobject which is of typeScanner. This involves invoking theScannerconstructor through thenewoperator. You also need to passSystem.inas a constructor parameter, which tiesscannerto the console input. - To read integer input from the console, call the method
scanner.nextInt(). The keyboard's key needs to be pressed to complete user input. That number is passed on to your code, where it can be passed around.
MenuScanner.java
package com.in28minutes.ifstatement.examples;
import java.util.Scanner;
public class MenuRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
Scanner scanner = new Scanner(System.in);
System.out.print("Enter Number1: ");
int number1 = Scanner.nextInt();
System.out.println("The number you entered is: " + number1);
}
}Console Output
Enter Number1: 35
The number you entered is: 35
In this step, we:
- Revisited our Menu-Challenge problem statement, and found we needed to read user input
- Explored the basic usage of the
Scannerutility to fulfill this need
The Menu-Challenge does not stop at a single user input. It requires a total of three numbers to be typed in at the console. So how do we continue asking for input, and read them when they are given?
MenuScanner.java
package com.in28minutes.ifstatement.examples;
import java.util.Scanner;
public class MenuRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
Scanner scanner = new Scanner(System.in);
System.out.print("Enter Number1: ");
int number1 = Scanner.nextInt();
System.out.print("Enter Number2: ");
int number2 = Scanner.nextInt();
System.out.println("Select The Operation Choice");
System.out.println("1 - Add");
System.out.println("2 - Subtract");
System.out.println("3 - Multiply");
System.out.println("4 - Divide");
System.out.print("Enter Choice: ");
int choice = Scanner.nextInt();
System.out.print("Your Inputs Are:");
System.out.println("Number1: " + number1);
System.out.println("Number2: " + number2);
System.out.println("Choice: " + choice);
}
}Console Output
Enter Number1: 25
Enter Number2: 50
Operation Choices Available
1 - Add
2 - Subtract
3 - Multiply
4 - Divide
Enter Choice: 4
Your Inputs Are
Number1: 25
Number2: 50
Choice: 4
Repeatedly calling scanner.nextInt() will keep reading in any number the user may input. Also, the user needs to press the keyboard key to send each input.
We were not only able to read in all three values we need, but also wrote them out on the console. The user can now see that we got his data!
In this step, we:
- Figured out how to read more than one input from the console
- Demonstrated how values read in, can be preserved and used within the program
We don't think that after the previous step, anything can stop you from completing the Menu-Challenge. Here is one such way, from head-to-toe.
Our solution above does a very simple thing. It combines the mechanisms we learned for reading input and testing conditions, to solve Menu-Challenge.
The if-else-else if statement has a total of 5 clauses:
- To check for
4favorable conditions (Thechoicevalues for the4supported operations). Oneifand threeelse-ifclauses do the stuff for us. - the last default condition, which corresponds to a
choicevalue not supported, is handled by anelseclause.
MenuScanner.java
package com.in28minutes.ifstatement.examples;
import java.util.Scanner;
public class MenuRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
Scanner scanner = new Scanner(System.in);
System.out.print("Enter Number1: ");
int number1 = Scanner.nextInt();
System.out.print("Enter Number2: ");
int number2 = Scanner.nextInt();
System.out.println("Select The Operation Choice");
System.out.println("1 - Add");
System.out.println("2 - Subtract");
System.out.println("3 - Multiply");
System.out.println("4 - Divide");
System.out.print("Enter Choice: ");
int choice = Scanner.nextInt();
System.out.print("Your Inputs Are:");
System.out.println("Number1: " + number1);
System.out.println("Number2: " + number2);
System.out.println("Choice: " + choice);
if(choice == 1) {
System.out.println("Result = " + (number1 + number2));
} else if(choice == 2) {
System.out.println("Result = " + (number1 - number2));
} else if(choice == 3) {
System.out.println("Result = " + (number1 * number2));
} else if(choice == 4) {
System.out.println("Result = " + (number1 / number2));
} else {
System.out.println("Invalid Operation");
}
}
}Console Output
Enter Number1: 23
Enter Number2: 10
Operation Choices Available
1 - Add
2 - Subtract
3 - Multiply
4 - Divide
Enter Choice: 2
Your Inputs Are
Number1: 23
Number2: 10
Choice: 2
Result = 13
Console Output
Enter Number1: 25
Enter Number2: 35
Operation Choices Available
1 - Add
2 - Subtract
3 - Multiply
4 - Divide
Enter Choice: 5
Your Inputs Are
Number1: 23
Number2: 10
Choice: 5
Invalid Operation
In this step, we:
- Combined our knowledge of conditionals, with our recent learning on taking multiple console inputs
- Ultimately solved the Menu-Challenge problem
If you remember, our initial list of conditionals to manage control-flow, also had a switch statement. A switch also tests multiple conditions, and just like an else clause, it can handle the default possibility. Conceptually, a switch statement looks like the following:
switch(condition) {
case 1:
//<statements>
break;
case 2:
//<statements>
break;
//...
default:
//<statements>
break;
}
}default clause is executed when none of the cases match.
break; statement is used to break out of the switch after a successful match.
Let's look at a few examples on how to use switch.
Using a switch leads to code that is quite readable, doesn't it? Compare it with the chained if-else if-else statements we used in the previous step.
Leaving out the break statement from every case clause is a very common error. It leads to a situation called switch-fall-through. Here, even if there is a match with a particular case clause, all clauses following this one are executed in sequence, until a break is encountered somewhere!
jshell> int i = 5;
i ==> 5
jshell> switch(i) {
..>> case 1 : System.out.println("1");
..>> case 5 : System.out.println("5");
..>> default : System.out.println("default");
..>> }
5
default
jshell> i = 1;
i ==> 1
jshell> switch(i) {
..>> case 1 : System.out.println("1");
..>> case 5 : System.out.println("5");
..>> default : System.out.println("default");
..>> }
1
5
defaultAdding breaks ensures that only the matching case is executed.
jshell> switch(i) {
..>> case 1 : System.out.println("1"); break;
..>> case 5 : System.out.println("5"); break;
..>> default : System.out.println("default"); break;
..>> }
1
jshell>
Let's now refactor the MenuScanner example to use switch statement.
MenuScanner.java
package com.in28minutes.ifstatement.examples;
import java.util.Scanner;
public class MenuRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
Scanner scanner = new Scanner(System.in);
System.out.print("Enter Number1: ");
int number1 = Scanner.nextInt();
System.out.print("Enter Number2: ");
int number2 = Scanner.nextInt();
System.out.println("Select The Operation Choice");
System.out.println("1 - Add");
System.out.println("2 - Subtract");
System.out.println("3 - Multiply");
System.out.println("4 - Divide");
System.out.print("Enter Choice: ");
int choice = Scanner.nextInt();
System.out.print("Your Inputs Are:");
System.out.println("Number1: " + number1);
System.out.println("Number2: " + number2);
System.out.println("Choice: " + choice);
//performOperationUsingChainedIfElse(number1, number2, choice);`
performOperationUsingSwitch(number1, number2, choice);
}
public static void performOperationUsingSwitch(int number1, int number2, int choice) {
switch(choice) {
case 1 : System.out.println("Result = " + (number1 + number2)); break;
case 2 : System.out.println("Result = " + (number1 - number2)); break;
case 3 : System.out.println("Result = " + (number1 * number2)); break;
case 4 : System.out.println("Result = " + (number1 / number2)); break;
default : System.out.println("Invalid Operation"); break;
}
}
public static void performOperationUsingChainedIfElse(int number1, int number2, int choice) {
if(choice == 1) {
System.out.println("Result = " + (number1 + number2));
} else if(choice == 2) {
System.out.println("Result = " + (number1 - number2));
} else if(choice == 3) {
System.out.println("Result = " + (number1 * number2));
} else if(choice == 4) {
System.out.println("Result = " + (number1 / number2));
} else {
System.out.println("Invalid Operation");
}
}
}Console Output
Enter Number1: 23
Enter Number2: 10
Operation Choices Available
1 - Add
2 - Subtract
3 - Multiply
4 - Divide
Enter Choice: 2
Your Inputs Are
Number1: 23
Number2: 10
Choice: 2
Result = 13
Console Output
Enter Number1: 25
Enter Number2: 35
Operation Choices Available
1 - Add
2 - Subtract
3 - Multiply
4 - Divide
Enter Choice: 5
Your Inputs Are
Number1: 23
Number2: 10
Choice: 5
Invalid Operation
In this step, we:
- Explored the
switchconditional - Saw how it could implement the same control-flow as the
iffamily of conditionals - Learned the importance of coding it correctly, to enjoy Java control-flow guarantees
Let's now have some fun with the various conditionals. These puzzles will not only ensure you're still wide awake, they will also give you ample food for thought.
public class SwitchPuzzleRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
puzzleOne();
}
public static void puzzleOne() {
int number = 2;
switch(number) {
case 1:
System.out.println(1);
case 2:
System.out.println(2);
case 3:
System.out.println(3);
default:
System.out.println("default");
}
}
}Answer:
2
3
default
public class SwitchPuzzleRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
puzzleTwo();
}
public static void puzzleTwo() {
int number = 2;
switch(number) {
case 1:
System.out.println(1);
case 2:
case 3:
System.out.println("Number is 2 or 3");
break;
default:
System.out.println("default");
break;
}
}
}Answer:
Number is 2 or 3
public class SwitchPuzzleRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
puzzleThree();
}
public static void puzzleThree() {
int number = 10;
switch(number) {
case 1:
System.out.println(1);
break;
case 2:
System.out.println(2);
break;
case 3:
System.out.println(3);
break;
default:
System.out.println("default");
break;
}
}
}Answer:
default
public class SwitchPuzzleRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
puzzleFour();
}
public static void puzzleFour() {
int number = 10;
switch(number) {
System.out.println("default");
break;
case 1:
System.out.println(1);
break;
case 2:
System.out.println(2);
break;
case 3:
System.out.println(3);
break;
default:
}
}
}Answer:
default
public class SwitchPuzzleRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
puzzleFive();
}
public static void puzzleFive() {
long l = 15;
switch(l) {
}
}
}Answer:
Compiler Error
public class SwitchPuzzleRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
puzzleSix();
}
public static void puzzleSix() {
int number = 10;
int i = number * 2;
switch(number) {
case number>5 : System.out.println("number>5");
}
}
}Answer:
Compiler Error
Let's compare and contrast these two approaches, to gain some experience on how to choose a conditional.
First comes an example using the if-else if-else statement.
OperatorChoiceRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.ifstatement.examples;
public class OperatorChoiceRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
OperatorChoice opChoice = new OperatorChoice(5, 2, 1);
opChoice.operate();
}
}OperatorChoice.java
package com.in28minutes.ifstatement.examples;
public class OperatorChoice {
private int number1;
private int number2;
private int choice;
public OperatorChoice(int number1, int number2, int choice) {
this.number1 = number1;
this.number2= number2;
this.choice = choice;
}
public void operate() {
System.out.printf("number1 : %d", number1).println();
System.out.printf("number2 : %d", number2).println();
System.out.printf("choice : %d", choice).println();
if(choice == 1) {
System.out.printf("result : %d", number1 + number2).println();
} else if(choice == 2) {
System.out.printf("result : %d", number1 - number2).println();
} else if(choice == 3) {
System.out.printf("result : %d", number1 * number2).println();
} else if(choice == 4) {
System.out.printf("result : %d", number1 / number2).println();
} else {
System.out.println("Invalid Operation");
}
}
}Console Output
number1 : 5
number2 : 2
choice : 1
result : 7
Next in line, is an example involving a switch.
OperatorChoiceRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.ifstatement.examples;
public class OperatorChoiceRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
OperatorChoice opChoice = new OperatorChoice(5, 2, 1);
opChoice.operateUsingSwitch();
}
}OperatorChoice.java
package com.in28minutes.ifstatement.examples;
public class OperatorChoice {
private int number1;
private int number2;
private int choice;
public OperatorChoice(int number1, int number2, int choice) {
this.number1 = number1;
this.number2= number2;
this.choice = choice;
}
public void operateUsingSwitch() {
System.out.printf("number1 : %d", number1).println();
System.out.printf("number2 : %d", number2).println();
System.out.printf("choice : %d", choice).println();
switch(choice) {
case 1: System.out.printf("result : %d", number1 + number2).println();
break;
case 2: System.out.printf("result : %d", number1 - number2).println();
break;
case 3: System.out.printf("result : %d", number1 * number2).println();
break;
case 4: System.out.printf("result : %d", number1 / number2).println();
break;
default: System.out.printf("result : %d", number1 + number2).println();
break;
}
}
}Console Output
number1 : 5
number2 : 2
choice : 1
result : 7
In this step, we:
- Observed that the same conditional code could be written using an
if-family conditional, or theswitch. - Learned that an
iffamily conditional is difficult to get wrong, as the rules for it are very strict. It can be used to evaluate onlybooleanconditions. But it is verbose, and often less readable. - Came to know that a
switchconditional can be used to check for only integer values. It is very compact, and very readable. However, the relative order ofcaseclauses anddefaultare not fixed, and the usage ofbreakis optional. This can lead to subtle errors in your program.
- Write a Java
classwhich has the following operations within it:- Given a number between 0 (Sunday) and 6 (Saturday), return if the day is a Weekday
- Given a number between 1 (January) and 12 (December), return the corresponding English name for that month
- Given a number between 1 (January) and 12 (December), return the corresponding English name for that day of the week
CalendarSwitchRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.ifstatement.examples;
public class CalendarSwitchRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
System.out.println(determineNameOfDay(1));
System.out.println(isWeekDay(1));
System.out.println(determineMonthOfYear(1));
}
public String determineNameOfDay(int dayNumber) {
switch(dayNumber) {
case 0 : return "Sunday";
break;
case 1 : return "Monday";
break;
case 2 : return "Tuesday";
break;
case 3 : return "Wednesday";
break;
case 4 : return "Thursday";
break;
case 5 : return "Friday";
break;
case 6 : return "Saturday";
break;
default : return "Invalid Day";
break;
}
}
public String determinenameofMonth(int monthNumber) {
switch(monthNumber) {
case 1 : return "January";
case 2 : return "February";
case 3 : return "March";
case 4 : return "April";
case 5 : return "May";
case 6 : return "June";
case 7 : return "July";
case 8 : return "August";
case 9 : return "September";
case 10 : return "October";
case 11 : return "November";
case 12 : return "December";
default : return "Invalid Month";
}
}
public boolean isWeekDay(int dayNumber) {
switch(dayNumber) {
case 1 :
case 2 :
case 3 :
case 4 :
case 5 : return true;
case 0 :
case 6 :
default : return false;
}
}
}The ternary operator ?: is a logical operator, that works on three operands. Its functioning is similar to an if-else statement (Checking for just 2 conditions). Exactly one of the two expressions is guaranteed to match.
Conceptually, its syntax is this:
result = (condition ? expression-if-condition-true : expression:if-condition-false);
?: is easy to use. A few examples below:
jshell> boolean isEven;
isEven ==> false
jshell> int i = 6;
jshell> isEven = ( i%2==0 ? true : false);
isEven ==> true
jshell> i = 7;
i ==> 7
jshell> isEven = ( i%2==0 ? true : false);
isEven ==> falseYou can return non boolean values.
jshell> String ifEven = ( i%2==0 ? "YES" : "NO");
ifEven ==> "NO"
jshell> i = 6;
i ==> 6
jshell> ifEven = ( i%2==0 ? "YES" : "NO");
ifEven ==> "YES"Both the expressions should return value of same type.
jshell> ifEven = ( i%2==0 ? "YES" : 4 );
| Error:
| incompatible types: bad type in conditional expression
| int cannot be converted to java.lang.String
| ifEven = ( i%2==0 ? "YES" : 4 );
|_____________________________^
jshell> ifEven = ( i%2==0 ? "YES" : true );
| Error:
| incompatible types: bad type in conditional expression
| boolean cannot be converted to java.lang.String
| ifEven = ( i%2==0 ? "YES" : true );
|_____________________________^
jshell>In this step, we:
- Discovered a more compact Java conditional, the
?:operator - Saw that in most cases it behaves like an
if-elseconstruct
TODO
If you may recall, the structure of a for loop is:
for(initialization; condition; update) {
//<Statements Body>
}
The <Statements Body> inside the loop is executed so long as the condition is true. Let's look at a few puzzles to explore how we can utilize them.
jshell>for(int i=0; i <= 10; i++) {
__...>>System.out.print(i + " ");
__...>>}
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
jshell>for(int i=0; i <= 10; i = i+2) {
__...>>System.out.print(i + " ");
__...>>}
0 2 4 6 8 10
jshell>for(int i=1; i <= 10; i = i+2) {
__...>>System.out.print(i + " ");
__...>>}
1 3 5 7 9
jshell>for(int i=11; i <= 10; i = i+2) {
__...>>System.out.print(i + " ");
__...>>}
jshell>for(int i=11; i <= 20;) {
__...>>System.out.print(i + " ");
__...>>i++;
__...>>}
11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20
jshell>int i = 20;
i ==> 20
jshell>for(i <= 30; i++) {
__...>>System.out.print(i + " ");
__...>>}
21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30
jshell>
All the three control components of a for loop are dispensable
initialziationconditionupdate
What happens in the background when we create objects?
jshell> class Planet {
..>>}
| created class Planet
jshell> Planet jupiter = new Planet();
jupiter ==> Planet@31a5c39eWhere is the object jupiter stored?
All Java objects are created on the Heap or Heap Memory.
When we create an new instance of `Planet', it is created on the Heap.
jshell> new Planet()
$18 ==> Planet@3f49dacenew Planet() creates an object on the Heap. In above example Planet@3f49dace, the object is stored on the Heap at address 3f49dace.
jshell> Planet jupiter = new Planet();
jupiter ==> Planet@31a5c39ePlanet jupiter = new Planet() does two things.
- Creates an object on the Heap
new Planet(). In above example, object is created at Heap location31a5c39e - Stores the reference of the object on the Heap in a variable
jupiter. In above example,31a5c39eis the value stored in variablejupiter. That's the memory location where the new object was created.
Let's consider another example.
jshell> class Animal {
..>> int id;
..>> public Animal(int id) {
..>> this.id = id;
..>> }
..>> }
| created class Animal
jshell> Animal dog = new Animal(12);
dog ==> Animal@27c20538
jshell> Animal cat = new Animal(15);
cat ==> Animal@6e06451e
jshell>Two new Animal objects are created on the Heap. Their memory locations (references) are stored in the reference variables - dog and cat.
In Java, all classes are also called Reference Types. Except for primitive variable instances, all the instances or objects are stored on the Heap. The references to the objects are stored in the reference variables like jupiter, dog and cat.
In this step, we:
- Looked at what references are
- Had a look at what the contents of a reference variable look like
Let's spend some time playing with reference variables.
References that are not initialized by the programmer, are initialized by the Java compiler to null. null is a special value that stands for an empty location. In other words, the Animal nothing refers to nothing!
jshell> class Animal {
..>> int id;
..>> public Animal(int id) {
..>> this.id = id;
..>> }
..>> };
| created class Animal
jshell> Animal nothing;
nothing ==> nullAssigning the reference cat to nothing does what one would expect: it assigns the address of the object created with new Animal(15) (stored in cat), to the variable nothing.
jshell> Animal dog = new Animal(12);
dog ==> Animal@27c20538
jshell> Animal cat = new Animal(15);
cat ==> Animal@6e06451e_
jshell> nothing = cat;
nothing ==> 6e06451enothing and cat are pointing to the same location on the 'Heap'. When we do nothing.id = 10 we are changing the id of the object pointed to by both nothing and cat.
jshell> nothing.id = 10;
$1 => 10
jshell> cat.id
$2 => 10Let's change nothing to point to the same object referenced by dog.
jshell> nothing = dog;
dog ==> 27c20538
jshell> nothing.id;
$3 => 12
jshell>You can nothing.id prints the value of the object referenced by dog because they are pointing to the same object.
Here are couple of important things to note:
nothing = dog- Assignment between references does not copy the entire referenced object. It only copies the reference. After an assignment, both reference variables point to the same object.nothing.id = 10- References can be used to modify the objects they reference.
Let's look at an example.
With primitive variables, assignment copies values.
jshell> int i =5;
i ==> 5
jshell> int j;
j ==> 0
jshell> j = i;
j ==> 5
jshell> j = 6;
j ==> 6
jshell> i;
i ==> 5j = i copies the value of i into j. Later, when value of j is changed, i is not affected.
Comparing primitive variables compares their values.
jshell> i == j;
$4 ==> false
jshell> j = 5;
j ==> 5
jshell> i == j;
$5 ==> trueLet's create a few reference variables.
jshell> Animal dog = new Animal(12);
dog ==> Animal@4b952a2d
jshell> Animal cat = new Animal(10);
cat ==> Animal@3159c4b8
jshell> Animal ref = cat;
ref ==> Animal@3159c4b8
jshell> Animal dog2 = new Animal(12);
dog ==> Animal@29ca901e_When we compare reference variables, we are still comparing values. But the values are references - the address of memory locations where objects are stored. The values stored inside the referenced objects are not used for comparison.
Both cat and ref reference a single Animal object created using new Animal(10). == returns true
jshell> cat == dog;
$6 ==> false
jshell> cat == ref;
$7 ==> trueThe comparison dog == dog2 evaluates to false since the references i.e. memory locations pointed by these variables are different. They have the same values for id field (12). But, that is not important!
jshell> dog == dog2;
$8 ==> false
jshell>In this step, we:
- Understood the way reference variables behave during initialization and assignment
- Saw the relevance of a
nullvalue for references - Observed how equality of references, is different from equality of values of primitive types
A sequence of characters, such as "Hello", "qwerty" and "PDF" is very different from other pieces of data.
In Java, a sequence of characters is typically represented by String class.
String provides several built-in utility methods.
Let's look at a few examples.
jshell> "Test".length()
$1 ==> 4"Test" is a string literal, so the compiler internally creates an object, gives it the type String and allocates memory for it. Since length() is a method of String, it can be invoked on this "Test" object.
In the example below, str is a reference to a String object, containing the value "Test". Creating a String object is an exception to how we typically create objects in Java. You don't need to make a String constructor call. Contrast this with how we would create a BigDecimal object.
jshell> String str = "Test";
str ==> "Test"
jshell> BigDecimal bd = new BigDecimal("1.0");
bd ==> 1.0String indexes, like those of arrays, start at 0. The charAt(int) method takes an index value as its argument, and returns the character symbol present at that index.
jshell> str.charAt(0)
$2 ==> 'T'
jshell> str.charAt(2)
$3 ==> 's'
jshell> str.charAt(3)
$4 ==> 't'The substring() method returns a String reference, and has overloaded versions:
- The
substring(int, int)method returns the sequence of character symbols starting at the lower index, and ending just before the upper index. - The
substring(int)method returns the sequence of character symbols starting from the index to end of string.
jshell> String biggerString = "This is a lot of text";
biggerString ==> "This is a lot of text"
jshell> biggerString.substring(5)
$5 ==> "is a lot of text"
jshell> biggerString.substring(5, 13)
$6 ==> "is a lot"
jshell> biggerString.charAt(13)
$7 ==> ' '
jshell>
In this step, we:
- Were introduced to the
Stringclass, that represents sequences of characters - Explored a few utility methods of the
Stringclass
- Write a method to print the individual characters of a given text string, separately.
jshell> String text = "Equation";
..>> for (int i=0; i < text.length(); i++) {
..>> System.out.println(text.charAt(i));
..>> }
E
q
u
a
t
i
o
n
jshell>
The String class is part of the built-in java.lang package. It provides several methods for common text processing. Let's have a peek at some of them, shall we?
Here are a few of the methods used in the examples below:
indexOf(): Has two overloaded versions.indexOf(char)returns the position where a character occurs in a string, the first time.indexOf(String)returns the starting position where a string occurs within our string, the first time.lastIndexOf(): Similar in function toindexOf(), but replace "first time" with "final time" in its description.startsWith(): Returnstrueif our string starts with the given prefix,falseotherwise.endsWith(): Returnstrueif our string ends with the given suffix,falseotherwise.isEmpty(): Returnstrueif our string is empty,falseotherwise.equals(): Returnstrueif our string is identical to the argument,falseotherwise.equalsIgnoreCase(): Returnstrueif our string is identical to the argument, ignoring the case of its characters. Will returnfalseotherwise.
jshell> String someString = "This is a lot of text again";
someString ==> "This is a lot of text again"
jshell> someString.indexOf("lot")
$1 ==> 10
jshell> someString.charAt(10)
$2 ==> 'l'
jshell> someString.indexOf('i')
$3 ==> 2
jshell> someString.lastIndexOf('i')
$4 ==> 25
jshell> someString.contains("text")
$5 ==> true
jshell> someString.startsWith("This")
$6 ==> true
jshell> someString.startsWith("jfsdklfj")
$7 ==> false
jshell> someString.endsWith("in")
$7 ==> true
jshell> someString.endsWith("ain")
$8 ==> true
jshell> someString.endsWith("gain")
$9 ==> true
jshell> someString.endsWith("againasdf")
$10 ==> false
jshell> someString.isEmpty()
$11 ==> false
jshell> "".isEmpty()
$12 ==> true
jshell> "true".equals("true")
$13 ==> true
jshell> String str = "value";
str ==> "value"
jshell> str.equals("value")
$14 ==> true
jshell> str.equals("VALUE")
$15 ==> false
jshell> str.equalsIgnoreCase("VALUE")
$16 ==> true
jshell>In this step, we:
- Used our
Stringprogramming skills on a small challenge. - Explored a set of simple, yet useful
Stringutilities.
What picture forms in your mind on hearing the word "immutable"? Someone whose voice cannot be muted out? Or is it the other way round?
The word "immutable" is related to the concept of "mutability", or the possibility of "mutating" something.
"mutate" means "to change". "Immutable" refers to something that "cannot be changed".
String objects are immutable. You cannot change their value after they are created.
The method concat()joins the contents of two String objects into one.
jshell> String str = "in28Minutes";
str ==> "in28Minutes"
jshell> str.concat(" is awesome")
$1 ==> "in28Minutes is awesome"However, the original value referred by str remains unchanged. The concat method create a new String object.
jshell> str
str ==> "in28Minutes"
Just like concat(), other String methods such as toUpperCase(), toLowerCase() and trim() return new String objects.
jshell> String anotherString = str.concat(" is awesome");
anotherString ==> "in28Minutes is awesome"
jshell> str
str ==> "in28Minutes"
jshell> String string2 = anotherString.concat(".");
string2 ==> "in28Minutes is awesome."
jshell> str
str ==> "in28Minutes"
jshell> anotherString
anotherString ==> "in28Minutes is awesome"
jshell> String s= "in28Minutes is awesome."
s ==> "in28Minutes is awesome."
jshell> s.toUpperCase()
s ==> "IN28MINUTES IS AWESOME."
jshell> s.toLowerCase()"
s ==> "in28minutes is awesome."
jshell> String str2= " in28Minutes is awesome "
str2 ==> " in28Minutes is awesome "
jshell> str2.trim()
str2 ==> "in28Minutes is awesome"
jshell>In this step, we:
- We understood that
Stringobjects are immutable - Observed how common
Stringutilities return a new String.
The symbol + denotes addition, and addition only, right? Any school kid will tell you that, or laugh at you if you disagree.
Heck, we even saw how to use it with the primitive numeric types, such as int, double and others related to it.
Java does not strictly follow your arithmetic text book.
+ can also be used as a String concatenation operator.
Here is how + works
- if both operands of
+are numeric, then arithmetic+(addition) is performed. - If any one of the operators is a
String, then string concatenation is performed.
jshell> 1 + 2
$1 ==> 3
jshell> "1" + "2"
$2 ==> "12"
jshell> "1" + 2
$3 ==> "12"
jshell> "1" + 23
$4 ==> "123"
jshell> 1 + 23
$5 ==> 24
jshell> "1" + 2 + 3
$6 ==> "123"
jshell> 1 + 2 + "3"
$7 ==> "33"In the example below, a different value is printed when parentheses are used around i + 20.
jshell> int i = 20;
i ==> 20
jshell> System.out.println("Value is " + i);
Value is 20
jshell> System.out.println("Value is " + i + 20);
Value is 2020
jshell> System.out.println("Value is " + (i + 20));
Value is 40join() is used to join a set of String values.
jshell> String.join(",", "2", "3", "4");
$8 ==> "2,3,4"replace(String, String)replaces all occurrences of the first sub-string with the second one. It also works with char data type.
jshell> "abcd".replace('a', 'z');
$9 ==> "zbcd"
jshell> "abcd".replace("ab", "xyz");
$10 ==> "xyzcd"
jshell>In this step, we:
- Learned that the
+operator is overloaded forStringconcatenation - Observed how
+interprets its operands, depending on the context - Noticed a few more
Stringutility methods, such asjoin()andreplace()
StringBuffer and StringBuilder allow you to modify a string literal in-place.
jshell> "123" + "123" + "1234" + "12345"
$1 ==> "123123123412345"
jshell> StringBuffer sb = new StringBuffer("TEst");
sb ==> "TEst"
jshell> sb.append(" 123");
$2 ==> "TEst 123"
jshell> sb
sb ==> "TEst 123"
jshell> sb.setCharAt(1, 'e');
sb ==> "Test 123"
jshell> StringBuilder sbldr = new StringBuffer("TEst");
sbldr ==> "TEst"
jshell>How do you choose which one to use?
StringBufferis thread safe. If you are writing a multi threaded program(more on this in a later section), useStringBuffer.- Otherwise, use
StringBuilder, since it offers better performance in both execution-time and memory usage.
In this step, we:
- Learned about
StringBufferandStringBuilder
Each primitive type in Java has a corresponding built-in wrapper class. Wrapper classes are also immutable (As well as final, more on this a little later).
Following is a list of built-in Java wrapper classes and their corresponding primitive types:
byte:Byteshort:Shortint:Integerlong:Longfloat:Floatdouble:Doublechar:Characterboolean:Boolean
The main incentives of using such wrappers in your code, are:
- Accessing type information about the corresponding primitive type
- Auto-Boxing feature, where a primitive data is automatically promoted to an object reference type
- Moving primitive type data around data structures (called collections), using their wrapper-style counterparts
Let's look at these incentives in the next step.
In this step, we:
- Were introduced to the wrapper classes available for the primitive types
- Learned about the advantages of having them around
Now that we know what wrapper classes are, and which ones correspond to each primitive Java type, let's try them out.
Creating instance of Wrapper Classes using new is simple. Examples below.
Integer hundred = new Integer("100");
Boolean b1 = new Boolean("true"); //true
Boolean b1 = new Boolean("True"); //true
Boolean b1 = new Boolean("false"); //false
Boolean b1 = new Boolean("False"); //false
Boolean b1 = new Boolean("other arbitrary string"); //falseYou can also use valueOf() method within types such as Integer and Float to create a wrapper object.
Float floatWrapper = Float.valueOf(57.0f);
int floatToInt = floatWrapper.intValue(); // 57
Integer seven = Integer.valueOf("111", 2);
Integer.toString(seven, 2);The Integer.valueOf() reuses existing Integer objects with same value on the heap. If an object with same value is present in the heap, it returns a reference to existing object. Otherwise, it returns a reference of a newly created Integer object.
Wrapper classes are immutable. Hence, above approach is efficient and accurate.
jshell> Integer integer1 = new Integer(5);
integer1 ==> 5
jshell> Integer integer2 = new Integer(5);
integer2 ==> 5
jshell> Integer integer3 = Integer.valueOf(5);
integer3 ==> 5
jshell> Integer integer4 = Integer.valueOf(5);
integer4 ==> 5
jshell> integer1 == integer2
$1 ==> true
jshell> integer3 == integer4
$2 ==> true
jshell>In this step, we:
- Discovered that there are two ways to create a wrapper object for primitive data
- Learned that
valueOf()takes advantage of immutability, to improve efficiency
Auto-Boxing is an example of syntactic sugar in the Java language. It does not provide new features but makes code more readable.
Auto-boxing reuses the mechanism provided by Integer.valueOf() for Integer, Float and others.
jshell> Integer seven = Integer.valueOf(7000);
seven ==> 7000
jshell> Integer sevenToo = 7000;
sevenToo ==> 7000
jshell> Integer sevenAgain = 7000;
sevenAgain ==> 7000
jshell> sevenToo == sevenAgain
$1 ==> trueIn the above example, Integer sevenToo = 7000 uses auto boxing. We are upgrading a int literal to a Integer value. This is done implicitly by using Integer.valueOf method.
There are constants available on Wrapper classes print the size of their variables and the range of values they can store.
jshell> Integer.MAX_VALUE
$2 ==> 2147483647
jshell> Integer.MIN_VALUE
$3 ==> -2147483648
jshell> Integer.SIZE
$4 ==> 32
jshell> Integer.BYTES
$5 ==> 4
jshell>
In this step, we:
- Understood the mechanism of auto-boxing, which uses the assignment operator route
- Understood how auto-boxing internally makes use of
valueOf()method
No discussion on the built-in Java primitive and reference types is complete without an exploration of the Date API.
Before Java SE 8, there were a lot of practical issues regarding the interface and implementation of the Date class.
From Java 8, Java provided an API for Date classes based on the Joda Date Framework.
The three most significant classes within this framework are : LocalDate, LocalTime and LocalDateTime.
java.time.* is not imported automatically by Jshell. Let's import it in.
The commonly used utilities to access current values of date and time are:
LocalDate.now(): Returns the current date value in readable formatLocalTime.now(): Returns the current time value in a readable formatLocalDateTime.now(): Returns a combination of the current date and time values, in a readable format
jshell> import java.time.LocalDate
jshell> LocalDate now = LocalDate.now()
now ==> 2018-02-01
jshell> import java.time.*
jshell> LocalDateTime now = LocalDateTime.now()
now ==> 2018-02-01T15:50:48.423164
jshell> LocalTime now = LocalTime.now()
now ==> 15:51:09.642001
jshell>In this step, we:
- Were introduced to the Java Date API, available through the
java.timepackage - Saw how to use the
LocalDate,LocalTimeandLocalDateTimetypes
We've been looking at calendars right from childhood, haven't we! How about playing around with a digital calendar?
LocalDate provides a number of methods to retrieve
- Date information: Day/Month/Year and related attributes
- Date meta-information: Classification-related information, such as whether a leap year, etc.
jshell> import java.time.*
jshell> import java.time.*
jshell> LocalDate today = LocalDate.now()
today ==> 2018-02-01
jshell> today.getYear()
$1 ==> 2018
jshell> today.getDayOfWeek()
$2 ==> THURSDAY
jshell> today.getDayOfMonth()
$3 ==> 01
jshell> today.getDayOfYear()
$4 ==> 32
jshell> today.getMonth()
$5 ==> FEBRUARY
jshell> today.getMonthValue()
$6 ==> 2
jshell> today.isLeapYear()
$7 ==> false
jshell> today.lengthOfYear()
$8 ==> 365
jshell> today.lengthOfMonth()
$9 ==> 28LocalDate is also immutable. You can use different methods provided to add and subtract days, months and years. Each of these return a new instance of LocalDate.
jshell> today.plusDays(100)
$10 ==> 2018-05-12
jshell> today.plusMonths(100)
$11 ==> 2026-06-01
jshell> today.plusYears(100)
$12 ==> 2118-02-01
jshell> today.minusYears(100)
$13 ==> 1918-02-01
jshell> LocalDate yesteryear = today.minusYears(100)
yesterYear ==> 1918-02-01
jshell> today
today ==> 2018-02-01
jshell>LocalDateTime extends LocalDate and provides time component as well. You can access, and perform arithmetic on the hours, minutes, seconds and nanoseconds values.
In this step, we:
- Saw common utilities that the
LocalDateclassprovides - Learned that
LocalDate,LocalTimeandLocalDateTimeare all immutable
You can take a look at additional utility methods in LocalDate in examples below:
jshell> LocalDate today = LocalDate.now()
today ==> 2018-02-01
jshell> LocalDate yesterday = LocalDate.of(2018, 01, 31)
yesterday ==> 2018-01-31
jshell> today.withYear(2016)
$1 ==> 2016-02-01
jshell> today.withDayOfMonth(20)
$2 ==> 2018-02-20
jshell> today.withMonth(3)
$3 ==> 2018-03-01
jshell> today.withDayOfYear(3)
$4 ==> 2018-04-30You can also compare dates using the methods shown below:
jshell> today.isBefore(yesterday)
$5 ==> false
jshell> today.isAfter(yesterday)
$6 ==> true
jshell>
These methods are also available with LocalTime and LocalDateTime classes as well.
We will use the following exercise to understand heavily used data structures of Java - Arrays and
ArrayList.
We would like to model a student report card in a Java program, which allows the user to do stuff such as:
Student student - new Student(name, list-of-marks);
int number = student.getNumberOfmarks();
int sum = student.getTotalSumOfMarks();
int maximumMark = student.getMaximumMark();
int minimumMark = student.getMinimumMark();
BigDecimal average = student.getAverageMarks();
student.addMark(35);
student.removeMarkAtIndex(5);A data structure like array and ArrayList allow you to store multiple object of the same kind. These are called aggregates.
Let's start with understanding the need for arrays.
Consider the example below. We are creating 3 marks and adding them.
jshell> int mark1;
mark1 ==> 0
jshell> mark1 = 100;
mark1 ==> 10
jshell> int mark2 = 75;
mark2 ==> 75
jshell> int mark3 = 60;
mark3 ==> 60
jshell> int sum = mark1 + mark2 + mark3;
sum ==> 235
jshell> int mark4 =7 56;
mark4 ==> 56
jshell> sum = mark1 + mark2 + mark3 + mark4;
sum ==> 291
jshell>If an additional mark component mark4 is added to the existing list of marks mark1, mark2 and mark3, the code for computing sum needs to change.
All these marks are similar. How about creating a group of marks and storing it as part of single variable?
Let's create an array - marks
jshell> int[] marks = {75, 60, 56};
marks ==> int[3]{ 75,60,56 }In above example
marksis anarray.marksstores multipleintvalues.marksarray has 3 values
In an array, the index runs from 0 to (length of array - 1). In above example, the index runs from 0 to 2.
You can use an index to find the specific element from the array. It is done by using the indexing operator, '[]'. The expression marks[0] maps to the first array element stored at index 0 of the array marks.
jshell> marks[0]
$20 ==> 75
jshell> marks[1]
$21 ==> 60
jshell> marks[2]
$22 ==> 56How do we write code to sum all values in marks array?
jshell> int sum = 0;
sum ==> 0
jshell> for(int mark:marks) {
..>> sum = sum + mark;
..>> }
jshell> sum
sum ==> 191
jshell>Above construct is called Enhanced for loop.
mark is the loop control variable. Its type needs to match the type of an array elements, which is int.
Above for loop can be used irrespective of the number of elements in marks array.
Let's dig deeper into arrays in this step.
An array can be used to store zero or more number of elements.
jshell> int[] marks = {1, 2, 3 };
marks ==> int[3]{ 1,2,3 }
jshell> int[] marks = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5};
marks ==> int[5]{ 1,2,3,4,5 }
jshell> int[] marks = {1};
marks ==> int[1]{ 1 }
jshell> int[] marks = {};
marks ==> int[0]{ }An array can also be created with new operator. You've to specify the size of the array.
jshell> int[] marks2 = new int[5];
marks2 ==> int[5]{ 0,0,0,0,0 }You can use array index to assign values.
marks2[0] = 10 stores 10 as first element in marks array.
jshell> marks2[0]
$1 ==> 0
jshell> marks2[0] = 10;
$2 ==> 10
jshell> marks2[0]
$3 ==> 10
jshell>Snippet below shows more examples.
jshell> int[] marks2 = new int[5];
marks2 ==> int[5]{ 0,0,0,0,0 }
jshell> marks2[0] = 1;
$1 ==> 1
jshell> marks2[1] = 2;
$2 ==> 2
jshell> marks2[2] = 3;
$3 ==> 3
jshell> marks2[3] = 4;
$4 ==> 4
jshell> marks2[4] = 5;
$5 ==> 5
jshell> marks2
marks2 ==> int[5]{ 1,2,3,4,5 }length can be used to find the number of elements in the array.
jshell> marks2.length
$6 ==> 5
jshell> int marks3 = {};
marks3 ==> int[0]{ }
jshell> marks3.length
$7 ==> 0
- Write a program that creates an array
marksto store8intvalues, and code to iterate throughmarksusing aforloop, printing out its values.
Hint: Use the marks.length property
jshell> int[] marks = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8};
marks ==> int[8]{ 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8 }
jshell> marks.length
$1 ==> 8
jshell> for(int i=0; i < marks.length; i++) {
..>> System.out.println(marks[i]);
..>> }
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
jshell>Below snippet shows how arrays with different types are initialized.
Summary - int - 0, double - 0.0, boolean - false, Any object - null
jshell> int[] marks = new int[5];
marks ==> int[5]{ 0,0,0,0,0 }
jshell> double[] values = new double[5];
values ==> double[5]{ 0.0,0.0,0.0,0.0,0.0 }
jshell> boolean[] tests = new boolean[5];
tests ==> boolean[5]{ false,false,false,false,false }
jshell> class Person {
..>>}
| created class Person
jshell> Person[] persons = new Person[5];
persons ==> Person[5]{ null,null,null,null,null }
jshell>Let's look at a few variations of array declarations.
Important things to Remember
- The declaration part of an array definition must not include the dimension of the array
- The assignment part of an array definition must include the dimension of the array
- All the elements of an array must be of the same, homogeneous type
jshell> int[5] marks2;
| Error:
| ']' expected
| int[5] marks2;
|____^
jshell> int[] marks2 = new int[];
| Error:
| array dimension missing
| int[] marks2 = new int[];
|____________^========^
jshell> int[] marks2 = new int[5];
marks2 ==> int[5]{ 0,0,0,0,0 }
jshell> marks2[6]
| java.lang.ArrayIndexOutOfBoundsException thrown : 6
| at (#54:1)
jshell> int[] marks3 = {1, 2, 3, 4.0};
| Error:
| incompatible types: possible lossy conversion from double to int
| int[] marks3 = {1, 2, 3, 4.0};
|__________________________^-^
jshell>The name of an array is a reference variable that stores the address of where the array is created on the heap.
jshell> int[] marks4 = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5};
marks4 ==> int[5]{ 1,2,3,4,5 }
jshell> System.out.println(marks4);
I@6c49835dThe built-in method Arrays.toString can be used to print out elements of an array.
jshell> System.out.println(Arrays.toString(marks));
[1, 2, 3, 4, 5]
jshell>Let's look at a few examples for
- Iterating through An Array
- Bulk-modification of array elements
- Comparing Arrays
- Sorting Arrays
Using an enhanced for loop is easy and intutive.
jshell> int[] marks = {100, 99, 95, 96, 100};
marks ==> int[5]{ 100,99,95,96,100 }
jshell> for(int mark:marks) {
..>> System.out.println(mark);
..>> }
100
99
95
96
100
jshell> for(int i=0; i < marks.length; i++) {
..>> System.out.println(marks[i]);
..>> }
100
99
95
96
100
jshell>Array.fill fills the entire array with a specified value.
jshell> int[] marks = new int[5];
marks ==> int[5]{ 0,0,0,0,0 }
jshell> Arrays.fill(marks, 100);
jshell> marks
marks ==> int[5]{ 100,100,100,100,100 }Array.equals compares two given arrays, and returns a boolean value oftrue only if
- Both arrays are of same length and
- Elements at each corresponding index are equal, for all indexes
jshell> int[] array1 = {1, 2, 3};
array1 ==> int[3]{ 1,2,3 }
jshell> int[] array2 = {1, 2, 3};
array2 ==> int[3]{ 1,2,3 }
jshell> Arrays.equals(array1, array2);
$1 ==> true
jshell> int[] array3 = {3, 2, 3};
array3 ==> int[3]{ 3,2,3 }
jshell> Arrays.equals(array1, array3);
$2 ==> false
jshell> int[] array4 = {1, 2};
array4 ==> int[2]{ 1,2 }
jshell> Arrays.equals(array1, array4);
$3 ==> falseArray.sort: Performs an in-position sorting of elements by comparing pairs of them at a time.
jshell> Arrays.sort(array3);
jshell> array3
array3 ==> int[3]{ 2,3,3 }
jshell>Armed with the knowledge of Java arrays and their in-built utility methods, let's now solve the challenge we started off with.
Student student - new Student(name, list-of-marks);
int number = student.getNumberOfmarks();
int sum = student.getTotalSumOfMarks();
int maximumMark = student.getMaximumMark();
int minimumMark = student.getMinimumMark();
BigDecimal average = student.getAverageMarks();We can implement the aggregate list-of-marks as an array.
StudentRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.arrays;
public class StudentRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
int[] marks = {99, 98, 100};
Student student = new Student("Ranga", marks);
int number = student.getNumberOfmarks();
System.out.println("Number of marks : " + number);
int sum = student.getTotalSumOfMarks();
System.out.println("Sum of marks : " + sum);
int maximumMark = student.getMaximumMark();
System.out.println("Maximum of marks : " + maximumMark);
int minimumMark = student.getMinimumMark();
System.out.println("Minimum of marks : " + minimumMark);
BigDecimal average = student.getAverageMarks();
System.out.println("Average of marks : " + average);
student.addMark(35);
student.removeMarkAtIndex(5);
}
}Student.java
package com.in28minutes.arrays;
import java.math.BigDecimal;
public class Student {
private String name;
private int[] marks;
public Student(String name, int[] marks) {
this.name = name;
this.marks = marks;
}
public int getNumberOfMarks() {
return marks.length;
}
public int getTotalSumOfMarks() {
int sum = 0;
for(int mark:marks) {
sum += mark;
}
return sum;
}
public BigDecimal getAverageOfMarks() {
int sum = getTotalSumOfMarks();
BigDecimal average = new BigDecimal(sum).divide(new BigDecimal(marks.length), 3, RoundingMode.UP);
}
public int getMaximumMark() {
int max = Integer.MIN_VALUE;
for(int mark:marks) {
if(mark > max) {
max = mark;
}
}
return max;
}
public int getMinimumMark() {
int min = Integer.MAX_VALUE;
for(int mark:marks) {
if(mark < min) {
min = mark;
}
}
return min;
}
}What if you want to create a method which can accept variable number of arguments?
Let's look at an example. The critical part is the parameter int... values.
jshell> class Something {
..>> public void doSomething(int... values) {
..>> System.out.println(Arrays.toString(values));
..>> }
..>> };
| created class SomethingA typical parameter would've been int values. This allows us to pass one parameter to the method.
What difference does the three dots ... make in int... values?
jshell> Something thing = new Something();
thing ==> Something@2e465f6a
jshell> thing.doSomething(1);
[1]
jshell> thing.doSomething(1, 2);
[1, 2]
jshell> thing.doSomething(1, 2, 3);
[1, 2, 3]
jshell>You can see that doSomething can be called with one, two and three parameters.
Let's look at another example:
jshell> void sum(int... values) {
..>> int sum = 0;
..>> for(value: values) {
..>> sum += value;
..>> }
..>> System.out.println(sum);
..>> }
| created method sum(int...)We created a sum method with a variable argument. Let's look at how to use it.
jshell> sum(1, 2)
3
jshell> sum(1, 2, 3)
6
jshell> sum(1, 2, 3, 4)
1
jshell> sum(1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6)
21
jshell>In this step, we took our first look at variable arguments. Variable arguments allow us to pass variable number of arguments to a method.
Let's add a few methods to the Student class to accept variable arguments.
Student.java
package com.in28minutes.arrays;
import java.math.BigDecimal;
public class Student {
private String name;
private int[] marks;
public Student(String name, int... marks) {
this.name = name;
this.marks = marks;
}
public int getNumberOfMarks() {
return marks.length;
}
public int getTotalSumOfMarks() {
int sum = 0;
for(int mark:marks) {
sum += mark;
}
return sum;
}
public BigDecimal getAverageOfMarks() {
int sum = getTotalSumOfMarks();
BigDecimal average = new BigDecimal(sum).divide(new BigDecimal(marks.length), 3, RoundingMode.UP);
}
public int getMaximumMark() {
int max = Integer.MIN_VALUE;
for(int mark:marks) {
if(mark > max) {
max = mark;
}
}
return max;
}
public int getMinimumMark() {
int min = Integer.MAX_VALUE;
for(int mark:marks) {
if(mark < min) {
min = mark;
}
}
return min;
}
}StudentRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.arrays;
public class StudentRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
//int[] marks = {99, 98, 100};
Student student = new Student("Ranga", 97, 98, 100);
int number = student.getNumberOfmarks();
System.out.println("Number of marks : " + number);
int sum = student.getTotalSumOfMarks();
System.out.println("Sum of marks : " + sum);
int maximumMark = student.getMaximumMark();
System.out.println("Maximum of marks : " + maximumMark);
int minimumMark = student.getMinimumMark();
System.out.println("Minimum of marks : " + minimumMark);
BigDecimal average = student.getAverageMarks();
System.out.println("Average of marks : " + average);
student.addMark(35);
student.removeMarkAtIndex(5);
}
}The variable arguments list must always be at the end of the parameter list passed to a method. The following method definition will not be accepted by the Java compiler:
void process(int... values, String name) {
}Let's look at a few puzzles and exercises with Arrays.
When creating arrays of objects, the array ends up holding references to the created objects.
jshell> class Person {
..>> }
| created class Person
jshell> Person[] persons = new Person[5];
persons ==> Person[5]{ null,null,null,null,null }We can assign new Person objects to different elements of the array.
jshell> persons[1] = new Person();
$1 ==> Person@394e1a0f
jshell> persons
persons ==> Person[5]{ null,Person@394e1a0f,null,null,null }
jshell> persons[0] = new Person();
$2 ==> Person@1e965684
jshell> persons
persons ==> Person[5]{ Person@1e965684,Person@394e1a0f, null,null,null }You can also initialize values when you create an array.
jshell> Person[] persons2 = {new Person(), new Person()};
persons2 ==> Person[2]{ Person@3b088d51, Person@1786dec2 }Here's how you can initialize a String array.
jshell> String[] textValues = {"Apple", "Ball", "Cat"};
textValues ==> String[2]{ "Apple","Ball","Cat" }
jshell>
- Create a
Stringarray with the names of days of the week:
Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday
2. Find the day with the most number of letters in it
3. Print days of the week backwards
WeekRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.arrays;
public class StringRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
String[] daysOfWeek = { "Sunday", "Monday", "Tuesday", "Wednesday", "Thursday", "Friday", "Saturday" };
String dayWithMostCharacters = "";
for (String day : daysOfWeek) {
if (day.length() > dayWithMostCharacters.length()) {
dayWithMostCharacters = day;
}
}
System.out.println("Day with Most number of characters " + dayWithMostCharacters);
for (int i = daysOfWeek.length - 1; i >= 0; i--) {
System.out.println(daysOfWeek[i]);
}
}
}Let's look at our implementation for our challenge.
We've implemented most of the features except for addMark() and removeMarkAtIndex().
Student student = new Student(name, <list-of-marks>);
int number = student.getNumberOfmarks();
int sum = student.getTotalSumOfMarks();
int maximumMark = student.getMaximumMark();
int minimumMark = student.getMinimumMark();
BigDecimal average = student.getAverageMarks();
student.addMark(35);
student.removeMarkAtIndex(5);We would want to add and remove from an array. Can we do this?
The size of an array is fixed at its compile-time definition. Which means that once we define an array such as:
String[] textValues = {"Apple", "Ball", "Cat"};
The size of the textValues array is fixed to 3. You an change values inside the array. But the size cannot be changed.
How to add an element to an array?
One of the options is
- Create a fresh array with a few extra element slots to accommodate the additional elements to be inserted
- Copy the existing array elements to the beginning of this new array
- Add the additional elements at the rear end of this array
If elements need to be removed from an array:
- Create a fresh array with correspondingly lesser element slots
- Copy the existing array elements, excluding the ones to be removed, to the beginning of this new array
jshell> int[] marks = {12, 34, 45};
marks ==> int[3] { 12, 34, 45 }
jshell> int[] newMarks = new int[marks.length+1];
newMarks ==> int[4] { 0, 0, 0, 0 }
jshell> System.arraycopy(marks, 0, newMarks, 0, marks.length);
jshell> newMarks
newMarks ==> int[4] { 12, 34, 45, 0 }
jshell> newMarks[3] = 100
$27 ==> 100
jshell> newMarks
newMarks ==> int[4] { 12, 34, 45, 100 }As you can see, this can be very inefficient. How do we solve it?
ArrayList is more dynamic than an array. It provides operations to add and remove elements.
Let's start with creating an ArrayList and add a few values.
jshell> ArrayList arrayList = new ArrayList();
arrayList ==> []
jshell> arrayList.add("Apple");
| Warning:
| unchecked call to add(E) as a member of the raw type java.util.ArrayList
| arrayList.add("Apple");
|_^---------------------^
$1 ==> true
jshell> arrayList.add("Ball");
| Warning:
| unchecked call to add(E) as a member of the raw type java.util.ArrayList
| arrayList.add("Ball");
|_^---------------------^
$2 ==> true
jshell> arrayList.add("Cat");
| Warning:
| unchecked call to add(E) as a member of the raw type java.util.ArrayList
| arrayList.add("Cat");
|_^---------------------^
$3 ==> true
jshell> arrayList
arrayList ==> ["Apple", "Ball", "Cat"]You can remove values using remove method.
jshell> arrayList.remove("Cat");
$4 ==> true
jshell> arrayList
arrayList ==> ["Apple", "Ball"]The ArrayList instance arrayList can be used to store objects of pretty much any type, even primitive types. Also, non-homogeneous types!
The warning message displayed is a hint to the programmer to discourage this.
jshell> arrayList.add(1);
| Warning:
| unchecked call to add(E) as a member of the raw type java.util.ArrayList
| arrayList.add(1);
|_^---------------------^
$3 ==> true
jshell> arrayList
arrayList ==> ["Apple", "Ball", 1]
jshell>Let's say we want to store only String values in an ArrayList. How do we do it?
We can specify the type of elements that an ArrayList can contain.
jshell> ArrayList<String> items = new ArrayList<String>();
items ==> []In above snippet, we are creating an ArrayList that can hold String values.
You can add String value but not numbers.
jshell> items.add("Apple");
$1 ==> true
jshell> items
items ==> ["Apple"]
jshell> items.add(1);
| Error
| no suitable method found for add(int)
|...
jshell> items.add("Ball");
$2 ==> true
jshell> items.add("Cat");
$3 ==> true
jshell> items
items ==> ["Apple", "Ball", "Cat"]Rest of operations are similar to a normal ArrayList.
jshell> items.remove("Cat");
$4 ==> true
jshell> items
items ==> ["Apple", "Ball"]
jshell> items.remove(0);
$5 ==> "Apple"
jshell> items
items ==> ["Ball"]
jshell>Let's now get to the Student challenge once again. Let's use an ArrayList this time.
Student student = new Student(name, <list-of-marks>);
int number = student.getNumberOfmarks();
int sum = student.getTotalSumOfMarks();
int maximumMark = student.getMaximumMark();
int minimumMark = student.getMinimumMark();
BigDecimal average = student.getAverageMarks();StudentRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.arrays;
public class StudentRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
Student student = new Student("Ranga", 97, 98, 100);
int number = student.getNumberOfmarks();
System.out.println("Number of marks : " + number);
int sum = student.getTotalSumOfMarks();
System.out.println("Sum of marks : " + sum);
int maximumMark = student.getMaximumMark();
System.out.println("Maximum of marks : " + maximumMark);
int minimumMark = student.getMinimumMark();
System.out.println("Minimum of marks : " + minimumMark);
BigDecimal average = student.getAverageMarks();
System.out.println("Average of marks : " + average);
System.out.println(student);
}
}Student.java
package com.in28minutes.arrays;
import java.math.BigDecimal;
import java.math.RoundingMode;
import java.util.ArrayList;
public class Student {
private String name;
private ArrayList<Integer> marks = new ArrayList<Integer>();
public Student(String name, int... marks) {
this.name = name;
for(int mark: marks) {
this.marks.add(mark);
}
}
public int getNumberOfMarks() {
return marks.size();
}
public int getTotalSumOfMarks() {
int sum = 0;
for(int mark:marks) {
sum += mark;
}
return sum;
}
public BigDecimal getAverageOfMarks() {
int sum = getTotalSumOfMarks();
BigDecimal average = new BigDecimal(sum).divide(new BigDecimal(marks.size()), 3, RoundingMode.UP);
}
public int getMaximumMark() {
return Collections.max(marks);
}
public int getMinimumMark() {
return Collections.min(marks);
}
public String toString() {
return name + marks;
}
}The Enhanced for loop works for ArrayLists as well, just like in the case of an array
The Collections.max() and Collections.min() methods can be used to find the maximum and minimum value in an array.
Let's now add the features to add and remove a student.
package com.in28minutes.arrays;
public class StudentRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
Student student = new Student("Ranga", 97, 98, 100);
int number = student.getNumberOfmarks();
System.out.println("Number of marks : " + number);
int sum = student.getTotalSumOfMarks();
System.out.println("Sum of marks : " + sum);
int maximumMark = student.getMaximumMark();
System.out.println("Maximum of marks : " + maximumMark);
int minimumMark = student.getMinimumMark();
System.out.println("Minimum of marks : " + minimumMark);
BigDecimal average = student.getAverageMarks();
System.out.println("Average of marks : " + average);
System.out.println(student);
student.addMark(35);
System.out.println(student);
student.removeMarkAtIndex(1);
System.out.println(student);
}
}Student.java
package com.in28minutes.arrays;
import java.math.BigDecimal;
import java.math.RoundingMode;
import java.util.ArrayList;
public class Student {
private String name;
private ArrayList<Integer> marks = new ArrayList<Integer>();
public Student(String name, int... marks) {
this.name = name;
for(int mark: marks) {
this.marks.add(mark);
}
}
public int getNumberOfMarks() {
return marks.size();
}
public int getTotalSumOfMarks() {
int sum = 0;
for(int mark:marks) {
sum += mark;
}
return sum;
}
public BigDecimal getAverageOfMarks() {
int sum = getTotalSumOfMarks();
BigDecimal average = new BigDecimal(sum).divide(new BigDecimal(marks.size()), 3, RoundingMode.UP);
}
public int getMaximumMark() {
return Collections.max(marks);
}
public int getMinimumMark() {
return Collections.min(marks);
}
public String toString() {
return name + marks;
}
public void addMark(int mark) {
marks.add(mark);
}
public void removeMarkAtIndex(int index) {
marks.remove(index);
}
}Console Output
Number of marks : 3
Sum of marks : 3
Average of marks : 3_
Maximum of marks : 3
Minimum of marks : 3
Ranga[97,98,100]
Ranga[97,98,100,35]
Ranga[97,100,35]
In this section, we revisit the principles of OOP, armed with the knowledge of
- Arrays and their variants
- Built-in Java classes and utilities, and
- Conditionals and loops (normal and enhanced).
The attributes of an object determine what it is made up of. At different points in an object's lifetime, the value of any of its attributes can change.
At any given time, values of these attributes defines the object's state.
In The MotorBike example, the attribute speed defines a MotorBike's state. The speed of a ducati defines its state.
How an object responds to an external event, or a message sent to it, defines its behavior.
Messages are delivered to an object using methods. Methods are used to implement an object's behavior.
The methods setSpeed, increaseSpeed and decreaseSpeed have an effect on the observed speed of the MotorBikes. The future state of a MotorBike depends on behavior and current state.
behavior affects state. And state affects behavior.
MotorBikeRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.oops;
public class MotorBikeRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
MotorBike ducati = new MotorBike(100);
MotorBike honda = new MotorBike(200);
MotorBike yamaha = new MotorBike();
ducati.start();
honda.start();
yamaha.start();
ystem.out.println(ducati.getSpeed());
System.out.println(honda.getSpeed());
System.out.println(yamaha.getSpeed());
ducati.increseSpeed(50);
yamaha.setSpeed(250);
honda.increaseSpeed(100);
yamaha.decreaseSpeed(50);
System.out.println(ducati.getSpeed());
System.out.println(honda.getSpeed());
System.out.println(yamaha.getSpeed());
}
}MotorBike.java
package com.in28minutes.oops;
public class MotorBike {
//state
private int speed;
//behavior
MotorBike() {
this(5);
}
MotorBike(int speed) {
if(speed > 0)
this.speed = speed;
}
public void start() {
System.out.println("Bike started!");
}
public void setSpeed(int speed) {
if(speed > 0)
this.speed = speed;
}
public int getSpeed() {
return this.speed;
}
public void increaseSpeed(int howMuch) {
setSpeed(this.speed + howMuch);
}
public void decreaseSpeed(int howMuch) {
setSpeed(this.speed - howMuch);
}
}At a basic level, when we design a class, we decide:
state- member variableshow to create objects- Define constructorsbehavior- What methods are exposed
Consider the example of a Fan class.
The above three major areas that correspond to its design could be as follows:
- State
- make
- radius
- color
- isOn
- speed
- Constructors
- Fan(String make, double radius, String color)
- Behavior
- void switchOn()
- void SwitchOff()
- void changeSpeed(int change)
- String toString()
Let's try to write a simple Fan class, that covers all these aspects.
Fan.java
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2;
public class Fan {
//state
private String make;
private double radius;
private String color;
private boolean isOn;
private byte speed; //levels: 0 to 5
//constructors
public Fan(String make, double radius, String color) {
this.make = make;
this.radius = radius;
this.color = color;
}
//methods
public String toString() {
return String.format("Make : %s, Radius : %f, Color : %s, Is On : %b, Speed : %d",
make,
radius,
color,
isOn,
speed);
}
}FanRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2;
public class FanRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
Fan fan = new Fan("Fan-Tastic", 0.456, "GREEN");
System.out.println(fan);
}
}Console Output
Make : Fan-tastic, Radius : 0.45600, Color : GREEN, Is On : false, Speed : 0
The fields which were not set by the constructor, namely isOn and speed, assumed the language default values for their data types, namely false (for booelan) and 0 (for int).
We need to decide what kind of behavior should be provided by a Fan object.
The default state attributes of the Fan class objects, namely make, color and radius are fixed at manufacturing time, and cannot be altered by a user of this class's instances.
The other two state attributes, isOn and speed need to be exposed to change by Fan object users. We will offer methods that change them.
FanRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2;
public class FanRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
Fan fan = new Fan("Fan-Tastic", 0.456, "GREEN");
System.out.println(fan);
fan.switchOn();
System.out.println(fan);
fan.setSpeed((byte)5);
System.out.println(fan);
fan.switchOff();
System.out.println(fan);
}
}Fan.java
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2;
public class Fan {
//state
private String make;
private double radius;
private String color;
private boolean isOn;
private byte speed; //levels: 0 to 5
//constructors
public Fan(String make, double radius, String color) {
this.make = make;
this.radius = radius;
this.color = color;
}
//methods
public String toString() {
return String.format("Make : %s, Radius : %f, Color : %s, Is On : %b, Speed : %d",
make,
radius,
color,
isOn,
speed);
}
//isOn
/*public void isOn(boolean isOn) {
this.isOn = isOn;
}*/
public void switchOn() {
isOn = true;
setSpeed((byte)1);
}
public void switchOff() {
isOn = false;
setSpeed((byte)0);
}
public void setSpeed(byte speed) {
this.speed = speed;
}
}Console Output
Make : Fan-Tastic, Radius : 0.45600, Color : GREEN, Is On : false, Speed : 0
Make : Fan-Tastic, Radius : 0.45600, Color : GREEN, Is On : true, Speed : 1
Make : Fan-Tastic, Radius : 0.45600, Color : GREEN, Is On : true, Speed : 5
Make : Fan-Tastic, Radius : 0.45600, Color : GREEN, Is On : false, Speed : 0
-
Regarding the state attribute
isOn:- A state modifier method such as
public void isOn(boolean)is not preferred, even though it does alter this attribute. This is because it is not intuitive from theclassuser's perspective. - Alternatively, methods such as
public void switchOn()andpublic void switchOff()not only toggle the attributeisOn, but are also intuitive and useful to theFanclassusers (Here, theFanRunnerclass).
- A state modifier method such as
-
Regarding the state attribute
speed:setSpeedis both intuitive as well as useful, so not much rethinking needed herespeedneeds to be affected by the operationsswitchOn()andswitchOff(). We have added calls tosetSpeed()in these method definitions.
The best way to design a class is using an Outside In thought process:
- Who all could possibly be using my
class? - What functionality would they absolutely require?
- Write a simple
Rectangleclass, while covering the following constituents:
- State
- length
- width
- Constructors
- Behavior or Methods
RectangleRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2;
public class RectangleRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
Rectangle rectangle = new Rectangle(12, 23);
System.out.println(rectangle);
rectangle.setWidth(25);
System.out.println(rectangle);
rectangle.setLength(20);
System.out.println(rectangle);
}
}Rectangle.java
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2;
public class Rectangle {
//state:
private int length;
private int width;
//creation:
public Rectangle(int length, int width) {
this.length = length;
this.width = width;
}
//behaviors:
public int getLength() {
return length;
}
public int getWidth() {
return width;
}
public void setLength(int length) {
this.length = length;
}
public void setWidth(int width) {
this.width = width;
}
public int area() {
return length * width;
}
public int perimeter() {
return 2*(length + width);
}
public String toString() {
return String.format("Rectangle - length : %d, width : %d, area : %d, perimeter : %d",
length,
width,
area(),
perimeter());
}
}Console Output
Rectangle - length : 12, width : 23, area : 276, perimeter : 70
Rectangle - length : 12, width : 25, area : 300, perimeter : 74
Rectangle - length : 20, width : 25, area : 500, perimeter : 90
- A
Rectangleobject created without a specifiedlengthandwidthmakes no practical sense, therefore a default constructor is not provided.
Let's take a re-look at the state attributes of the Fan class:
Fan.java
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2;
public class Fan {
//state
private String make;
private double radius;
private String color;
private boolean isOn;
private byte speed;
//constructors
//methods
}All member variables of 'Fan' class are primitive variables. Can we make it complex and include other classes?
CustomerRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2;
public class CustomerRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
Customer customer = new Customer();
}
}Address.java
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2;
public class Address {
//state
private String doorNo;
private String streetInfo;
private String city;
private String zipCode;
//creation
//behaviors
}Customer.java
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2;
public class Customer {
//state
private String name;
private Address homeAddress;
private Address workAddress;
//creation
//behaviors
}Customer customer is composed of:
name,homeAddress, andworkAddress.
String is a built-in type, and is simple. Address is a user defined type, and is composed of:
doorNo,streetInfo,city, andzipCode
Let's now add constructors to allow easy creation of these objects.
CustomerRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2;
public class CustomerRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
//Customer customer = new Customer();
Address homeAddress = new Address("Flat No. 51", "Hiranandani Gardens", Mumbai", "400076");
Address workAddress = new Address("Administrative Office", "Western Block", "Mumbai", "400076");
Customer customer = new Customer("Ashwin Tendulkar", homeAddress, workAddress);
}
}Address.java
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2;
public class Address {
//state
private String doorNo;
private String streetInfo;
private String city;
private String zipCode;
//creation
public Address(String doorNo, String streetInfo, String city, String zipCode) {
this.doorNo = doorNo;
this.streetInfo = streetInfo;
this.city = city;
this.zipCode = zipCode;
}
//behaviors
}Customer.java
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2;
public class Customer {
//state
private String name;
private Address homeAddress;
private Address workAddress;
//creation
//workAddress not mandatory for creation
public Customer(String name, String homeAddress) {
this.name = name;
this.homeAddress = homeAddress;
}
//behaviors
}Let's add methods to provide behavior.
CustomerRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2;
public class CustomerRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
//Customer customer = new Customer();
Address homeAddress = new Address("Flat No. 51", "Hiranandani Gardens", "Mumbai", "400076");
Customer customer = new Customer("Ashwin Tendulkar", homeAddress);
System.out.println(customer);
Address workAddress = new Address("Administrative Office", "Western Block", "Mumbai", "400076");
customer.setWorkAddress(workAddress);
System.out.println(customer);
}
}Address.java
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2;
public class Address {
//state
private String doorNo;
private String streetInfo;
private String city;
private String zipCode;
//creation
public Address(String doorNo, String streetInfo, String city, String zipCode) {
super();
this.doorNo = doorNo;
this.streetInfo = streetInfo;
this.city = city;
this.zipCode = zipCode;
}
//behaviors
public String toString() {
return doorNo + ", " + streetInfo + ", " + city + " - " + zipCode;
}
}Customer.java
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2;
public class Customer {
//state
private String name;
private Address homeAddress;
private Address workAddress;
//creation
//workAddress not mandatory for creation
public Customer(String name, String homeAddress) {
this.name = name;
this.homeAddress = homeAddress;
}
//behaviors
//certain components of homeAddress and workAddress can be modified, not the name
public void setHomeAddress(Address homeAddress) {
this.homeAddress = homeAddress;
}
public void setWorkAddress(Address workAddress) {
this.workAddress = workAddress;
}
public Address getHomeAddress() {
return homeAddress;
}
public Address getWorkAddress() {
return workAddress;
}
public String toString() {
return String.format("Customer [%s] lives at [%s], works at [%s]",
name,
homeAddress,
workAddress);
}
}Console Output
Customer [Ashwin Tendulkar] lives at [Flat No. 51, Hiranandani Gardens, Mumbai - 400076], works at [null]
Customer [Ashwin Tendulkar] lives at [Flat No. 51, Hiranandani Gardens, Mumbai - 400076], works at [Administrative Office, Western Block, Mumbai - 400076]
Write a program that manages Books and their Reviews:
- Book:
- Id
- Name
- Author
- Review:
- Id
- Description
- Rating
Book book = new Book(123, "Object Oriented Programming With Java", "Ranga");
book.addReview(new Review(10, "Great Book", 4));
book.addReview(new Review(101, "Awesome", 5));
System.out.println(book);BookReviewRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2;
public class BookReviewRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
Book book = new Book(123, "Object Oriented Programming With Java", "Ranga");
book.addReview(new Review(10, "Great Book", 4));
book.addReview(new Review(101, "Awesome", 5));
System.out.println(book);
}
}Review.java
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2;
public class Review {
private int id;
private String description;
private byte rating;
public Review(int id, String description, byte rating) {
this.id = id;
this.description = description;
this.rating = rating;
}
public String toString() {
return "(Review-" + id + ", " + description + ", " + rating + ")";
}
}Book.java
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2;
public class Book {
private int id;
private String title;
private String author;
private ArrayList<Review> reviewList = new ArrayList<Review>();
public Book(int id, String title, String author) {
this.id = id;
this.title = title;
this.author = author;
}
public void addReview(Review review) {
reviewList.add(review);
}
public String toString() {
return "Book-" + id + ", " + title + ", " + author + ", " + reviews);
}
}Console Output
Book-123, Object Oriented Programming With Java, Ranga, [(Review-10, Great Book", 4), (Review-101, Awesome, 5)]
Let's look at two classes Person and Student.
Person.java
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2.inheritance;
public class Person {
private String name;
private String email;
private String phoneNumber;
public void setName(String name) {
this.name = name;
}
public String getName() {
return name;
}
public void setEmail(String email) {
this.email = email;
}
public String getEmail() {
return email;
}
public void setPhoneNumber(String phoneNumber) {
this.phoneNumber = phoneNumber;
}
public String getPhoneNumber() {
return phoneNumber;
}
}StudentWithoutInheritance.java
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2.inheritance;
public class StudentWithoutInheritance {
private String name;
private String email;
private String phoneNumber;
private String college;
private int year;
public void setName(String name) {
this.name = name;
}
public String getName() {
return name;
}
public void setEmail(String email) {
this.email = email;
}
public String getEmail() {
return email;
}
public void setPhoneNumber(String phoneNumber) {
this.phoneNumber = phoneNumber;
}
public String getPhoneNumber() {
return phoneNumber;
}
public void setCollege(String college) {
this.college = college;
}
public String getCollege() {
return college;
}
public void setYear(int year) {
this.year = year;
}
public int getYear() {
return year;
}
}In above code examples, you can see that there is a lot of
- The member fields of
Person, namelyname,emailandphoneNumber, are replicated inStudent. - The setter and getter methods pertaining to the above fields of
Personget repliated inStudentas well.
Every Student is a Person. What if we could extend Person class instead of duplicating everything?
Student is a Person. Java supports one of the basic Object Oriented Programming Paradigms : Inheritance.
Student can inherit from Person, to model the fact that a Student is a Person.
This is accomplished by using the Java keyword extends, during class definition of Student.
public class Person {
// <Person Definition>
}
public class Student extends Person {
// <Student Definition, after reusing Person Code>
}Inheritance is a mechanism of code reuse. In this case, all the fields and methods previously defined in Person are available for Student as well.
In this Inheritance relationship, Person is called the super-class of Student. Likewise, Student is the sub-class of Person.
Let's now look at how we go about changing the Student class definition.
Person.java
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2.inheritance;
public class Person {
private String name;
private String email;
private String phoneNumber;
public void setName(String name) {
this.name = name;
}
public String getName() {
return name;
}
public void setEmail(String email) {
this.email = email;
}
public String getEmail() {
return email;
}
public void setPhoneNumber(String phoneNumber) {
this.phoneNumber = phoneNumber;
}
public String getPhoneNumber() {
return phoneNumber;
}
}Student.java
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2.inheritance;
public class Student extends Person {
private String collegeName;
private int year;
public void setCollegeName(String college) {
this.collegeName = collegeName;
}
public String getCollegeName() {
return collegeName;
}
public void setYear(int year) {
this.year = year;
}
public int getYear() {
return year;
}
}StudentRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2.inheritance;
public class StudentRunner {
public static void main(String[] args)
Student student = new Student();
// < all setter() and getter() methods of Person and Student available >
student.setName("Ranga");
student.setEmail("in28minutes@gmail.com");
}
}In the Java language, every class, whether an in-built Java library class, or a user-defined class, implicitly inherits from the class Object.
This Object class is available in the Java system package java.lang. This class is at the root of the Java class hierarchy. All classes, including arrays, implement/inherit the methods of this class.
Let's take a look at the Person and Student classes.
Person.java
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2.inheritance;
public class Person {
private String name;
private String email;
private String phoneNumber;
public void setName(String name) {
this.name = name;
}
public String getName() {
return name;
}
public void setEmail(String email) {
this.email = email;
}
public String getEmail() {
return email;
}
public void setPhoneNumber(String phoneNumber) {
this.phoneNumber = phoneNumber;
}
public String getPhoneNumber() {
return phoneNumber;
}
}Student.java
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2.inheritance;
public class Student extends Person {
private String collegeName;
private int year;
public void setCollegeName(String college) {
this.collegeName = collegeName;
}
public String getCollegeName() {
return collegeName;
}
public void setYear(int year) {
this.year = year;
}
public int getYear() {
return year;
}
}StudentRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2.inheritance;
public class StudentRunner {
public static void main(String[] args)
//Student student = new Student();
//student.setName("Ranga");
//student.setEmail("[email protected]");
Person person = new Person();
String personStr = person.toString();
System.out.println(personStr);
System.out.println(person);
int hashCode = person.hashCode();
person.notify();
}
}Console Output
com.in28minutes.oops.level2.inheritance.Person@7a46a697
com.in28minutes.oops.level2.inheritance.Person@7a46a697
Methods of the Object class such as toString(), hashCode() and notify() are available to objects of class Person as default implementations.
The statement System.out.println(person); actually gets translated to System.out.println(person.toString()), as the Java system implicitly makes the call person.toString() as it is inherited from class Object for use in the String context.
Sub-class inherit features from super-class
- state attributes : super-class member variables
- behavior components : super-class method definitions
These are of course, available for access (and modification), and invocation, respectively, within the sub-class.
You can also override super class method implementations in a sub class - method overriding.
Person.java
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2.inheritance;
public class Person {
private String name;
private String email;
private String phoneNumber;
public void setName(String name) {
this.name = name;
}
public String getName() {
return name;
}
public void setEmail(String email) {
this.email = email;
}
public String getEmail() {
return email;
}
public void setPhoneNumber(String phoneNumber) {
this.phoneNumber = phoneNumber;
}
public String getPhoneNumber() {
return phoneNumber;
}
public String toString() {
return String.format("Person %s , Email : %s, Phone Number : %s", name, email, phoneNumber);
}
}PersonRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2.inheritance;
public class PersonRunner {
public static void main(String[] args)
Person person = new Person();
person.setName("Ranga");
person.setEmail("in28minutes@gmail.com");
person.setPhoneNumber("9898989898");
String personStr = person.toString();
System.out.println(personStr);
System.out.println(person);
}
}Console Output
Person Ranga , Email : [email protected], Phone Number : 9898989898
Person Ranga , Email : [email protected], Phone Number : 9898989898
By defining the method toString() within the Person sub-class, we are overriding the default version provided by the Object super-class.
Create an Employee class extending Student Class with following attributes:
- Title
- Employer
- EmployeeGrade
- Salary
Create a method toString() within Employee to print all state attribute values, including those of Person.
Person.java
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2.inheritance;
public class Person {
private String name;
private String email;
private String phoneNumber;
public void setName(String name) {
this.name = name;
}
public String getName() {
return name;
}
public void setEmail(String email) {
this.email = email;
}
public String getEmail() {
return email;
}
public void setPhoneNumber(String phoneNumber) {
this.phoneNumber = phoneNumber;
}
public String getPhoneNumber() {
return phoneNumber;
}
public String toString() {
return Sring.format("Person %s , Email : %s, Phone Number : %s", name, email, phoneNumber);
}
}Employee.java
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2.inheritance;
import java.math.BigDecimal;
public class Employee extends Person {
private String title;
private String employerName;
private char employeeGrade;
private BigDecimal salary;
public void setTitle(String title) {
this.title = title;
}
public String getTitle() {
return title;
}
public void setEmployerName(String employer) {
this.employerName = employerName;
}
public String getEmployerName() {
return employerName;
}
public void setEmployeeGrade(char employeeGrade) {
this.employeeGrade = employeeGrade;
}
public char getEmployeeGrade() {
return employeeGrade;
}
public void setSalary(BigDecimal salary) {
this.salary = salary;
}
public BigDecimal getSalary() {
return salary;
}
public String toString() {
return String.format("Employee Title: %s, Employer: %s, Employee Grade: %c, Salary: %s",
title,
employerName,
employeeGrade,
salary);
}
}EmployeeRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2.inheritance;
public class EmployeeRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
Employee employee = new Employee();
employee.setName("Ranga");
employee.setEmail("[email protected]");
employee.setPhoneNumber("123-456-7890");
employee.setTitle("Programmer Analyst");
employee.setEmployerName("In28Minutes");
employee.setEmployeeGrade('A');
employee.setSalary(new BigDecimal("50000"));
System.out.println(employee);
}
}Console Output
Employee Title: Programmer Analyst, Employer: In28Minutes, Employee Grade: A, Salary: 50000.0000
We have not printed the underlying Person object details in Employee.toString() method overriding. Let's look to do that next.
The super keyword allows an sub-class to access the attributes present in the super-class.
Employee.java
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2.inheritance;
import java.math.BigDecimal;
public class Employee extends Person {
//focusing only on the toString() method
public String toString() {
return String.format("Employee Name: %s, Email: %s, Phone Number: %s, Title: %s, Employer: %s, Employee Grade: %c, Salary: %s",
super.getName(),
super.getEmail(),
super.getPhoneNumber(),
title,
employerName,
employeeGrade,
salary);
}
}EmployeeRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2.inheritance;
public class EmployeeRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
Employee employee = new Employee();
employee.setName("Ranga");
employee.setEmail("[email protected]");
employee.setPhoneNumber("123-456-7890");
employee.setTitle("Programmer Analyst");
employee.setEmployerName("In28Minutes");
employee.setEmployeeGrade('A');
employee.setSalary(new BigDecimal("50000"));
System.out.println(employee);
}
}Console Output
Employee Name: Ranga, Email: [email protected], Phone Number: 123-456-7890, Title: Programmer Analyst, Employer: In28Minutes, Employee Grade: A, Salary: 50000.0000
The super keyword allows an sub-class to access the attributes present in the super-class. Hence, we were able to invoke the getter methods of the Person object within the Employee object, like this within Employee.toString()
* super.getName()
* super.getEmail()
* super.getPhoneNumber()
What happens when a sub class object is created? Does the super class constructor get called?
Person.java
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2.inheritance;
public class Person {
public Person() {
System.out.println("Inside Person Constructor");
}
}Employee.java
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2.inheritance;
import java.math.BigDecimal;
public class Employee extends Person {
public Employee() {
//super();
System.out.println("Inside Employee Constructor");
}
}EmployeeRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2.inheritance;
public class EmployeeRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
Employee employee = new Employee();
}
}Console Output
Inside Person Constructor
Inside Employee Constructor
When a sub-class object is created
- sub-class constructor is called and it implicitly invokes its super-class constructor.
The Java compiler inserts the code super(); (if it is not explicitly added by the programmer) as the first statement in the body of the sub-class default constructor, here Employer().
- The statement
super();is the invocation of the super-class default constructor. - Hence, the body of the super-class constructor is always invoked before the body of the sub-class constructor.
Let's remove the no argument constructor and add a one argument constructor to Person class.
public Person(String name) {
this.name = name;
}
PersonRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2.inheritance;
public class PersonRunner {
public static void main(String[] args)
Person person = new Person("Ranga");
person.setEmail("in28minutes@gmail.com");
person.setPhoneNumber("123-456-7890");
System.out.println(person);
}
}Console Output
Person Ranga , Email : [email protected], Phone Number : 123-456-7890
When we added the constructor with one argument for class Employee, the existing code in EmployeeRunner.java will cause a compilation error, because there is no longer any default constructor for Person !
super() cannot be called from within the default constructor of Employee.
One option is to put the no argument constructor back.
public Person() {
System.out.println("Inside Person Constructor");
}But, it doesn't really make sense to create a Person without a name, does it?
The solution in this case would be to call the single-argument constructor Person(String) by an invocation such as super(name);
public Employee(String name, String title, String employerName, char employeeGrade) {
super(name);
this.title = title;
this.employerName = employerName;
this.employeeGrade = employeeGrade;
}
EmployeeRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2.inheritance;
public class EmployeeRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
Employee employee = new Employee("Ranga", "Programmer Analyst", "In28Minutes", 'A');
System.out.println(employee);
}
}Console Output
Employee Name: Ranga, Email: null, Phone Number: null, Title: Programmer Analyst, Employer: In28Minutes, Employee Grade: A, Salary: null
Let's provide setters to set the non mandatory attributes.
EmployeeRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2.inheritance;
public class EmployeeRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
Employee employee = new Employee("Ranga", "Programmer Analyst", "In28Minutes", 'A');
employee.setEmail("[email protected]");
employee.setPhoneNumber("123-456-7890");
employee.setSalary(new BigDecimal("50000"));
System.out.println(employee);
}
}Console Output
Employee Name: Ranga, Email: [email protected], Phone Number: 123-456-7890, Title: Programmer Analyst, Employer: In28Minutes, Employee Grade: A, Salary: 50000.0000
Let's add a two argument construtor to the Student class.
Student.java
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2.inheritance;
public class Student extends Person {
private String collegeName;
private int year;
public Student(String name, String collegeName) {
super(name);
this.collegeName = collegeName;
}
public String getCollegeName() {
return collegeName;
}
public void setYear(int year) {
this.year = year;
}
public int getYear() {
return year;
}
public String toString() {
return "Student : " + super.name() + ", College: " + collegeName;
}
}StudentRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2.inheritance;
public class StudentRunner {
public static void main(String[] args)
//Student student = new Student();
Student student = new Student("Ranga", "IIT Bombay");
System.out.println(student);
}
}Console Output
Student : Ranga, College : IIT Bombay
In other programming languages, Multiple Inheritance is allowed. A class can directly inherit from two or more classes.
However, in Java, direct Multiple Inheritance is not allowed.
jshell> class Animal {
..>> }
| created class Animal
jshell> class Pet {
..>> }
| created class Pet
jshell> class Dog extends Animal, Pet {
..>> }
| Error:
| '{' expected
| class Dog extends Animal, Pet {
|_________________________^
jshell>**class Dog extends Animal, Pet {} throws an error. You cannot extend two classes.
However you can create an inheritance chain.
classCis aclassBclassBis aclassA
Let's check out a small code snippet.
`Dog**is a**Pet```, ```Pet``` is a ```Animal```. This is an example of what is called an inheritance hierarchy.
jshell> class Animal {
..>> }
| created class Animal
jshell> class Pet extends Animal {
..>> public void groom() {
..>> System.out.println("Pet Groom");
..>> }
..>> }
| created class Pet_
jshell> class Dog extends Pet {
..>> }
| created class DogIf you want, you can visualize in your mind as : Dog --> Pet --> Animal --> Object (Yes, Object is sitting at the top of all inheritance hierarchies in Java!)
The statement Dog dog = new Dog(); sets off constructor invocations up the inheritance hierarchy:
* Dog() invokes Pet()
* Pet() invokes Animal()
* Animal() invokes Object()
jshell> Dog dog = new Dog();
dog ==> Dog@23a6e47fThe expression dog.toString() does a traversal up the inheritance hierarchy as well:
* Since Dog.toString() is not defined, the compiler looks for Pet.toString()
* Since Pet.toString() is not defined, the compiler looks for Animal.toString()
* Since Animal.toString() is not defined, the compiler looks for Object.toString(), which is always provided as the default implementation for all sub-classes of class Object in Java.
jshell> dog.toString();
$1 ==> "Dog@23a6e47f"The invocation dog.groom(); is also resolved by traversing up the inheritance hierarchy.
jshell> dog.groom();
"Pet Groom"The statement Pet pet = new Dog(); is really interesting. In Java, it is permitted for a super-class reference variable to reference a sub-class object instance.
Through such a reference, method invocations are also permitted, and the correct thing gets done. Hence, pet.groom(); causes the output "Pet Groom".
However, the converse assignment is not allowed. A sub-class reference variable cannot reference a super-class object instance.
* The statement Dog dog = new Pet(); therefore, causes a compiler error.
jshell> Pet pet = new Dog();
pet ==> Dog@22d37d54
jshell> pet.groom();
Pet Groom jshell> Dog dog = new Pet();
| Error:
| incompatible types: Pet cannot be converted to Dog
| Dog dog = new Pet();
|___________^-------^The instanceof operator is to find the relationship between an object and a class. If the object is an instance of the class or its sub class, it returns true.
jshell> pet instanceof Pet
$2 ==> true
jshell> pet instanceof Dog
$3 ==> trueThe instanceof operator throws an error if the object and class are unrelated.
jshell> pet instanceof String
| Error:
| incompatible types: Pet cannot be converted to java.lang.String
| pet instanceof String
|_^-^
jshell> pet instanceof Animal
$4 ==> true
jshell> pet instanceof Object
$5 ==> trueThe instanceof operator returns false if the object is an instance of a super class of the class provided.
jshell> Animal animal new Animal();
animal ==> Animal@3632be31
jshell> animal instanceof Pet
$6 ==> false
jshell> animal instanceof Dog
$7 ==> false
jshell> animal instanceof Object
$8 ==> true
jshell>An abstract class can contain abstract methods.
An abstract method does not have a method definition.
Here's how a typical class looks like. You can create methods inside the class and you can create instances of the class.
jshell> class Animal {
..>> public void bark() {
..>> System.out.println("Animal Bark");
..>> }
..>> }
| created class Animal
jshell> Animal animal = new Animal();
animal ==> Animal@335eadca
jshell> animal.bark();
Animal BarkLet's see how to create an abstract class:
jshell> abstract class AbstractAnimal {
..>> abstract public void bark();
..>> }
| created class AbstractAnimalThe syntax is simple: add abstract keyword before the class.
An abstract class cannot be instantiated.
jshell> AbstractAnimal animal = new AbstractAnimal();
| Error:
| AbstractAnimal is abstract; cannot be instantiated.
| AbstractAnimal animal = new AbstractAnimal();
|^--------------------------------------------^
jshell>However, it can be sub-classed, creating inheritance hierarchies below it. A sub-class of an abstract class (often called a concrete class) must override its abstract methods.
jshell> class Dog extends AbstractAnimal {
..>> }
| Error:
| Dog is not abstract and does not override abstract method bark() in AbstractAnimal
| class Dog extends AbstractAnimal {
|^----------------------------------...
jshell> class Dog extends AbstractAnimal {
..>> public void bark() {
..>> System.out.println("Bow Bow");
..>> }
..>> }
| created class Dog
jshell> Dog dog = new Dog();
dog ==> Dog@5a8e6209
jshell> dog.bark();
Bow Bow
Why do we need an abstract class?
Consider a feast being prepared at a home, and several dishes are on the menu for the event. Obviously, each dish would have certain procedure for it to be prepared. Cooking any dish normally involves following a tried and tested recipe, and its preparation boils down to these basic steps:
- Prepare the Ingredients
- Cook the Recipe
- Cleanup (the Mess created!)
These steps would be different for each dish but the order of steps remain the same.
Let's use abstract class to build the recipe.
AbstractRecipe.java
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2;
public abstract class AbstractRecipe {
public void execute() {
prepareIngredients();
cookRecipe();
cleanup();
}
abstract void prepareIngredients();
abstract void cookRecipe();
abstract void cleanup();
}We defined abstract methods for each of the steps and created an execute method calling them. execute method ensures that the order of method call is followed.
You can define implementations implementing the abstract methods.
CurryRecipe.java
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2;
public class CurryRecipe extends AbstractRecipe {
public CurryRecipe() {
System.out.println("[Curry Preparation Method]");
}
@Override
void prepareIngredients() {
System.out.println("Get Vegetables Cut and Ready");
System.out.println("Get Spices Ready");
}
@Override
void cookRecipe() {
System.out.println("Steam And Fry Vegetables");
System.out.println("Cook With Spices");
System.out.println("Add Seasoning");
}
@Override
void cleanup() {
System.out.println("Discard unused Vegetables");
System.out.println("Discard unused Spices");
}
}RecipeRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2;
public class RecipeRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
CurryRecipe curryRecipe = new CurryRecipe();
curryRecipe.execute();
}
}Console Output
[Curry Preparation Method]
Get Vegetables Cut and Ready
Get Spices Ready
Steam And Fry Vegetables
Cook With Spices
Add Seasoning
Discard unused Vegetables
Discard unused Spices
CurryRecipe defines what needs to be done in each step. When we invoke the execute method, the steps are executed in order.
We can easily create more recipes.
MicrowaveCurryRecipe.java
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2;
public class MicrowaveCurryRecipe extends AbstractRecipe {
public MicrowaveCurryRecipe() {
System.out.println("[Curry Microwave Method]");
}
@Override
void prepareIngredients() {
System.out.println("Get Vegetables Cut and Ready");
System.out.println("Switch on Microwave");
}
@Override
void cookRecipe() {
System.out.println("Microwave Vegetables");
System.out.println("Add Seasoning");
}
@Override
void cleanup() {
System.out.println("Switch Off Microwave");
System.out.println("Discard unused Vegetables");
}
}RecipeRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2;
public class RecipeRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
MicrowaveCurryRecipe mcirowaveRecipe = new MicrowaveCurryRecipe();
microwaveRecipe.execute();
}
}Console Output
[Curry Microwave Method]
Get Vegetables Cut and Ready
Switch on Microwave
Microwave Vegetables
Add Seasoning
Switch off Microwave
Discard unused Vegetables
MicrowaveCurryRecipe defines what needs to be done in each step. When we invoke the execute method, the steps are executed in order.
This pattern is called a Template method pattern. You define an abstract class with the order of steps defined. You leave the implementation of each of the steps to the sub classes.
Let's look a few FAQ regarding abstract classes.
An abstract class can be created, without any abstract member methods.
jshell> abstract class AbstractTest {
...>}
| creates abstract class AbstractTestAn abstract class can be a sub class to create another abstract class, without overriding any of the super-class abstract methods.
jshell> abstract class AbstractAlgorithm {
...> abstract void flowChart();
...> }
| creates abstract class AbstractAlgorithm
jshell> abstract class AlgorithmTypeOne extends AbstractAlgorithm {
...> }
| creates abstract class AlgorithmTypeOneAn abstract class can have member variables.
jshell> abstract class AbstractAlgorithm {
...> private int stepCount;
...> }
| replaced abstract class AbstractAlgorithmAn abstract class can have non-abstract methods.
jshell> abstract class AbstractAlgorithm {
...> private int stepCount;
...> public int getStepCount() {
...> return stepCount;
...> }
...> }
| replaced abstract class AbstractAlgorithm
jshell>What does a "gaming console" mean to you?
A device that has buttons or other controls on it, that enable us to play video games.
What are the typical buttons on it?
- Arrows - up down left right
- Select
- etc
Gaming console offers an interface to play your games.
Who provides the implementation of what happens when a button is clicked? The game implementor - for example, the implementor of Mario game or the Chess game.
How do you represent this in Java program?
GamingConsole.java
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2.interfaces;
public interface GamingConsole {
public void up();
public void down();
public void left();
public void right();
}interface GamingConsole contains methods without definitions.
Who provides the implementations?
Welcome MarioGame.
MarioGame.java
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2.interfaces;
public class MarioGame implements GamingConsole {
@Override
public void up() {
System.out.println("Jump");
}
@Override
public void down() {
System.out.println("Go into a hole");
}
@Override
public void left() {
}
@Override
public void right() {
System.out.println("Go Forward");
}
}MarioGame provides a definition for all the methods declared in the interface GamingConsole. Syntax is simple. class MarioGame implements GamingConsole and implement all the methods.
Let's look at how you can run these games.
GameRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2.interfaces;
public class GameRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
MarioGame game = new MarioGame();
game.up();
game.down();
game.left();
game.right();
}
}Console Output
Jump
Go into a hole
Go forward
The main advantage of having an interface is that it can be used to enforce a contract for its implementors.
Let's look at another example - ChessGame.
ChessGame.java
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2.interfaces;
public class ChessGame implements GamingConsole {
@Override
public void up() {
System.out.println("Move Piece Up");
}
@Override
public void down() {
System.out.println("Move Piece Down");
}
@Override
public void left() {
System.out.println("Move Piece Left");
}
@Override
public void right() {
System.out.println("Move Piece Right");
}
}Running it is simple. All that you need to do is to comment out MarioGame game = new MarioGame(); and replace it with an implementation of ChessGame.
GameRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2.interfaces;
public class GameRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
//MarioGame game = new MarioGame();
ChessGame game = new ChessGame();
game.up();
game.down();
game.left();
game.right();
}
}Console Output
Move Piece Up
Move Piece Down
Move Piece Left
Move Piece Right
In the same GamerRunner class, if we now instantiate a ChessGame object instead of a MarioGame one, none of the other code needs to change. This is because both MarioGame and ChessGame implement the same interface, GamingConsole.
GamingConsole is an interface.MarioGame and ChessGame are it's implementations.
Let's try this - GamingConsole game = new ChessGame();
GameRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2.interfaces;
public class GameRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
GamingConsole game = new ChessGame();
game.up();
game.down();
game.left();
game.right();
}
}Console Output
Move Piece Up
Move Piece Down
Move Piece Left
Move Piece Right
GamingConsole game = new ChessGame(); - You can store an implementation of an interface into a reference variable of the type of the interface.
How does this help?
Let's look at the next example:
GameRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2.interfaces;
public class GameRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
GamingConsole game = new MarioGame();
game.up();
game.down();
game.left();
game.right();
}
}Console Output
Jump
Go into a hole
Go forward
You can replace GamingConsole game = new ChessGame() with GamingConsole game = new MarioGame() and now the program runs the MarioGame. Isn't it awesome?
Consider a Software Development project, which involves programming a fairly large and complex application. Project team (Team A) decided to out-source part of this project to an external team (Team B). Let's say this external team needs to implement a farily complex algorithm to achieve a specific task, and which needs to interface with the rest of the application. Work on both parts of the application needs to proceed simultaneously.
Suppose the algorithm logic is implemented using a single method:
int complexAlgorithm(int number1, int number2);
How do we ensure that the work done by both the teams remains compatible?
They start with defining an interface.
ComplexAlgorithm.java
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2.interfaces;
public interface ComplexAlgorithm {
int complexAlgorithm(int number1, int number2);
}Now the teams can go on their merry way. Team A can create a stub for the interface OneComplexAlgorithm and start working on their project.
OneComplexAlgorithm.java
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2.interfaces;
public class OneComplexAlgorithm {
public int complexAlgorithm(int number1, int number2) {
return number1 + number2;
}
}Team B can take time to implement the actual algorithm.
ActualComplexAlgorithm.java
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2.interfaces;
public class ActualComplexAlgorithm {
public int complexAlgorithm(int number1, int number2) {
//Your complex implementation will be present here..
return number1 * number2;
}
}Let's look at a few examples to understand interfaces further.
An interface can be extended by another interface. We can have an inheritance hierarchy purely consisting of interfaces.
jshell> interface InterfaceOne {
...> void methodOne();
...> }
| created interface InterfaceOne
jshell> interface InterfaceTwo extends InterfaceOne {
...> void methodTwo();
...> }
| created interface InterfaceTwoAn implementation of interface should implement all its methods including the methods in its super interfaces.
jshell> class Implementation implements InterfaceTwo {
...>}
| Error:
| Implementation is not abstract and does not implement abstract method methodTwo() of InterfaceTwo
| class Implementation implements InterfaceTwo {
|^---------------------------------------------...
jshell> public class Implementation implements InterfaceTwo {
...> public void methodTwo() {}
...> }
| Error:
| Implementation is not abstract and does not implement abstract method methodOne() of InterfaceOne
| class Implementation implements InterfaceTwo {
|^---------------------------------------------...
jshell> public class Implementation implements InterfaceTwo {
...> public void methodTwo() {}
...> public void methodOne() {}
...> }
| created class ImplementationIf a class is declared as abstract, it can skip providing implementations for all interface methods.
jshell> public abstract class AbstractImplementation implements InterfaceTwo {
...> public void methodOne() {}
...> }
| created class AbstractImplementationinterfaces cannot have member variables. An interface can only have declared constants
jshell> interface InterfaceThree {
...> int test;
...> }
| Error:
| = expected
| int test;
|_________^
jshell> interface InterfaceThree {
...> int test = 5;
...> }
| created interface InterfaceThreeStarting from Java SE 8, an interface can provide a default implementation of the methods it provides. It can be done by including the keyword default in the signature of that method, and providing a body to that method in its definition.
jshell> interface InterfaceFour {
...> public default void print() {
...> System.out.println("default print");
...> }
...> }
| created interface InterfaceFour
jshell> class TestPrint implements InterfaceFour {
...> }
| created class TestPrint
jshell> TestPrint testPrint = new TestPrint();
testPrint ==> TestPrint@6ebc05a6
jshell> testPrint.print();
default printImplementations of interface can override the default method implementation.
jshell> class ParticularPrint implements InterfaceFour {
...> public void print() {
...> System.out.println("particular print");
...> }
...> }
| created class ParticularPrint jshell> ParticularPrint particularPrint = new ParticularPrint();
particularPrint ==> ParticularPrint@5fad14c4
jshell> particularPrint.print();
particular print
jshell>No method declared inside an interface can be qualified with the private access specifier. However, an abstract class can have private methods declared within.
Let's consider a Provider interface with three implementations.
public interface Provider {
public void doSomething();
}
public class ImplementorOne {
@Override
public void doSomething() {
System.out.println("Do One");
}
}
public class ImplementorTwo {
@Override
public void doSomething() {
System.out.println("Do Two");
}
}
public class ImplementorThree {
@Override`
public void doSomething() {
System.out.println("Do Three");
}
}What happens if a new method is added to the interface?
public interface Provider {
public void doSomething();
public void doMore();
}Compilation Error! All implementations classes ImplementationOne, ImplementationTwo and ImplementationThree must me updated to implement doMore() in each case.
Alternative : provide a default implementation for doMore.
public interface Provider {
public void doSomething();
public default void doMore(){
System.out.println("Do More");
}
}No other code needs to immediately change, and specific implementation classes can override this default version, as and when needed.
This is especially useful in building and extending frameworks. You are not breaking a user of your framework interface when you add new methods to the interface.
abstract class and interface are very different, except that they have a very similar syntax.
When would you want to use them in your application?
interface is a Contract.
An interface is primarily used when you have two software components that need to communicate with each other, and there is a need to establish a contract.
Recall the following example: ComplexAlgorithm defines the interface which helps both the teams involved.
package com.in28minutes.oops.level2.interfaces;
public interface ComplexAlgorithm {
int complexAlgorithm(int number1, int number2);
}An abstract class is primarily used when you want to generalize behavior by creating a super class.
Recall the following example we had discussed:
public abstract class AbstractRecipe {
public void execute() {
prepareIngredients();
cookRecipe();
cleanup();
}
abstract void prepareIngredients();
abstract void cookRecipe();
abstract void cleanup();
}Here are important syntactical differences:
- No method declared inside an
interfacecan be qualified with aprivateaccess specifier. However, anabstract classcan haveprivatemethods. - An
interfacecannot have declared member variables. Anabstract classcan have member variable declarations. - A
classor anabstract classcan implement multipleinterfaces. But, aninterfacecan extend only oneinterface, and aclassor anabstract classcan extend only oneclassorabstract class.
TODO
TODO
Arrays are not dynamic data structures. They can store only a fixed maximum number of elements.
Inserting or removing elements into an array needs a lot of work.
Collections are in-built implementations available to support dynamic data structures in Java programs. The commonly used collections are based on Lists, Trees and Hash Tables.
Java provides very good collection implementations.
To make it simple to understand all collections, we will start with the interfaces - such as List, Set, Queue, Map and others.
After that, we will look at implementations of these interfaces, such as LinkedList, HashTable and TreeMap, among others.
Let's start with the List interface
The List interface is used to implement an ordered collection in Java programs. An ordered collection is one, where the programmer has control over the position where an element can be inserted into, or accessed from the collection.
If an element's insertion position is not specified, it is added at the end of the List.
A List typically allows duplicate elements.
We can see examples of creating a list and accessing element data below:
jshell> List<String> words = List.of("Apple", "Bat", "Cat");
words ==> [Apple, Bat, Cat]
jshell> words.size()
$1 ==> 3
jshell> words.isEmpty()
$2 ==> false
jshell> words.get(0)
$3 ==> Apple
jshell> words.contains("Dog")
$4 ==> false
jshell> words.contains("Cat")
$5 ==> true
jshell> words
words ==> [Apple, Bat, Cat]
jshell> words.indexOf("Cat")
$6 ==> 2
jshell> words.indexOf("Dog")
$7 ==> -1
jshell>Consider the List words we created in the last snippet.
List<String> words = List.of("Apple", "Bat", "Cat");
Lists created using the static of method are immutable.
jshell> List<String> words = List.of("Apple", "Bat", "Cat");
words ==> [Apple, Bat, Cat]
jshell> words.add("Dog");
| java.lang.UnsupportedOperationExcetion thrown:
| at ImmutableCollections.uoe (ImmutableCollections.java:71)
| at ImmutableCollections$AbstractImmutableList.add (ImmutableCollections.java:77)
| at (#15:1)
jshell>The way to create List data structures that can be updated over time, is to instantiate built-in collection classes that implement the List interface.
Examples are ArrayList, LinkedList and Vector.
Let's look at a few examples:
jshell> List<String> words = List.of("Apple", "Bat", "Cat");
words ==> [Apple, Bat, Cat]
jshell> List<String> wordsArrayList = new ArrayList<String>(words);
wordsArrayList ==> [Apple, Bat, Cat]
jshell> List<String> wordsLinkedList = new LinkedList<String>(words);
wordsLinkedList ==> [Apple, Bat, Cat]
jshell> List<String> wordsVector = new Vector<String>(words);
wordsVector ==> [Apple, Bat, Cat]
jshell> wordsArrayList.add("Dog");
$1 ==> true
jshell> wordsArrayList
wordsArrayList ==> [Apple, Bat, Cat, Dog]
jshell>ArrayList uses an array to store elements.
- Positional access and modification of elements is very efficient, with constant-time algorithmic complexity.
- Insertion and deletion of elements are expensive. In a 20 element list, to insert an element at first position, all 20 elements should be moved.
The data structure used to implement a LinkedList is of the type linked-list, which is a chain of blocks of memory slots.
- Inserting and Deleting values is easy. This is because in a chain of blocks, each link is nothing but a reference to the next block. Insertion only involves adjustment of these links to accommodate new values, and does not require extensive copying and shifting of existing elements.
- Positional access and modification of elements is less efficient than in an
ArrayList, because access always involves traversal of links.
Optimization: the underlying data structure for a LinkedList is actually a doubly-linked list, with each element having both forward and backward links to elements around it.
Vector has been with Java since v1.0, whereas ArrayList was added later, in v1.2. Both of them use an array as the underlying data structure.
Vector is thread-safe. In Vector, all methods are synchronized.
Look at other thread safe
Listimplementations asVectorhas poor concurrency.
We will examine common List operations on an ArrayList. Similar operations can also be done on a LinkedList or a Vector.
We look at examples for
- Insertion at end (default)
- Positional insertion
- Inserting duplicate entries is allowed
- Adding all elements of an external list, to the current list
- At the end
- Positional insertion is also available, as in single element insertion
jshell> List<String> words = List.of("Apple", "Bat", "Cat");
words ==> [Apple, Bat, Cat]
jshell> List<String> wordsArrayList = new ArrayList<String>(words);
wordsArrayList ==> [Apple, Bat, Cat]
jshell> wordsArrayList.add("Dog");
$1 ==> true
jshell> wordsArrayList
wordsArrayList ==> [Apple, Bat, Cat, **Dog**]
jshell> wordsArrayList.add("Elephant");
$2 ==> true
jshell> wordsArrayList
wordsArrayList ==> [Apple, Bat, Cat, Dog, **Elephant**]
jshell> wordsArrayList.add(2, "Ball");
*jshell> wordsArrayList
wordsArrayList ==> [Apple, Bat, **Ball**, Cat, Dog, Elephant]
jshell> wordsArrayList.add("Ball");
jshell> wordsArrayList
wordsArrayList ==> [Apple, Bat, Ball, Cat, Dog, Elephant, **Ball**]
jshell> List<String> newList = List.of("Yak", "Zebra");
newList ==> [Yak, Zebra]
jshell> wordsArrayList.addAll(newList);
$3 ==> true
jshell> wordsArrayList
wordsArrayList ==> [Apple, Bat, Ball, Cat, Dog, Elephant, Ball, **Yak**, **Zebra**]
jshell>Let's look at examples of
- Modifying elements at a specific position.
- Deleting elements
jshell> wordsArrayList
wordsArrayList ==> [Apple, Bat, Ball, Cat, Dog, Elephant, Ball, Yak, Zebra]
jshell> wordsArrayList.set(6, "Fish");
$4 ==> "Ball"
jshell> wordsArrayList
wordsArrayList ==> [Apple, Bat, Ball, Cat, Dog, Elephant, **Fish**, Yak, Zebra]
jshell> wordsArrayList.remove(2);
$5 ==> "**Ball**"
jshell> wordsArrayList
wordsArrayList ==> [Apple, Bat, Cat, Dog, Elephant, Fish, Yak, Zebra]
jshell> wordsArrayList.remove("Dog");
$6 ==> true
jshell> wordsArrayList
wordsArrayList ==> [Apple, Bat, Cat, Elephant, Fish, Yak, Zebra]
jshell> wordsArrayList.remove("Dog");
$6 ==> false
jshell>Let's now look at how to iterate around the contents of a List
Basic for loop:
jshell> List<String> words = List.of("Apple", "Bat", "Cat");
words ==> [Apple, Bat, Cat]
jshell> for(int i=0; i<words.size(); i++) {
...> System.out.println(words.get(i));
...> }
Apple
Bat
CatUsing enhanced for loop:
jshell> for(String word:words) {
...> System.out.println(word);
...> }
Apple
Bat
CatUsing iterators:
jshell> Iterator wordsIterator = words.iterator();
wordsIterator ==> java.util.AbstractList$Itr@3712b94
jshell> while(wordsIterator.hasNext()) {
...> System.out.println(wordsIterator.next());
...> }
Apple
Bat
Cat- For non-mutating iterations, an enhanced
forloop is the most convenient - For mutating iterations:
- Deletions: An enhanced
forloop is not recommended, as we saw in the example."Bat"was removed, but"Cat"was not, because the iteration itself was affected. - Iterators can be used for such iterations.
jshell> List<String> words = List.of("Apple", "Bat", "Cat");
words ==> [Apple, Bat, Cat]
jshell> List<String> wordsAL = new ArrayList<>(words);
wordsAL ==> [Apple, Bat, Cat]
jshell> for(String word:words) {
...> if(word.endsWith("at"))
...> System.out.println(word);
...> }
...> }
Bat
Cat
jshell> for(String word:wordsAL) {
...> if(word.endsWith("at"))
...> wordsAL.remove(word);
...> }
...> }
jshell> wordsAL
wordsAL ==> [Apple, Cat]
jshell> Iterator wordsIterator = wordsAL.iterator();
wordsIterator ==> java.util.AbstractList$Itr@3712b94
jshell> while(wordsIterator.hasNext()) {
...> if(wordsIterator.next().endsWith("at")){
...> wordsIterator.remove();
...> }
...> }
jshell> wordsAL
wordsAL ==> [Apple]
jshell>A List collection does not store primitives. It only stores object references. When we attempt to store primitive types, such as those of int, char or double, they get implicitly converted to their wrapper class types, namely Integer, Character and Double respectively. Primitive data type elements get auto-boxed.
The ArrayList.indexOf() method is not overloaded, there is only one version. SO, when passed an int argument, it is auto-boxed to an Integer object, and the method gets executed.
- However, the
ArrayList.remove()method has two overloaded versions:ArrayList.remove(int index): attempts to delete an element at the specified index in theArrayListArrayList.remove(Object o): attempts to delete the specified element, if ti is present in theArrayList.
jshell> List values = List.of("A", 'A', 1, 1.0);
values ==> ["A", 'A', 1, 1.0]
jshell> values.get(2)
$1 ==> 1
jshell> values.get(2) instanceof Integer
$2 ==> true
jshell> values.get(1) instanceof Character
$3 ==> true
jshell> values.get(3) instanceof Double
$4 ==> true
jshell> List<String> textValues = List.of("A", 'A', 1, 1.0);
| Error
| Error
| List<String> textValues = List.of("A", 'A', 1, 1.0);
|___________________________^------------------------^
jshell> List<Integer> numbers = List.of(101, 102, 103, 104, 105);
numbers ==> [101, 102, 103, 104, 105]
jshell> numbers.indexOf(101)
$5 ==> 0
jshell> List<Integer> numbersAL = new ArrayList<>(numbers);
numbersAL ==> [101, 102, 103, 104, 105]
jshell> numbersAL.indexOf(101)
$6 ==> 0
jshell> numbersAL.remove(101)
java.lang.IndexOutOfBoundsException!!
jshell> numbersAL.remove(Integer.valueOf(101))
$7 ==> true
jshell> numbersAL
numbersAL ==> [102, 103, 104, 105]
jshell>The List obtained from List.of() is immutable, hence cannot be sorted itself. Hence, create a mutable ArrayList out of it.
The ArrayList.sort() method requires the definition of a Comparator object. Easier option is to use Collections.sort() instead.
jshell> List<Integer> numbers = List.of(123, 12, 3, 45);
numbers ==> [123, 12, 3, 45]
jshell> List<Integer> numbersAL = new ArrayList<>(numbers);
numbersAL ==> [123, 12, 3, 45]
jshell> numbersAL.sort();
| Error:
| required: java.util.Comparator<? super java.lang.Integer>
| numbersAL.sort();
|^-------------^
jshell> Collections.sort(numbersAL);
jshell> numbersAL
numbersAL ==> [3, 12, 45, 123]
jshell>Let's create a Student class and try to sort it using Collections.sort
Student.java
package collections;
public class Student {
private int id;
private String name;
public Student(int id, String name) {
super();
this.id = id;
this.name = name;
}
public int getId() {
return id;
}
public void setId(int id) {
this.id = id;
}
public String getName() {
return name;
}
public void setName(String name) {
this.name = name;
}
public String toString() {
return id + " " + name;
}
}StudentsCollectionRunner.java
package collections;
import java.util.Collections;
import java.util.List;
import java.util.ArrayList;
public class StudentsCollectionRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
List<Student> students = List.of(new Student(1, "Ranga"),
new Student(100, "Adam"),
new Student(2, "Eve"));
ArrayList<Student> studentsAl = new ArrayList<>(students);
System.out.println(studentsAl);
Collections.sort(studentsAl);
System.out.println(studentsAl);
}
}Console Output
COMPILER ERROR
To the method Collections.sort(), only those Lists can be passed, the type of whose elements T, implements the Comparator<? super T> interface.
Student does not implement the interface. Result - Compilatino error.
StudentsCollection.java
package collections;
import java.util.Comparable;
public class Student implements Comparable<Student> {
// Same as earlier
@Override
public int compareTo(Student that) {
return Integer.compare(this.id, that.id);
}
}StudentsCollectionRunner.java
package collections;
import java.util.Collections;
import java.util.List;
import java.util.ArrayList;
public class StudentsCollectionRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
List<Student> students = List.of(new Student(1, "Ranga"),
new Student(100, "Adam"),
new Student(2, "Eve"));
ArrayList<Student> studentsAl = new ArrayList<>(students);
System.out.println(studentsAl);
Collections.sort(studentsAl);
System.out.println(studentsAl);
}
}Console Output
[1 Ranga, 100 Adam, 2 Eve]
[1 Ranga, 2 Eve, 100 Adam]
Integer.compare(x, y) returns the value 0 if x == y; a value less than 0 if x < y; and a value greater than 0 if x > y.
If you change the order of parameters:
@Override
public int compareTo(Student that) {
return Integer.compare(that.id, this.id);
}Output changes to:
[100 Adam, 2 Eve, 1 Ranga]
What if there is a need for sorting Student's in multiple ways? What if we want to sort Students in ascending order of id's in some situations and in descending order of id's in some other situations?
Collections.sort has an overloaded version that has a signature that looks like:
@SuppressWarnings({"unchecked", "rawtypes" })
public static <T> sort(List<T> list, Comparator<? super T> c)
list.sort(c);
}To be able to invoke this version of Collections.sort, we will need to define a suitable Comparator implementation, that works with Student objects.
As you may have already guessed, we would need to define two different Comparator implementations: one for ascending sort, and another for descending sort.
package collections;
import java.util.Collections;
import java.util.List;
import java.util.ArrayList;
import java.util.Comparator;
class DescStudentComparator implements Comparator<Student> {
@Override
public int compare(Student student1, Student student2) {
return Integer.compare(student2.getId(), student1.getId());
}
} public class StudentsCollectionRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
List<Student> students = List.of(new Student(1, "Ranga"),
new Student(100, "Adam"),
new Student(2, "Eve"));
ArrayList<Student> studentsAl = new ArrayList<>(students);
System.out.println(studentsAl);
Collections.sort(studentsAl);
System.out.println("Ascending : " + studentsAl);
Collections.sort(studentsAl, new DescStudentComparator());
System.out.println("Descending : " studentsAl);
}
}Console Output
[1 Ranga, 100 Adam, 2 Eve]
Ascending : [1 Ranga, 2 Eve, 100 Adam]
Descending : [100 Adam, 2 Eve, 1 Ranga]
You can call sort method on the List by passing it a Comparator implementation - studentsAl.sort(new AscStudentComparator()).
StudentsCollectionRunner.java
package collections;
import java.util.Collections;
import java.util.List;
import java.util.ArrayList;
import java.util.Comparator;
public class StudentsCollectionRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
List<Student> students = List.of(new Student(1, "Ranga"),
new Student(100, "Adam"),
new Student(2, "Eve"));
ArrayList<Student> studentsAl = new ArrayList<>(students);
System.out.println(studentsAl);
studentsAl.sort(new AscStudentComparator());
System.out.println("Asc : " + studentsAl);
studentsAl.sort(new DescStudentComparator());
System.out.println("Desc : " + studentsAl);
}
}Console Output
[1 Ranga, 100 Adam, 2 Eve]
Asc : [1 Ranga, 2 Eve, 100 Adam]
Desc : [100 Adam, 2 Eve, 1 Ranga]
Mathematically, a set is a collection of unique items. Similarly, the Java Set interface also specifies a contract for collections having unique elements.
- If
object1.equals(object2)returnstrue, then only one ofobject1andobject2have a place in aSetimplementation.
There is no positional element access provided by the Set implementations.
Let's look at a few examples:
The collection returned by Set.of() is immutable, hence does not support the add() method.
jshell> Set<String> set = Set.of("Apple", "Banana", Cat");
set ==> [Banana, Apple, Cat]Create a HashSet collection instead, which supports the add(), in order to test the uniqueness property of a Set.
jshell> set.add("Apple");
| java.lang.UnsupportedOperationException thrown:
jshell> Set<String> hashSet = new HashSet<>(set);
hashSet ==> [Apple, Cat, Banana]The HashSet.add() operation returns a false value, indicating that inserting a duplicate "Apple" entry has failed.
jshell> hashSet.add("Apple");
$1 ==> false
jshell> hashSet
hashSet ==> [Apple, Cat, Banana]Note that when the hashSet was constructed using the set, the order of the elements got permuted/changed. Also originally, when we created the set from the Set.of() method, the order printed was different from the order of initialization. This confirms the fact that a Set collection does not give any importance to element order, and therefore, does not support positional access. Hence, the compiler error on call to hashSet.add(int, String).
jshell> hashSet.add(2, "Apple");
| Error:
| no suitable method found for add(int, java.lang.String)
| hashSet.add(2, "Apple");
|^----------^
jshell>- Hash Table: A data structure that attempts to combine the best of both worlds:
- Very efficient element access
- Very efficient element insertion and deletion
- Buckets : They are the slots in the hash table, into which elements are inserted and chained together. As you can see, a hash table is effectively a large array of buckets, each containing a small linked list.
- Hashing: A procedure called hashing used in the construction of the Hash Table. The term hash generally means mix up the order of elements.
- Hashing Function: A formula to determine/compute which bucket a particular element gets inserted into. For illustration:
hash(elem)could computeelem mod 13mathematically, and uses that value to index into the table, to locate the bucket insertion. TheObject.hashCode()could be used as a hashing function. - Collisions: Leads to chaining within a bucket, where a linked list grows. The larger the table, and the cleverer the hashing function, the lesser the chance for collisions.
- Tree: Stores elements in sorted order. For every node in the tree, elements of all nodes in its left sub-tree are lesser than its contained element. Conversely, elements of all nodes in its right sub-tree are greater than its contained element.
- Insertions: Given any node, we know by comparing the new element with the node's element, where to go about inserting it, to maintain sorted order.
- Access : More efficient than linked lists.
- HashSet
- LinkedHashSet
- TreeSet
In a HashSet, elements are neither stored in the order of insertion, nor in sorted order.
jshell> Set<Integer> numbers = new HashSet<>();
numbers ==> []
jshell> numbers.add(765432);
$1 ==> true
jshell> numbers.add(76543);
$2 ==> true
jshell> numbers.add(7654);
$3 ==> true
jshell> numbers.add(765);
$4 ==> true
jshell> numbers.add(76);
$5 ==> true
jshell> numbers
numbers ==> [765432, 7654, 76, 765, 76543]
jshell>In a LinkedHashSet, elements are stored in the order of insertion.
jshell> Set<Integer> numbers = new LinkedHashSet<>();
numbers ==> []
jshell> numbers.add(765432);
$1 ==> true
jshell> numbers.add(76543);
$2 ==> true
jshell> numbers.add(7654);
$3 ==> true
jshell> numbers.add(765);
$4 ==> true
jshell> numbers.add(76);
$5 ==> true
jshell> numbers
numbers ==> [765432, 76543, 7654, 765, 76]
jshell> numbers.add(7654321);
$5 ==> true
jshell> numbers
numbers ==> [765432, 76543, 7654, 765, **7654321**]
jshell>In a TreeSet, elements are stored in sorted order.
jshell> Set<Integer> numbers = new TreeSet<>();
numbers ==> []
jshell> numbers.add(765432);
$1 ==> true
jshell> numbers.add(76543);
$2 ==> true
jshell> numbers.add(7654);
$3 ==> true
jshell> numbers.add(765);
$4 ==> true
jshell> numbers.add(76);
$5 ==> true
jshell> numbers
numbers ==> [76, 765, 7654, 76543, 765432]
jshell> numbers.add(7);
$5 ==> true
jshell> numbers
numbers ==> [**7**, 76, 765, 7654, 76543, 765432]
jshell>-
Create a ```List`` of characters, such as:
List<Character> list = List.of('A', 'Z', 'A', 'B', 'Z, 'F);
- Write a procedure to list out the unique characters in this list
- Write a procedure to list out these unique characters in sorted order
- Write a procedure to list out these unique characters in the order in which they were present in the original list
SetRunner.java
package collections;
import java.util.List;
import java .util.Set;
import java.util.HashSet;
import java.util.LinkedHashSet;
import java.util.TreeSet;
public class SetRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
List<Character> characters = List.of('A', 'Z', 'A', 'B', 'Z, 'F);
Set<Character> hashSetChars = new HashSet<>(characters);
System.out.println("Unique Characters: " + hashSetChars);
Set<Character> treeSetChars = new TreeSet<>(characters);
System.out.println("Sorted Order: " + treeSetChars);
Set<Character> linkedSetChars = new LinkedHashSet<>(characters);
System.out.println("Inserted Order: " + linkedSetChars);
}
}Console Output
Unique Characters: [A, B, F, Z]
Sorted Order: [A, B, F, Z]
Inserted Order: [A, Z, B, F]
In this example, the order to elements traversed in hashSetChars happened to be the same as that in treeSetChars. Such an order is not always guaranteed, as we saw in the earlier examples.
- Super-Interfaces
- Set
- NavigableSet
Let's look at few operations:
jshell> TreeSet<Integer> numbers = new TreeSet<>(Set.of(65, 54, 34, 12, 99));
numbers ==> [12, 34, 54, 65, 99]
jshell> numbers.floor(40);
$1 ==> 34floor() method is inclusive, lower() is exclusive
jshell> numbers.floor(34);
$2 ==> 34
jshell> numbers.lower(34);
$3 ==> 12ceiling() method is inclusive, higher() is exclusive
jshell> numbers.ceiling(36);
$4 ==> 54
jshell> numbers.ceiling(34);
$5 ==> 34
jshell> numbers.higher(34);
$6 ==> 54subSet(Object, Object) method is only lower-inclusive. So, the left bound is like lower(), and right bound is like higher(). The overloaded version subSet(Object, boolean, Object, boolean) can be used to configure lower- and upper inclusiveness of the returned subset.
jshell> numbers.subSet(20, 80);
$7 ==> [34, 54, 65]
jshell> numbers.subSet(34, 54);
$8 ==> [34]
jshell> numbers.subSet(34, 65);
$9 ==> [34, 54]
jshell> numbers.subSet(34, true, 65, true);
$10 ==> [34, 54, 65]
jshell> numbers.subSet(34, false, 65, false);
$11 ==> [54]headSet() returns the subset of elements preceding the given element value. tailsSet() returns the subset of elements succeeding the given element value
jshell> numbers.headSet(50);
$12 ==> [12, 34]
jshell> numbers.tailSet(50);
$13 ==> [54, 65, 99]
jshell>Queue interface : extends the Collection interface.
- Elements are arranged in order of processing, such as in a To-Do List.
The PriorityQueue collection is a built-in Java class, that implements the Queue interface. Elements are stored in a sorted natural order, by default. We can also specify a different custom order, called the order of priority (customized by the programmer).
The PriorityQueue queue stores the strings in ascending alphabetic order by default.
queue.poll()de-queue's the element at the beginning of the natural order
jshell> Queue<String> queue = new PriorityQueue<>();
numbers ==> [12, 34, 54, 65, 99]
jshell> queue.poll();
$1 ==> null
jshell> queue.offer("Apple");
$2 ==> true
jshell> queue.addAll(List.of("Zebra", "Monkey", "Cat"));
$3 ==> true
jshell> queue
queue ==> [Apple, Cat, Monkey, Zebra]
jshell> queue.poll();
$4 ==> "Apple"
jshell> queue
queue ==> [Cat, Monkey, Zebra]
jshell> queue.poll();
$5 ==> "Cat"
jshell> queue.poll();
$6 ==> "Monkey"
jshell> queue.poll();
$7 ==> "Zebra"
jshell> queue.poll();
$8 ==> null
jshell>A custom priority order on the elements in a PriorityQueue can be specified by passing an implementation of Comparator<? super T> interface to the PriorityQueue<T> constructor.
Let's implement a StringLengthComparator.
QueueRunner.java
package collections;
import java.util.Comparator;
import java.util.List;
import java.util.Queue;
import java.util.PriorityQueue;
class StringLengthComparator implements Comparator<String> {
@Override
public int compare(String left, String right) {
return Integer.compare(left.length(), right.length());
}
}
public class QueueRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
Queue<String> queue = new PriorityQueue<>(new StringLengthComparator());
queue.addAll(List.of("Zebra", "Monkey", "Cat"));
queue.poll();
queue.poll();
queue.poll();
queue.poll();
}
}Console Output
Cat
Zebra
Monkey
null
The Map interface specifies a contract to implement collections of elements, that are in the form of (key, value) pairs.
Let's say you want to store how many times a character is repeated in a sequence of characters.
- If the sequence inserted is:
{'A', 'C', 'A', 'C', 'E', 'C', 'M', 'D', 'H', 'A'} - The map contents would end up being:
{('A', 3), ('C', 3), ('E', 1), ('M', 1), ('D', 1), ('H', 1)}.
Since the kind of elements stored in a map ((key, value) pairs) are different from any other collection categories in Java, the Map interface is unique. So unique, that it even does not extend the Collection interface!
The interface definition looks something like:
public interface Map<K, V> {
//Method Declarations
}- The Java collection classes that
implementtheMapinterfaceare:HashMapHashTableLinkedHashMapTreeMap
-
HashMap- Unordered
- Unsorted
- Key's
hashCode()value is used in the hashing function - Allows a key with a
nullvalue.
-
HashTable- Thread-safe version of
HashMap. Hassynchronizedmethods where required. - Unordered
- Unsorted
- Key's
hashCode()value is used in the hashing function - Does not allow a
nullkey.
- Thread-safe version of
-
LinkedHashMap- Insertion order of elements is maintained (which is optional as well)
- Unsorted
- Iteration is faster
- Insertion and Deletion are slower
-
TreeMap- Additionally implements the
NavigableMapinterface - Elements are maintained in sorted order of keys
- Additionally implements the
The Map.of() method takes a sequence of objects, which are interpreted as being key and value entries in alternation.
- The total number of arguments is expected to be an even number.
- This method creates an immutable
Map, with the(key, value)pairs in no specific order.
jshell> Map<String, Integer> map = Map.of("A", 3, "B", 5, "Z", 10);
map ==> {Z=10, A=3, B=5}
jshell> map.get("Z");
$1 ==> 10
jshell> map.get("A");
$2 ==> 3
jshell> map.get("C");
$3 ==> null
jshell> map.size();
$4 ==> 3
jshell> map.isEmpty();
$5 ==> false
jshell> map.containsKey("A");
$6 ==> true
jshell> map.containsKey("F");
$7 ==> false
jshell> map.containsValue(3);
$8 ==> true
jshell> map.containsValue(4);
$9 ==> false
jshell> map.keySet();
$10 ==> [Z, A, B]
jshell> map.values();
$11 ==> [10, 3, 5]
jshell>To be able to add values to a map, let's create a HashMap.
jshell> Map<String, Integer> map = Map.of("A", 3, "B", 5, "Z", 10);
map ==> {Z=10, A=3, B=5}
jshell> Map<String, Integer> hashMap = new HashMap<>(map);
hashMap ==> {A=3, Z=10, B=5}
jshell> hashMap.put("F", 5);
$1 ==> null
jshell> hashMap
hashMap ==> {A=3, Z=10, B=5, F=5}
jshell> hashMap.put("Z", 11);
$2 ==> 10
jshell> hashMap
hashMap ==> {A=3, Z=11, B=5, F=5}
jshell>HashMap elements are not guaranteed to be stored either in inserted order, or in the sorted order of keys.
jshell> HashMap<String, Integer> hashMap = new HashMap<>();
hashMap ==> {}
jshell> hashMap.put("Z", 5);
$1 ==> null
jshell> hashMap.put("A", 15);
$2 ==> null
jshell> hashMap.put("F", 25);
$3 ==> null
jshell> hashMap.put("L", 250);
$4 ==> null
jshell> hashMap
hashMap ==> {A=15, F=25, Z=5, L=250}LinkedHashMap elements are stored in inserted order.
jshell> LinkedHashMap<String, Integer> linkedHashMap = new LinkedHashMap<>();
linkedHashMap ==> {}
jshell> linkedHashMap.put("Z", 5);
$5 ==> null
jshell> linkedHashMap.put("A", 15);
$6 ==> null
jshell> linkedHashMap.put("F", 25);
$7 ==> null
jshell> linkedHashMap.put("L", 250);
$8 ==> null
jshell> linkedHashMap
hashMap ==> {Z=5, A=15, F=25, L=250}TreeMap elements are stored in the natural sorted order of the keys.
jshell> TreeMap<String, Integer> treeMap = new TreeMap<>();
treeMap ==> {}
jshell> treeMap.put("Z", 5);
$9 ==> null
jshell> treeMap.put("A", 15);
$10 ==> null
jshell> treeMap.put("F", 25);
$11 ==> null
jshell> treeMap.put("L", 250);
$12 ==> null
jshell> treeMap
treeMap ==> {A=15, F=25, L=250, Z=5}
jshell>- Given the string:
"This is an awesome occassion. This has never happened before.", do the following processing on it:- Find the number of occurrences of each unique character in this string
- Find the number of occurrences of each unique word in this string
MapRunner.java
package collections;
import java.util.Map;
import java.util.HashMap;
public class MapRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
String str = "This is an awesome occassion. This has never happened before.";
char[] characters = str.toCharArray();
Map<Character, Integer> occurrences = new HashMap<>();
for(char character:characters) {
Integer count = occurrences.get(character);
if(count == null) {
occurrences.put(character, 1);
} else {
occurrences.put(character, count+1);
}
}
System.out.println(occurrences);
String words = text.split(" ");
Map<String, Integer> frequency = new HashMap<>();
for(String word:words) {
Integer number = frequency.get(word);
if(number == null) {
frequency.put(word, 1);
} else {
frequency.put(word, number+1);
}
}
System.out.println(frequency);
}
}Let's look at some more interesting operations of Data Structures based on TreeMap.
Entries in a TreeMap are always sorted.
jshell> TreeMap<String, Integer> treeMap = new TreeMap<>();
treeMap ==> {}
jshell> treeMap.put("F", 25);
$1 ==> null
jshell> treeMap.put("Z", 5);
$2 ==> null
jshell> treeMap.put("L", 250);
$3 ==> null
jshell> treeMap.put("A", 15);
$4 ==> null
jshell> treeMap.put("B", 25)
$5 ==> null
jshell> treeMap.put("G", 25);
$6 ==> null
jshell> treeMap
treeMap ==> {A=15, B=25, F=25, G=25, L=250, Z=5}TreeMap implements NavigableMap interface as well.
jshell> treeMap.higherKey("B");
$7 ==> "F"
jshell> treeMap.higherKey("C");
$8 ==> "F"
jshell> treeMap.ceilingKey("B");
$9 ==> "B"
jshell> treeMap.ceilingKey("C");
$10 ==> "F"
jshell> treeMap.lowerKey("B");
$11 ==> "A"
jshell> treeMap.floorKey("B");
$12 ==> "B"
jshell> treeMap.firstEntry();
$713 ==> A=15
jshell> treeMap.lastentry();
$14 ==> Z=5
jshell> treeMap.subMap("C", "Y");
$7 ==> {F=25, G=25, L=250}
jshell> treeMap.subMap("B", "Z");
$7 ==> {B=25, F=25, G=25, L=250}
jshell> treeMap.subMap("B", true, "Z", true);
$7 ==> {B=25, F=25, G=25, L=250, Z=5}
jshell>The collection interfaces we have explored, as well as their implementation classes, are:
ListSetQueueMap
Let's quickly review what we've learnt:
- When you use a "Hashed" Java collection (hash table based), such as
HashMaporHashSet, it will be unordered, unsorted and will iterate over its elements in no particular order. - When you encounter a "Linked" Java collection (linked list based), such as a
LinkedHashSetor aLinkedHashMap, it will maintain insertion order, but will be unsorted. - When we make use of a "Tree"-based Java collection (stored in a tree data structure), such as
TreeSetorTreeMapit always maintains natural sorted order. It would implement one of the navigable category of interfaces, such asNavigableSetorNavigableMap.
Recommended Videos
- Generics - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v4o0wyFPwEs
Why do we need Generics?
Let's look at a scenario where want to write a wrapper class around the ArrayList data structure, maybe to do some better custom error-checking and stuff. For now, we will just look at basic wrapper functionality, the error checking intent is just an excuse!
GenericsRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.generics;
import com.in28minutes.generics.MyCustomList;
public class GenericsRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
MyCustomList list = new MyCustomList();
list.addElement("Element-1");
list.addElement("Element-2");
list.addElement("Element-3");
}
}MyCustomList.java
package com.in28minutes.generics;
public class MyCustomList {
ArrayList<String> list = new ArrayList<>();
public void addElement(String element) {
list.add(element);
}
public void removeElement(String element) {
list.remove(element);
}
}The MyCustomList class is a wrapper for ArrayList of Strings. Insertion and deletion of elements into this data structure is straightforward.
Let's sy I would want to create MyCustomList for other types. Should we write additional wrapper classes MyCustomList and so on?
Let's look at an example:
MyCustomList.java
package com.in28minutes.generics;
public class MyCustomList<T> {
ArrayList<T> list = new ArrayList<>();
public void addElement(T element) {
list.add(element);
}
public void removeElement(T element) {
list.remove(element);
}
public String toString() {
return list.toString();
}
}GenericsRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.generics;
import com.in28minutes.generics.MyCustomList;
public class GenericsRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
MyCustomList<String> list = new MyCustomList<>();
list.addElement("Element-1");
list.addElement("Element-2");
System.out.println(list);
MyCustomList<Integer> list2 = new MyCustomList<>();
list2.addElement(Integer.valueOf(5));
list2.addElement(Integer.valueOf(9));
System.out.println(list2);
}
}Console Output
[Element-1, Element-2]
[5, 9]
The identifier T in the definition of the Generic class MyCustomList<T> is a placeholder for the actual type of the container. It is this placeholder that truly converts the MyCustomList class into a template.
The naming convention for these type placeholders is:
* Always use UpperCase letters of the alphabet (such as T, or S), or
* intuitive words such as TYPE
At the time of actual instantiation of MyCustomList inside GenericsRunner.main, this placeholder is substituted by the actual type:
- When
MyCustomList<String> listis created,Tis substituted byString - When
MyCustomList<Integer> list2is created,Tis substituted byInteger
- Write a method
getinside the generic classMyCustomList, which returns the element at a particular index (passed as argument) in its list storage.
MyCustomList.java
package com.in28minutes.generics;
public class MyCustomList<T> {
ArrayList<T> list = new ArrayList<>();
public void addElement(T element) {
list.add(element);
}
public void removeElement(T element) {
list.remove(element);
}
public String toString() {
return list.toString();
}
public T get(int index) {
return list.get(index);
}
}GenericsRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.generics;
import com.in28minutes.generics.MyCustomList;
public class GenericsRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
MyCustomList<String> list = new MyCustomList<>();
list.addElement("Element-1");
list.addElement("Element-2");
String text = list.get(0);
System.out.println(text);
MyCustomList<Integer> list2 = new MyCustomList<>();
list2.addElement(Integer.valueOf(5));
list2.addElement(Integer.valueOf(9));
Integer num = list2.get(1);
System.out.println(num);
}
}Console Output
Element-1
9
We have defined a method MyCustomList<T>.get whose return type is generic as well. The return type has the same placeholder T as the template in the definition of MyCustomList<T>.
- For
MyCustomList<String> list,list.getreturns aString - For
MyCustomList<Integer> list2,list2.getreturns anInteger
We saw above that we could use MyCustomList<T> to be instantiated into data structures for storing Strings as well as for Integers.
What if we wanted to to use MyCustomList<T> purely for storing numeric values?
MyCustomList.java
package com.in28minutes.generics;
public class MyCustomList<T extends Number> {
ArrayList<T> list = new ArrayList<>();
public void addElement(T element) {
list.add(element);
}
public void removeElement(T element) {
list.remove(element);
}
public String toString() {
return list.toString();
}
public T get(int index) {
return list.get(index);
}
}GenericsRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.generics;
import com.in28minutes.generics.MyCustomList;
public class GenericsRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
//MyCustomList<String> list = new MyCustomList<>();
MyCustomList<Long> list1 = new MyCustomList<>();
list1.addElement(5l);
list1.addElement(7l);
Long long = list1.get(0);
System.out.println(long);
MyCustomList<Integer> list2 = new MyCustomList<>();
list2.addElement(Integer.valueOf(5));
list2.addElement(Integer.valueOf(9));
Integer num = list2.get(1);
System.out.println(num);
}
}Console Output
5
9
When we specify T extends Number as the type, we can use all the methods in the API of class Number are available for use.
We can create generic methods as well. Let's look at a few examples:
GenericsRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.generics;
import com.in28minutes.generics.MyCustomList;
public class GenericsRunner {
static <X> X doSomething(X value) {
return value;
}
static <X extends List> void duplicate(X list) {
list.add(list);
}
public static void main(String[] args) {
String text = doSomething("Hello");
Integer value = doSomething(Integer.valueOf(7));
ArrayList<String> list = doSomething(new ArrayList<String>(List.of("A", "B", C")));
duplicate(list);
System.out.println(list);
LinkedList<Integer> list2 = doSomething(new LinkedList<String>(List.of(1, 2, 3)));
duplicate(list2);
System.out.println(list2);
}
}Console Output
[A, B, C, A, B, C]
[1, 2, 3, 1, 2, 3]
You can use wild card with generics too - ? extends Number
GenericsRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.generics;
import com.in28minutes.generics.MyCustomList;
public class GenericsRunner {
static double sumOfNumberList(List<? extends Number> numbers) {
double sum = 0.0;
for(Number number:numbers) {
sum += number;
}
return sum;
}
public static void main(String[] args) {
System.out.println(sumOfNumberList(List.of(1, 2, 3, 4, 5)));
System.out.println(sumOfNumberList(List.of(1.1, 2.1, 3.1, 4.1, 5.1)));
System.out.println(sumOfNumberList(List.of(1l, 2l, 3l, 4l, 5l)));
}
}Console Output
15.0
15.5
15.0
The symbol ? in the definition of the method static double sumOfNumberList(List<? extends Number> numbers) is the wild-card symbol. It denotes the fact that in order to be a valid argument to sumOfNumberList, numbers can be a List of any elements, so long as all of them are of type sub-classed from Number.
- This includes
Integer,Long,Short,Byte,FloatandDouble. - It also includes their primitive type counterparts, since they can be converted implicitly to their Wrapper class counterparts.
- Of course, all these elements of
Listnumbersneed to be of a homogeneous type.
The generic wildcard we saw in the previous section is referred to as a Upper-Bounded Wild-Card. It can be used to specify homogeneous types with a restriction. There is another category of wild-cards called Lower-Bounded Wild-Card, which can be used with create Heterogeneous types of elements , within the restriction. Here is an example.
GenericsRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.generics;
import com.in28minutes.generics.MyCustomList;
public class GenericsRunner {
static void addAFewNumbers(List<? super Number> numbers) {
numbers.add(1);
numbers.add(1l);
numbers.add(1.0);
numbers.add(1.0l);
}
public static void main(String[] args) {
List<Number> numberList = new ArrayList<>();
addAFewNumbers(numberList);
System.out.println(numberList);
}
}Console Output
[1, 1, 1.0. 1.0]
What's all the fuss around Functional Programming about?
Let's find out.
Functional Programming Videos
- Part 1 - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aFCNPHfvqEU
- Part 2 - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Xw1_IREXQs
Let's look at a typical program to loop around a list and print its content.
FunctionalProgrammingRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.functionalprogramming;
import java.util.List;
public class FunctionalProgrammingRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
List<String> list = List.of("Apple", "Banana", "Cat", "Dog");
for(String str:list) {
System.out.println(str);
}
}
}Console Output
Apple
Banana
Cat
Dog
Above approach focuses on the how.
We looped around the list, accessed individual elements of a List and did System.out.println() to print each element.
Functional Programming allows us to focus on the what.
FunctionalProgrammingRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.functionalprogramming;
import java.util.List;
public class FunctionalProgrammingRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
List<String> list = List.of("Apple", "Banana", "Cat", "Dog");
//printBasic(list);
printFunctional(list);
}
public static void printBasic(List<String> list) {
for(String str:list) {
System.out.println(str);
}
}
public static void printFunctional(List<String> list) {
list.stream().forEach(
element -> System.out.println(element)
);
}
}Console Output
Apple
Banana_Cat
Dog
list.stream().forEach(element -> System.out.println(element)) - for each element in list stream, print it.
element -> System.out.println(element) is called a lambda expression.
In the previous step , we use this snippet of code - list.stream().forEach(element -> System.out.println(element))
We are "Passing a function as a method argument".
Let's use JShell to explore this further.
Let's try to print a list of numbers.
jshell> List<Integer> list = List.of(1, 4, 7, 9);
list ==> [1, 4, 7, 9]
jshell> list.stream().forEach(elem -> System.out.println(elem));
1
4
7
9
jshell>
elem -> System.out.println(elem) is a lambda expression. For each element in list stream, execute the lambda expression.
A Stream is a sequence of values. The filter() method can be used to filter the Stream elements based on some logic.
printBasicWithFiltering shows the usual approach of filtering. printFPWithFiltering shows the functional approach.
package com.in28minutes.functionalprogramming;
import java.util.List;
public class FunctionalProgrammingRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
List<String> list = List.of("Apple", "Bat", "Cat", "Dog");
//printBasicWithFiltering(list);
printFPWithFiltering(list);
}
public static void printBasicWithFiltering(List<String> list) {
for(String str:list) {
if(str.endsWith("at")) {
System.out.println(str);
}
}
}
public static void printFPWithFiltering(List<String> list) {
list.stream()
.filter(elem -> elem.endsWith("at"))
.forEach(element -> System.out.println(element));
}
}Console Output
Bat
Cat
Let's look at how to filter numbers.
jshell> List<Integer> list = List.of(1, 4, 7, 9);
list ==> [1, 4, 7, 9]
jshell> list.stream().forEach(elem -> System.out.println(elem));
1
4
7
9
jshell> list.stream().filter(num -> num%2 == 1).forEach(elem -> System.out.println(elem));
1
7
9
jshell> list.stream().filter(num -> num%2 == 0).forEach(elem -> System.out.println(elem));
4
jshell>Typically, these are the conditions we write
numis odd :if(num % 2 == 1) { /* */ }numis even :if(num % 2 == 0){ /* */ }
In the above example, we are using lambda expression to define the same conditions.
numis odd:num -> num%2 == 1numis even:num -> num%2 == 0
Sometimes we want to aggregate data into a single result. For example, we might want to add all the numbers between 1 and 10. Or we may want to calculate the average maximum temperature in our city over a month's time.
Let's look at how to use reduce method to calculation the sum.
FPNumberRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.functionalprogramming;
import java.util.List;
public class FPNumberRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
List<Integer> numbers = List.of(4, 6, 8, 13, 3, 15);
//System.out.println(printBasicSum(numbers));
int sum = numbers.stream()
.reduce(
0,
(num1, num2) -> num1 + num2
);
System.out.println(sum);
}
void printBasicSum(List<Integer> numbers) {
int sum=0;
for(int num:numbers) {
sum += num;
}
System.out.println(sum);
}
}Console Output
49
The reduce() method acts on a pair of elements at a time. The initial-value is 0. The lambda expression (num1, num2) -> num1 + num2 is executed on the elements of the list, a pair at a time.
- Given the list
(4, 6, 8, 13, 3, 15), compute:- The sum of even numbers in the list.
- The sum of odd numbers in the list.
FPNumberRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.functionalprogramming;
import java.util.List;
public class FPNumberRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
List<Integer> numbers = List.of(4, 6, 8, 13, 3, 15);
printFPEvenSum(numbers);
printFPOddSum(numbers);
}
void printFPEvenSum(List<Integer> numbers) {
int sum = numbers.stream()
.filter(elem -> elem %2 == 0)
.reduce(0, (num1, num2) -> num1 + num2);
System.out.println("Even Numbers Sum: " + sum);
}
void printFPOddSum(List<Integer> numbers) {
int sum = numbers.stream()
.filter(elem -> elem %2 == 1)
.reduce(0, (num1, num2) -> num1 + num2);
System.out.println("Odd Numbers Sum: " + sum);
}
}Console Output
Even Numbers Sum: 18
Odd Numbers Sum: 31
Let's have a re-look at the FPNumberRunner.java program from the previous step. We wrote two variants of the same task that computed the sum of a list of numbers:
basicSum(): that used the traditional approach- ```fpSum()``: which followed the FP scheme of things
Let's use them as benchmarks, to illustrate the core differences between SP and FP.
- Structured Programming (SP)
public int basicSum(List<Integer> numbers) {
int sum=0;
for(int num:numbers) {
sum += num;
}
return sum;
}- Functional Programming (FP)
public int fpSum(List<Integer> numbers) {
int sum = numbers.stream()
.reduce(0, (num1, num2) -> num1 + num2);
return sum;
}How are these different?
-
Mutations (changes to program data):
- SP: Within
basicSum(), the variablesum(a sort of worker variable) is initialized to0, and undergoes mutations across iterations of theforloop. - FP: We just set up an initial value for
reduce()to work with. We don't have any mutation.
- SP: Within
-
The what and how of computation:
- SP: We specify both what to do, and how to do it. The code loops through the list elements using a
for, while also updating the aggregate value insum. - FP: We are focused on what to do, and very little on the how part.
reduce()takes care of what numbers from the stream to add up, and you don't bother about how to select them from the stream.
- SP: We specify both what to do, and how to do it. The code loops through the list elements using a
Let's look at some FP terminology a little more formally.
(num1, num2) -> num1 + num2is equivalent of this method
int basicSum(int num1, int num2) {
return num1 + num2;
}A lambda expression can have multiple lines of Java code as well:
(num1, num2) -> {
System.out.println(num1 + " " + num2);
return num1 + num2;
}Why take our word for all this? Let's put this code into an IDE, and then run it, to see for ourselves.
FPNumberRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.functionalprogramming;
import java.util.List;
public class FPNumberRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
List<Integer> numbers = List.of(4, 6, 8, 13, 3, 15);
System.out.println(numbers);
printFPSum(numbers);
}
void printFPSum(List<Integer> numbers) {
int sum = numbers.stream()
.reduce(0,
(num1, num2) -> {
System.out.println(num1 + " " + num2);
return num1 + num2;
}
System.out.println("Even Numbers Sum: " + sum);
}
}Console Output
[4, 6, 8, 13, 3, 15]
0 4
4 6
10 8
18 13
31 3
34 15
49
A Stream is a sequence of elements. You can perform different kinds of operations on a stream.
- Intermediate Operations: An operation that takes a stream - for example, applies a lambda expression - and produces another stream of elements as its result.
- Terminal Operations: A stream operation that takes a stream - for example, applies a lambda expression - and returns a single result (A single primitive-value/object, or a single collection-of-objects).
reduce()andforEach()are a couple of such operations.
Output of an intermediate stream operation is another stream.
The most popular intermediate stream operations are:
sorted()distinct()filter()map()
In this step, let's check them out one by one.
jshell> List<Integer> numbers = List.of(3, 5, 8, 213, 45, 4, 7);
numbers ==> [3, 5, 8, 213, 45, 4, 7]
jshell> numbers.stream().sorted().forEach(elem -> System.out.println(elem));
3
4
5
7
8
45
213
jshell> List<Integer> numbers = List.of(3, 5, 3, 213, 45, 5, 7);
numbers ==> [3, 5, 3, 213, 45, 5, 7]
jshell> numbers.stream().distinct().forEach(elem -> System.out.println(elem));
3
5
213
45
7
jshell> numbers.stream().distinct().sorted().forEach(elem -> System.out.println(elem));
3
5
7
45
213
jshell> numbers.stream().distinct().map(num -> num*num).forEach(elem -> System.out.println(elem));
9
25
45369
2025
49
jshell>sorted()preserves the elements of the consumed stream in the result, but also puts them in natural sorted order (Increasing order for numbers, alphabetical order for strings).distinct()returns a stream retaining only the unique elements of the input stream. This method maintains the relative order of retained elements.- You can chain together more than one intermediate operation, such as
sorted()followed bydistinct()above. Such code is sometimes called a pipeline. map(): Applies a lambda expression to compute new results from the input stream elements. It then returns a stream of these results as output. In our example,map()takes each element in theStreamobject created by ```number.stream()``,` to its square value.
- Write a program to print the squares of the first 10 positive integers.
- Create a list of the character strings "Apple", "Banana" and "Cat". Print all of them in lower-case.
- Create a list of the character strings "Apple", "Banana" and "Cat". Print the length of each string.
FPNumberRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.functionalprogramming;
public class FPNumberRunner {
public static void printFPSquares() {
IntStream.range(1, 11).
map(num -> num*num).
forEach(elem -> System.out.println(elem));
}
public static void printLowerCases(List<String> list) {
}
public static void printLengths(List<String> list) {
list.stream()
.map(s -> s.length())
.forEach(elem -> System.out.println(elem);
}
public static void main(String[] args) {
printFPSquares();
List<String> list = List.of("Apple", "Banana", "Cat");
printLowerCases(list);
printLengths(list);
}
}Console Output
1
4
9
16
25
36
49
64
81
100
apple
banana
cat
5
6
3
- The
map()method accepts a lambda expression.
A terminal operation returns a single result (A single object/data-unit, or a single collection). It does not return an output stream.
Commonly used instances of this are:
reduce()max()andmin()
jshell> IntStream.range(1, 11).reduce(0, (n1, n2) -> n1 + n2);
$1 ==> 55max() expects a lambda expression providing a Comparator<T> implementation. Integer.compare(n1,n2) is an implementation of the Comparator<T> interface for comparing integers.
What if there are no numbers in the Stream? What should be returned? As a Java programmer, we grew up to hate null. You don't want to return null back.
The Optional type provides an alternative:
- You can query an
Optionalobject to check if it contains a valid result, by invokingisPresent()on it. - You can get that result by calling
get()on the same object.
jshell> List.of(23, 12, 34, 53).stream().max();
| Error:
| method max() in interface java.util.stream.Stream<T> cannot be applied to given types
| required : java.lang.Comparator<? super java.lang.Integer>
| found : no argument
| List.of(23, 12, 34, 53).stream().max();
|^-----------------------------------^
jshell> List.of(23, 12, 34, 53).stream().max((n1, n2) -> Integer.compare(n1, n2));
$2 ==> Optional[53]
jshell> $2.isPresent()
$3 ==> true
jshell> List.of(23, 12, 34, 53).stream().max((n1, n2) -> Integer.compare(n1, n2)).get();
$4 ==> 53
jshell>Let's now play around with a few more terminal operations, such as min() (terminal operation), and filter() (intermediate operation).
Using min() is similar to max().
jshell> List.of(23, 12, 34, 53).stream().max((n1, n2) -> Integer.compare(n1, n2)).get()
$1 ==> 53
jshell> List.of(23, 12, 34, 53).stream().min((n1, n2) -> Integer.compare(n1, n2)).get()
$2 ==> 12
jshell>
collect() method can be called to collect the result of filter() into a list. Collectors.toList() is the utility method used.
jshell> List.of(23, 12, 34, 53).stream().filter(e -> e%2==1).forEach(e -> System.out.println(e))
23
53
jshell> List.of(23, 12, 34, 53).stream().filter(e -> e%2==1).collect(Collectors.toList());
$1 ==> [23, 53]
jshell>- From a list of 23, 12, 34, 53, create a list of the even numbers in it.
- Create a list of squares of the first 10 positive integers.
FunctionalProgrammingRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.functionalprogramming;
public class FPNumberRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
List<Integer> numbers = List.of(23, 12, 34, 53);
List<Integer> evens = numbers.stream()
.filter(n -> n%2==0)
.collect(Collectors.toList());
List<Integer> tenSquares = IntStream.range(1, 11)
.map(n -> n*n)
.boxed()
.collect(Collectors.toList());
}
}- Solution to #1 is straightforward, given that we already know how to use
filter(). - Solution #2 uses
boxed()method to convert anIntPipelineto aStream. After that, what follows is routine stuff.
In an earlier section, we wrote and ran the following code:
jshell> List.of(23, 12, 34, 53).stream().max((n1, n2) -> Integer.compare(n1, n2));
Optional[53]
jshell>In order to get the result in a form you would appreciate, we modified this code to look like:
jshell> List.of(23, 12, 34, 53).stream().max((n1, n2) -> Integer.compare(n1, n2)).get();
53
jshell>max() is a stream operation, that needs to consume a stream. It is possible that the input stream is empty. In that case, the maximum value would be null. It is undesirable in FP to encounter an exception during a stream operation. It is extremely inelegant if we are asked to handle an exception in an FP code pipeline.
The Optional<T> class was introduced in Java SE 8, as a lifeline in such situations. It covers the possibility of absence of (or null) result from a terminal stream operation. The following example illustrates how you can query, and access the result from, an Optional<T> object.
jshell> List.of(23, 45, 67, 12).stream().filter(num -> num % 2 == 0).max( (n1, n2) -> Integer.compare(n1, n2) )
$1 ==> Optional[12]
jshell> $1.get()
$2 ==> 12
jshell> $1.isPresent()
$3 ==> trueIn case the result is empty, then the value stored in the result is not null, it is Optional.empty.
jshell> List.of(23, 45, 67).stream().filter(num -> num % 2 == 0).max( (n1, n2) -> Integer.compare(n1, n2) )
$4 ==> Optional.empty
jshell> $4.isPresent()
$5 ==> false
jshell> $4.orElse(0)
$6 ==> 0You can provide a default value for the result using the method orElse().
jshell> List.of(23, 45, 67).stream().filter(num -> num % 2 == 0).max( (n1, n2) -> Integer.compare(n1, n2) ).orElse(0)
$7 ==> 0
jshell> List.of(23, 45, 67, 34).stream().filter(num -> num % 2 == 0).max( (n1, n2) -> Integer.compare(n1, n2) ).orElse(0)
$8 ==> 34
jshell>When we define a lambda expression , a lot of things happen behind the scenes.
An important concept is a functional interface.
Let's explain this term using an example.
The following code takes a behind-the-scenes look at filter().
LambdaBehindTheScenesRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.functionalprogramming;
import java.util.List;
public class LambdaBehindTheScenesRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
List.of(23, 43, 34, 45).stream()
.filter(num -> num%2 == 0)
.forEach(e -> System.out.println(e));
}
}Console Output
34
36
48
The signature of filter() reads is Stream<T> java.util.stream.Stream.filter(Predicate<? super T> predicate). In this case, T is java.lang.Integer.
filter() accepts an object implementing the Predicate interface, as its argument. It returns a stream, consisting of those elements from the input stream, that match this predicate.
Conventionally speaking, a predicate is a logical condition. This predicate is applied to each element, to determine if it should be included in the output stream.
The Predicate<T> interface is an example of a Functional Interface. This interface has one method boolean test(T t).
Instead of num -> num%2 == 0, let's implement a EvenNumberPredicate.
@FunctionalInterface
public interface Predicate<? super T> {
boolean test(T t) { /* */ }
//...
}
}
LambdaBehindTheScenesRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.functionalprogramming;
import java.util.List;
import java.util.function.Predicate;
class EvenNumberPredicate implements Predicate<Integer> {
@Override
public boolean test(Integer number) {
return (number%2 == 0);
}
}
public class LambdaBehindTheScenesRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
List.of(23, 43, 34, 45, 36, 48).stream()
.filter(new EvenNumberPredicate())
.forEach(e -> System.out.println(e));
}
}Console Output
34
36
48
EvenNumberPredicate implements the Predicate<Integer> interface, and overrides the test() method.
Something similar to EvenNumberPredicate is created when we use lambda expressions num -> num%2 == 0.
Let's look at another Functional Interface - Consumer<S>.
forEach() on a stream is actually defined as - forEach(Consumer<? super S> action)
The Consumer<S> interface has the following definition:
@FunctionalInterface
public interface Consumer<? super S> {
void accept(S s) { /* */ }
//...
}The lambda expression used inside forEach() and other such stream operations, actually represent a Consumer implementation.
Let's implement a SysOutConsumer.
FunctionalProgrammingRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.functionalprogramming;
import java.util.List;
import java.util.stream.Stream;
import java.util.function.Consumer;
import java.util.function.Predicate;
class EvenNumberPredicate implements Predicate<Integer> {
@Override
public boolean test(Integer num) {
return num%2 == 0;
}
}
class SysOutConsumer implements Consumer<Integer> {
@Override
public void accept(Integer num) {
System.out.println(num);
}
}
public class FPNumberRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
List<Integer> numbers = List.of(23, 12, 34, 45, 36, 48);
//List<Integer> evens = numbers.stream()
.filter(n -> n%2==0)
.collect(Collectors.toList());
List<Integer> evensToo = numbers.stream()
.filter(new EvenNumberPredicate())
.collect(Collectors.toList());
numbers.stream()
.filter(new EvenNumberPredicate())
.forEach(new SysOutConsumer());
}
}Console Output
12
34
36
48
- The code actually speaks for itself. The steps to customize a
Consumer<S>implementation are quote simple, and straightforward. - The final code that involves both a custom
Predicate<T>, and a customConsumer<S>is still quite compact and elegant!
Let's now look at what happens behind the scenes, for the stream operation map(). Suppose we wanted to print out the squares of all even numbers in a given list.
package com.in28minutes.functionalprogramming;
import java.util.List;
import java.util.stream.Stream;
import java.util.function.Consumer;
import java.util.function.Predicate;
class EvenNumberPredicate implements Predicate<Integer> {
@Override
public boolean test(Integer num) {
return num%2 == 0;
}
}
class SysOutConsumer implements Consumer<Integer> {
@Override
public void accept(Integer num) {
System.out.println(num);
}
}
public class FPNumberRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
List<Integer> numbers = List.of(23, 12, 34, 45, 36, 48);
numbers.stream()
.filter(new EvenNumberPredicate())
.map(n -> n*n)
.forEach(new SysOutPredicate());
}
}Console Output
1156
1296
2304
The signature of the map() intermediate stream operation is :
<R> Stream<R> map(Function<?super T, ? extends R> mapper){}Function is shown below.
@FunctionalInterface
public interface Function<T,R> {
R apply(T t);
}The method apply() accepts a T object as argument, and returns another object of type R. In effect, any Function implementation can map object of one type to another.
Let's implement a NumberSquareMapper.
package com.in28minutes.functionalprogramming;
import java.util.List;
import java.util.stream.Stream;
import java.util.function.Consumer;
import java.util.function.Predicate;
import java.util.function.Function;
class EvenNumberPredicate implements Predicate<Integer> {
@Override
public boolean test(Integer num) {
return num%2 == 0;
}
}
class SysOutConsumer implements Consumer<Integer> {
@Override
public void accept(Integer num) {
System.out.println(num);
}
}
class NumberSquareMapper implements Function<Integer, Integer> {
@Override
public Integer apply(Integer number) {
return number * number;
}
}
public class FPNumberRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
List<Integer> numbers = List.of(23, 12, 34, 45, 36, 48);
numbers.stream()
.filter(num -> num%2 == 0)
.map(n -> n*n)
.forEach(e -> System.out.println(e));
numbers.stream()
.filter(new EvenNumberPredicate())
.map(new NumberSquareMapper())
.forEach(new SysOutPredicate());
}
}Console Output
1156
1296
2304
1156
1296
2304
What is a method reference?
Let's look at an example.
MethodReferencesRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.functionalprogramming;
import java.util.List;
public class MethodReferencesRunner {
public static void main(String[] args)
List.of("Ant", "Bat", "Cat", "Dog", "Elephant").stream()
.map(s -> s.length())
.forEach(l -> System.out.println(l));
}
}Console Output
3
3
3
3
8
Method references make it easy to create lambda expressions.
l -> System.out.println(l) can be replaced with System.out::println.
MethodReferencesRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.functionalprogramming;
import java.util.List;
public class MethodReferencesRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
List.of("Ant", "Bat", "Cat", "Dog", "Elephant").stream()
.map(s -> s.length())
.forEach(l -> System.out.println(l));
List.of("Ant", "Bat", "Cat", "Dog", "Elephant").stream()
.map(s -> s.length())
.forEach(System.out::println);
}
}Let's define a static method print and use it using a method reference.
MethodReferencesRunner::print is same as l -> MethodReferencesRunner.print(l)
MethodReferencesRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.functionalprogramming;
import java.util.List;
public class MethodReferencesRunner {
public static void print(Integer number) {
System.out.println(number);
}
public static void main(String[] args) {
List.of("Ant", "Bat", "Cat", "Dog", "Elephant").stream()
.map(s -> s.length())
.forEach(l -> MethodReferencesRunner.print(l));
List.of("Ant", "Bat", "Cat", "Dog", "Elephant").stream()
.map(s -> s.length())
.forEach(MethodReferencesRunner::print);
}
}Instance method calls can also be replaced with their method references.
On a String, String::length is the same as s -> s.length().
MethodReferencesRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.functionalprogramming;
import java.util.List;
public class MethodReferencesRunner {
public static void print(Integer number) {
System.out.println(number);
}
public static void main(String[] args) {
List.of("Ant", "Bat", "Cat", "Dog", "Elephant").stream()
.map(s -> s.length())
.forEach(MethodReferencesRunner::print);
List.of("Ant", "Bat", "Cat", "Dog", "Elephant").stream()
.map(String::length)
.forEach(MethodReferencesRunner::print);
}
}- Using method references, write java functional code to determine the maximum even number, in a given list of integers.
MethodReferencesRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.functionalprogramming;
import java.util.List;
public class MethodReferencesRunner {
public static void print(Integer number) {
System.out.println(number);
}
public static void main(String[] args) {
int max = List.of(23, 45, 67, 34).stream()
.filter(num -> num % 2 == 0)
.max( (n1, n2) -> Integer.compare(n1, n2) )
.orElse(0);
System.out.println(max);
int maximum = List.of(23, 45, 67, 34).stream()
.filter(MethodReferencesRunner::isEven)
.max(Integer::compare)
.orElse(0);
System.out.println(maximum);
}
public static booelan isEven(Integer number) {
return (number %2 == 0);
}
}Console Output
34
34
In this step, we:
- Understood what is a method reference
- Learned that both built-in, and user defined class methods can be invoked using method references
- Observed that method references work for static and non-static methods
Are functions first class citizens in Java?
Here are few questions to think about?
- Can you pass a function as an argument to a method?
- Can you assign a function to a variable?
- Can you obtain a function as a return value, from a method invocation?
We looked at several examples of this earlier.
In the example below, num -> num % 2 == 0 is passed to filter method.
int max = List.of(23, 45, 67, 34).stream()
.filter(num -> num % 2 == 0)
.max( (n1, n2) -> Integer.compare(n1, n2) )
.orElse(0);
evenPredicate and oddPredicate represent functions.
package com.in28minutes.functionalprogramming;
import java.util.List;
import java.util.function.Predicate;
public class FPNumberRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
List<Integer> numbers = List.of(23, 12, 34, 45, 36, 48);
Predicate<? super Integer> evenPredicate = num -> num % 2 == 0;
Predicate<? super Integer> oddPredicate = num -> num % 2 == 1;
numbers.stream()
.filter(evenPredicate)
.map(n -> n*n)
.forEach(e -> System.out.println(e));
}
}Console Output
1156
1296
2304
createEvenPredicate and createOddPredicate are examples of methods returning functions.
import java.util.stream.Stream;
import java.util.function.Predicate;
public class FPNumberRunner {
public static Predicate<? super Integer> createEvenPredicate() {
return num -> num%2 == 0;
}
public static Predicate<? super Integer> createOddPredicate() {
return num -> num%2 == 1;
}
public static void main(String[] args) {
List<Integer> numbers = List.of(23, 12, 34, 45, 36, 48);
//Predicate<? super Integer> evenPredicate = num -> num % 2 == 0;
//Predicate<? super Integer> evenPredicate = createEvenPredicate();
numbers.stream()
//.filter(num -> num%2 == 0)
//.filter(evenPredicate)
.map(n -> n*n)
.forEach(e -> System.out.println(e));
}
}Console Output
1156
1296
2304
In this step, we observed that the following is true for a function:
- It can be passed as a method argument
- It can be stored in a reference variable
- It can be returned from a method
So far, we've only seen programs that run like a single horse, running round a race course.
However, it often makes sense for a program's main task to be split into smaller ones (let's call them sub-tasks).
Imagine an ant-colony, where a large number of worker ants toil together, to complete what the Queen Ant tells them to do. Groups of ants that are part of separately tasks, work with a free hand.
The concept of concurrency in programming is very similar to what an ant colony is in nature.
In Java, you can run tasks in parallel using threads. Let's first write a simple program.
ThreadBasicsRunner.java
public class ThreadBasicsRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
//Task1
for(int i=101; i<=199; i++) {
System.out.print(i + " ");
}
System.out.println("\n Task1 Done");
//Task2
for(int i=201; i<=299; i++) {
System.out.print(i + " ");
}
System.out.println("\n Task2 Done");
//Task3
for(int i=301; i<=399; i++) {
System.out.print(i + " ");
}
System.out.println("\n Task3 Done");
System.out.println("Main Done");
}
}Console Output
101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 121 122 123 124 125 126 127 128 129 130 131 132 133 134 135 136 137 138 139 140 141 142 143 144 145 146 147 148 149 150 151 152 153 154 155 156 157 158 159 160 161 162 163 164 165 166 167 168 169 170 171 172 173 174 175 176 177 178 179 180 181 182 183 184 185 186 187 188 189 190 191 192 193 194 195 196 197 198 199
Task1 Done
201 202 203 204 205 206 207 208 209 210 211 212 213 214 215 216 217 218 219 220 221 222 223 224 225 226 227 228 229 230 231 232 233 234 235 236 237 238 239 240 241 242 243 244 245 246 247 248 249 250 251 252 253 254 255 256 257 258 259 260 261 262 263 264 265 266 267 268 269 270 271 272 273 274 275 276 277 278 279 280 281 282 283 284 285 286 287 288 289 290 291 292 293 294 295 296 297 298 299
Task2 Done
301 302 303 304 305 306 307 308 309 310 311 312 313 314 315 316 317 318 319 320 321 322 323 324 325 326 327 328 329 330 331 332 333 334 335 336 337 338 339 340 341 342 343 344 345 346 347 348 349 350 351 352 353 354 355 356 357 358 359 360 361 362 363 364 365 366 367 368 369 370 371 372 373 374 375 376 377 378 379 380 381 382 383 384 385 386 387 388 389 390 391 392 393 394 395 396 397 398 399
Task3 Done
Main Done
As you can see, the execution of all three for loops (that really are independent tasks) is sequential. This is how all our code so far has been running!
There are two ways in which you can create a thread to represent a sub-task, within a program. They are:
- Define your own thread
classto sub-class theThreadclass. - Define your own thread
classto implement theRunnableinterface.
In this step, we will focus on the first alternative.
ThreadBasicsRunner.java
class Task1 extends Thread {
public void run() {
System.out.println("Task1 Started ");
for(int i=101; i<=199; i++) {
System.out.print(i + " ");
}
System.out.println("\nTask1 Done");
}
}
public class ThreadBasicsRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
//Task1
Task1 task1 = new Task1();
task1.start();
//Task2
for(int i=201; i<=299; i++) {
System.out.print(i + " ");
}
System.out.println("\nTask2 Done");
//Task3
for(int i=301; i<=399; i++) {
System.out.print(i + " ");
}
System.out.println("\nTask3 Done");
System.out.println("\nMain Done");
}
}Console Output
Task1 Started
201 101 202 102 203 103 204 104 105 205 206 106 207 107 208 108 209 109 210 110 211 111 212 112 213 113 214 114 215 115 216 116 217 218 117 219 118 220 119 221 120 222 121 122 223 123 224 124 225 125 226 126 227 127 228 128 229 129 230 130 231 131 232 132 233 133 234 134 235 135 236 136 237 137 238 138 239 139 240 140 241 141 242 142 243 143 244 144 245 145 246 247 146 248 147 249 148 250 149 251 150 252 151 253 152 254 153 255 154 256 155 257 156 258 157 259 158 260 159 261 160 262 161 263 162 264 163 265 164 266 165 267 166 268 167 269 168 270 169 271 170 272 171 273 172 274 173 275 174 276 175 277 278 279 176 280 177 281 178 179 282 180 181 182 283 183 284 184 285 185 286 186 287 187 288 289 188 290 189 291 190 292 191 293 192 294 193 194 295 195 196 296 197 297 298 299 198
Task2 Done
301 199 302
Task1 Done
303 304 305 306 307 308 309 310 311 312 313 314 315 316 317 318 319 320 321 322 323 324 325 326 327 328 329 330 331 332 333 334 335 336 337 338 339 340 341 342 343 344 345 346 347 348 349 350 351 352 353 354 355 356 357 358 359 360 361 362 363 364 365 366 367 368 369 370 371 372 373 374 375 376 377 378 379 380 381 382 383 384 385 386 387 388 389 390 391 392 393 394 395 396 397 398 399
Task3 Done
Main Done
We defined a Task1 class to denote our sub-task, with a run() method definition. However, when we create such a thread within our main() method, we don't seem to be invoking run() in any way! What's happening here?
A thread can be created and launched, by calling a generic method named start(). method. Calling start() will invoke the individual thread’s run() method.
From the console output, we see that the output of Task1 overlaps with those of tasks labeled Task2 and Task3. Task1 is running in parallel with main which is running (Task2, Task3).
In this step, we:
- Discovered how to define a thread by sub-classing
Thread - Demonstrated how to run a Thread
In Step 01, we told you that there are two ways a thread could represent a sub-task, in a Java program. One was by sub-classing a Thread, and the other way is to implement Runnable. We saw the first way a short while ago, and it's time now to explore the second. The following example will show you how it's done.
ThreadBasicsRunner.java
class Task1 extends Thread {
public void run() {
System.out.println("Task1 Started ");
for(int i=101; i<=199; i++) {
System.out.print(i + " ");
}
System.out.println("\nTask1 Done");
}
}
class Task2 implements Runnable {
@Override
public void run() {
System.out.println("Task2 Started ");
for(int i=201; i<=299; i++) {
System.out.print(i + " ");
}
System.out.println("\nTask2 Done");
}
}
public class ThreadBasicsRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
System.out.print("\nTask1 Kicked Off\n");
Task1 task1 = new Task1();
task1.start();
System.out.print("\nTask2 Kicked Off\n");
Task2 task2 = new Task2();
Thread task2Thread = new Thread(task2);
task2Thread.start();
System.out.print("\nTask3 Kicked Off\n");
for(int i=301; i<=399; i++) {
System.out.print(i + " ");
}
System.out.println("\nTask3 Done");
System.out.println("\nMain Done");
}
}Console Output
Task1 Kicked Off
Task1 Started
101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111
Task2 Kicked Off
112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 121 122 123 124 125 126 127 128 129 130 131 132 133 134 135 136 137 138 139 140 141 142 143 144 145 146 147 148 149 150 151 152 153 154 155 156 157 158 159 160 161 162 163 164 165 166 167 168 169 170 171 172 173 174 175 176 177 178 179 180 181 182 183 184 185 186 187 188 189 190 191 192 193 194 195 196 197 198 199
Task1 Done
Task3 Kicked Off
Task2 Started
201 202 203 204 205 206 207 208 209 210 211 212 213 301 214 215 216 217 218 302 219 220 221 222 223 224 225 226 227 228 303 229 230 231 232 233 234 235 236 237 238 239 240 241 242 243 244 245 246 247 248 249 250 251 252 253 254 255 256 257 258 259 260 261 262 263 264 265 266 267 304 268 269 270 271 272 273 274 275 276 277 278 279 280 281 282 283 284 285 286 305 287 288 289 290 291 292 293 294 295 296 297 298 299
Task2 Done
306 307 308 309 310 311 312 313 314 315 316 317 318 319 320 321 322 323 324 325 326 327 328 329 330 331 332 333 334 335 336 337 338 339 340 341 342 343 344 345 346 347 348 349 350 351 352 353 354 355 356 357 358 359 360 361 362 363 364 365 366 367 368 369 370 371 372 373 374 375 376 377 378 379 380 381 382 383 384 385 386 387 388 389 390 391 392 393 394 395 396 397 398 399
Task3 Done
Main Done
In this example, we implemented Runnable by implementing the run() method from Runnable interface.
To run Task2 which is implementing Runnable interface, we used this code. We are using the Thread constructor passing an instance of Task2.
Task2 task2 = new Task2();
Thread task2Thread = new Thread(task2);
task2Thread.start();You can see from the output that all three tasks are running in parallel.
In this step, we:
- Explored another way to create threads, by implementing the
Runnableinterface - Learned to run a thread created using
Runnableinterface
A Java Thread goes through a sequence of states during its lifetime. The term life-cycle is used to describe this fact, and clearly defines what specific state a thread could be in, at various points of time.
Let's consider the following example we explored recently, in Step 02:
class Task1 extends Thread {
public void run() {
for(int i=101; i<=199; i++) {
System.out.print(i + " ");
}
}
}
class Task2 implements Runnable {
@Override
public void run() {
for(int i=201; i<=299; i++) {
System.out.print(i + " ");
}
}
}
public class ThreadBasicsRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
Task1 task1 = new Task1();
task1.start();
Task2 task2 = new Task2();
Thread task2Thread = new Thread(task2);
task2Thread.start();
for(int i=301; i<=399; i++) {
System.out.print(i + " ");
}
}
}Different states of a thread are:
-
NEW: A thread is in this state as soon as it's been created, but its
start()method hasn't yet been invoked.- For Task1 : After the execution of
Task1 task1 = new Task1(); - For Task2 : After the execution of
Task2 task2 = new Task2(); task2Thread = new Thread(task2);
- For Task1 : After the execution of
-
TERMINATED/DEAD: When all the statements inside a thread's
run()method have been been completed, that thread is said to have terminated.
A thread can be in any one of the remaining three states, after its start() method has been invoked.
-
RUNNING: If the thread is currently running.
-
RUNNABLE: If the thread is not currently running, but is ready to do so at any time.
-
BLOCKED/WAITING: If the thread is not currently running on the processor, but is not ready to execute either. This may be the case if it's waiting for an external resource (such as a user's input) or another thread.
In this step, we:
- Discussed different states of a Thread with an example
Java allows you to request the thread scheduler, to change the priority of a thread. The priority of any thread always lies in a fixed range - MIN_PRIORITY = 1 to MAX_PRIORITY = 10. The default priority that's assigned to any thread, is NORM_PRIORITY = 5.
A request to change this priority is done by invoking the static setPriority(int) method, available in the Thread class. This request may or may not be honored in response, so be prepared for that!
Any program where threads are not explicitly created is a single-threaded application. The thread that we refer to here is the main thread, executing the program's main() method.
Sometimes, threads might depend on one another.
Let consider the example from Step 02. We want to add a condition - Task3 should execute only after Task1 terminates.
ThreadBasicsRunner.java
class Task1 extends Thread {
public void run() {
System.out.println("Task1 Started ");
for(int i=101; i<=199; i++) {
System.out.print(i + " ");
}
}
}
class Task2 implements Runnable {
@Override
public void run() {
System.out.println("Task2 Started ");
for(int i=201; i<=299; i++) {
System.out.print(i + " ");
}
System.out.println("\nTask2 Done");
}
}
public class ThreadBasicsRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
System.out.print("\nTask1 Kicked Off\n");
Task1 task1 = new Task1();
task1.start();
System.out.print("\nTask2 Kicked Off\n");
Task2 task2 = new Task2();
Thread task2Thread = new Thread(task2);
task2Thread.start();
task1.join();
System.out.print("\nTask3 Kicked Off\n");
for(int i=301; i<=399; i++) {
System.out.print(i + " ");
}
System.out.println("\nTask3 Done");
System.out.println("\nMain Done");
}
}task1.join() waits until task1 completes. So, the code after task1.join() will executed only on completion of task1.
If we want Task3 to be executed only after both Task1 and Task2 are done, the code in main() needs to look as follows:
ThreadBasicsRunner.java
public static void main(String[] args) {
System.out.print("\nTask1 Kicked Off\n");
Task1 task1 = new Task1();
task1.start();
System.out.print("\nTask2 Kicked Off\n");
Task2 task2 = new Task2();
Thread task2Thread = new Thread(task2);
task2Thread.start();
task1.join();
task2Thread.join();
System.out.print("\nTask3 Kicked Off\n");
for(int i=301; i<=399; i++) {
System.out.print(i + " ");
}
System.out.println("\nTask3 Done");
System.out.println("\nMain Done");
}It is important to note that Task1 and Task2 are still independent sub-tasks. The thread scheduler is free to interleave their executions. However, Task3 is kicked off only after both of them terminate.
In this step, we:
- Understood the need for thread communication
- Learned that Java provides mechanisms for threads to wait for each other
- Observed how the
join()method can be used to sequence thread execution
When a thread gets tired, you can put it to bed. Heck, you can do it even when it's fresh and raring to go! It's under your control, remember?
The Thread class provides a couple of methods:
public static native void sleep(int millis): Calling this method will cause the thread in question, to go into a blocked / waiting state for at leastmillismilliseconds.public static native void yield(): Request thread scheduler to execute some other thread. The scheduler is free to ignore such requests.
jshell> Thread.sleep(1000)
jshell> Thread.sleep(10000)
jshell>
Thread.sleep(1000)causes theJShellprompt to appear after a delay of at least 1 second. This delay is even more visible, when we executeThread.sleep(10000).
We saw few of the methods for synchronization in the Thread class
start()join()sleep()wait()
Above approaches have a few drawbacks:
- No Fine-Grained Control: Suppose, for instance , we want Task3 to run after any one of Task1 or Task2 is done. How do we do it?
- Difficult to maintain: Imagine managing 5-10 threads with code written in earlier examples. It would become very difficult to maintain.
- NO Sub-Task Return Mechanism: With the
Threadclassor theRunnableinterface, there is no way to get the result from a sub-task.
In order to address the serious limitations of the Thread API, a new Executor Service was added in Java SE 5.
The ExecutorService is a framework you can use to manage threads in your code, better. It has built-in ways to:
- Create and launch threads more intuitively
- Manage thread state and its life-cycle more easily
- Synchronize between threads with more control, and
- Handle groups of threads neatly
The ExecutorService provides utilities to achieve each one of these. Let's start with thread creation, which the next example takes care of.
ExecutorServiceRunner.java
import java.util.concurrent.ExecutorService;
import java.util.concurrent.Executors;
class Task1 extends Thread {
public void run() {
System.out.println("Task1 Started ");
for(int i=101; i<=199; i++) {
System.out.print(i + " ");
}
System.out.println("\nTask1 Done");
}
}
class Task2 implements Runnable {
@Override
public void run() {
System.out.println("Task2 Started ");
for(int i=201; i<=299; i++) {
System.out.print(i + " ");
}
System.out.println("\nTask2 Done");
}
}
public class ExecutorServiceRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
ExecutorService executorService = Executors.newSingleThreadExecutor();
executorService.execute(new Task1());
executorService.execute(new Thread(new Task2()));
}
}Console Output
Task1 Started
101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 121 122 123 124 125 126 127 128 129 130 131 132 133 134 135 136 137 138 139 140 141 142 143 144 145 146 147 148 149 150 151 152 153 154 155 156 157 158 159 160 161 162 163 164 165 166 167 168 169 170 171 172 173 174 175 176 177 178 179 180 181 182 183 184 185 186 187 188 189 190 191 192 193 194 195 196 197 198 199
Task1 Done
Task2 Started
201 202 203 204 205 206 207 208 209 210 211 212 213 214 215 216 217 218 219 220 221 222 223 224 225 226 227 228 229 230 231 232 233 234 235 236 237 238 239 240 241 242 243 244 245 246 247 248 249 250 251 252 253 254 255 256 257 258 259 260 261 262 263 264 265 266 267 268 269 270 271 272 273 274 275 276 277 278 279 280 281 282 283 284 285 286 287 288 289 290 291 292 293 294 295 296 297 298 299
Task2 Done
ExecutorService executorService = Executors.newSingleThreadExecutor() creates a single threaded executor service. That's why the tasks ran serially, one after the other.
Let's update the main method to do more things:
public class ExecutorServiceRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
ExecutorService executorService = Executors.newSingleThreadExecutor();
executorService.execute(new Task1());
executorService.execute(new Thread(new Task2()));
System.out.print("\nTask3 Kicked Off\n");
for(int i=301; i<=399; i++) {
System.out.print(i + " ");
}
System.out.println("\nTask3 Done");
System.out.println("\nMain Done");
executorService.shutdown();
}
}Console Output
Task1 Started
101
Task3 Kicked Off
102 301 103 302 104 303 105 304 106 305 107 306 108 109 110 111 112 307 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 121 122 308 123 309 124 310 125 311 126 312 127 313 128 314 129 315 130 316 131 132 133 317 134 318 135 319 136 137 320 138 321 139 322 140 323 141 324 142 325 143 326 144 145 146 147 327 148 149 328 150 329 151 330 152 331 332 153 154 155 156 157 158 159 160 161 162 163 164 165 166 167 168 169 170 171 172 173 174 175 176 177 178 179 180 181 182 183 184 185 186 187 188 189 190 191 192 193 333 194 334 195 196 335 197 198 199 336
Task1 Done
337 338 Task2 Started
339 201 202 203 204 205 206 207 340 341 208 209 210 211 212 213 214 215 216 217 218 219 220 342 221 222 223 224 225 343 344 226 345 346 227 347 348 228 229 349 230 231 232 350 233 351 352 234 235 236 237 238 239 240 241 242 243 244 245 246 247 248 353 249 354 355 250 356 251 357 358 252 359 253 360 254 255 361 256 362 363 257 258 364 259 365 366 260 367 261 262 368 263 264 369 265 370 266 371 267 268 372 269 373 270 374 375 271 376 377 272 378 273 379 274 380 275 381 382 276 277 383 278 384 279 385 386 280 387 281 388 282 283 284 389 285 390 391 286 392 287 393 288 394 395 289 396 290 397 291 398 399
Task3 Done
Main Done
292 293 294 295 296 297 298 299
Task2 Done
The only order that we see in the resulting chaos is: Task2 starts execution only after Task1 is done.
Threads managed by ExecutorService run in parallel with main method.
With the ExecutorService, it is possible to create a pool of threads.
The following examples will show you how you can create thread pools of varying kinds, and of course, of different sizes.
ExecutorServiceRunner.java
public class ExecutorServiceRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
ExecutorService executorService = Executors.newFixedThreadPool(2);
executorService.execute(new Task1());
executorService.execute(new Thread(new Task2()));
System.out.print("\nTask3 Kicked Off\n");
for(int i=301; i<=399; i++) {
System.out.print(i + " ");
}
System.out.println("\nTask3 Done");
System.out.println("\nMain Done");
executorService.shutdown();
}
}Console Output
Task1 Started
Task3 Kicked Off
301 101 302 303 304 Task2 Started
305 306 102 307 103 201 104 308 105 202 106 309 107 203 108 310 109 110 204 111 311 112 205 113 312 114 206 115 313 116 207 117 314 118 208 119 315 120 209 121 316 122 210 317 211 123 212 318 213 124 125 126 127 128 319 129 320 214 321 130 322 215 323 131 324 216 325 132 326 217 327 133 328 218 329 134 330 219 331 135 332 220 333 136 334 221 335 137 336 222 337 138 338 223 339 139 340 224 341 140 342 225 343 141 344 226 345 142 346 227 347 143 228 348 144 349 229 350 145 351 230 352 146 353 231 354 147 355 232 356 148 357 233 358 149 359 234 360 150 361 235 362 151 363 236 364 237 152 238 365 239 153 240 366 241 242 154 243 367 244 155 245 368 246 156 157 247 369 248 158 249 370 250 159 251 252 253 254 255 256 257 258 259 260 261 262 263 264 265 266 371 267 372 373 374 268 269 160 270 271 375 376 377 378 379 380 381 382 383 161 162 163 164 165 384 166 272 167 168 169 170 171 172 385 173 386 387 273 388 389 174 390 391 274 392 175 393 275 394 176 395 276 396 397 177 398 178 179 277 180 399 181 278 182 183
Task3 Done
Main Done
184 185 279 280 281 282 283 186 187 284 285 286 188 189 287 288 289 190 191 290 192 291 193 292 194 293 195 196 294 295 296 297 298 299
Task2 Done
197 198 199
Task1 Done
We created ExecutorService by using Executors.newFixedThreadPool(2). So, 'ExecutorService` uses two parallel threads at a maximum.
- Task1 and Task2 execute concurrently as part of the
ExecutorService, and - The thread running
main()executes concurrently with this thread pool, created byExecutorService.
Let's create a simple example to allow to play with 'ExecutorService'.
ExecutorServiceRunner.java
import java.util.concurrent.ExecutorService;
import java.util.concurrent.Executors;
class Task extends Thread {
private int number;
public Task(int number) {
this.number = number;
}
public void run() {
System.out.println("Task " + number + " Started");
for(int i=number*100; i<=number*100+99; i++) {
System.out.print(i + " ");
}
System.out.println("\nTask " + number +" Done");
}
}
public class ExecutorServiceRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
ExecutorService executorService = Executors.newFixedThreadPool(2);
executorService.execute(new Task(1));
executorService.execute(new Task(2));
executorService.execute(new Task(3));
executorService.shutdown();
}
}Executors.newFixedThreadPool(2) - Two threads in parallel. The thread new Task(3) is executed only after any one of new Task(1) and new Task(2) have completed their execution.
public class ExecutorServiceRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
ExecutorService executorService = Executors.newFixedThreadPool(3);
executorService.execute(new Task(1));
executorService.execute(new Task(2));
executorService.execute(new Task(3));
executorService.execute(new Task(4));
executorService.execute(new Task(5));
executorService.execute(new Task(6));
executorService.execute(new Task(7));
executorService.shutdown();
}
}We made the pool larger to 3:
- Initially Tasks
1,2,3are added to theExecutorServiceand are started. - As soon as any one of them is terminated, another task from the thread pool is picked up for execution, and so on. A classic case of musical chairs, with regard to the slots available in the
ExecutorServicethread pool, is played out here!
In this step, we:
- Explored how one can create pools of threads of the same kind, using the
ExecutorService - Noted how one could specify the size of a thread pool
So far, we have only seen sub-tasks that are largely independent, and which don't return any result to the main program that launched them.
To be able to return a value from a Thread, Java provides a Callable<T> interface.
The next example tells you how to implement Callable<T>, and use it with ExecutorService.
ExecutorServiceRunner.java
import java.util.concurrent.ExecutorService;
import java.util.concurrent.Executors;
import java.util.concurrent.Callable;
class CallableTask implements Callable<String> {
private String name;
public CallableTask(String name) {
this.name = name;
}
@Override
public String call() throws Exception {
Thread.sleep(1000);
return "Hello " + name;
}
}
public class CallableRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) throws InterruptedException, ExecutionException {
ExecutorService executorService = Executors.newFixedThreadPool(1);
Future<String> welcomeFuture = executorService.submit(new CallableTask("in28Minutes"));
System.out.println("CallableTask in28Minutes Submitted");
String welcomeMessage = welcomeFuture.get();
System.out.println(welcomeMessage);
executorService.shutdown();
}
}Console Output
CallableTask in28Minutes Submitted
Hello in28Minutes
class CallableTask implements Callable<String>- ImplementCallable. Return type isStringpublic String call() throws Exception {- Implementcallmethod and return aStringvalue back.executorService.submit(new CallableTask(String))adds a callable task to its thread pool. This puts the task thread in a RUNNABLE state. Subsequently, the program goes ahead to invoke itscall()method.welcomeFuture.get()- Ensures that themainthread waits for the result of the operation.
In this step, we:
- Understood the need for a mechanism, to create sub-tasks that return values
- Discovered that Java has a
Callable<T>interface to do exactly this - Saw that the
ExecutorServiceis capable of managingCallablethreads
ExecutorService framework also allows you to create a pool of Callable threads. Not only that, you can collect their return values together.
MultipleCallableRunner.java
import java.util.concurrent.ExecutorService;
import java.util.concurrent.Executors;
import java.util.concurrent.Callable;
class CallableTask implements Callable<String> {
private String name;
public CallableTask(String name) {
this.name = name;
}
@Override
public String call() throws Exception {
Thread.sleep(1000);
return "Hello " + name;
}
}
public class MultipleCallableRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) throws InterruptedException, ExecutionException {
ExecutorService executorService = Executors.newFixedThreadPool(1);
List<CallableTask> tasks = List.of(new CallableTask("in28Minutes"),
new CallableTask("Ranga"),
new CallableTask("Adam"));
List<Future<String>> welcomeAll = executorService.invokeAll(tasks);
for(Future<String> welcomeFuture : welcomeAll) {
System.out.println(welcomeFuture.get());
}
executorService.shutdown();
}
}Console Output
Hello in28Minutes
Hello Ranga
Hello Adam
The invokeAll() method of ExecutorService allows for a list of Callable tasks to be launched in the thread pool. Also, a List of Future objects can be used to hold return values, one for each such Callable thread.
The list of return values can be accessed only after all the threads are done, and have returned their results.
This can be verified from the console output. all the planned welcome messages are printed in one go, but only after a wait of at least 3000 milliseconds has been completed.
Let's now see what scenario would pan out with a larger thread pool size.
public class MultipleCallableRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) throws InterruptedException, ExecutionException {
ExecutorService executorService = Executors.newFixedThreadPool(3);
List<CallableTask> tasks = List.of(new CallableTask("in28Minutes"),
new CallableTask("Ranga"),
new CallableTask("Adam"));
List<Future<String>> welcomeAll = executorService.invokeAll(tasks);
for(Future<String> welcomeFuture : welcomeAll) {
System.out.println(welcomeFuture.get());
}
executorService.shutdown();
}
}Console Output
Hello in28Minutes
Hello Ranga
Hello Adam
The welcome messages all get printed in a batch again, but their collective wait gets shorter. This is because:
- The thread pool size is now
3, not2as earlier. This means all the three tasks can be put in the RUNNABLE state at once. - Then, they go into their BLOCKED state also almost simultaneously, which means their collective wait time is much less than
3000milliseconds. That's one advantage of a larger thread pool!
In this step, we:
- Learned that it's possible to collect the return values of a pool of
Callablethreads, at one go. - This is done using the
invokeAll()method for their launch, and specifying aListofFutureobjects to hold these results - Changing the thread pool size for such scenarios can change response time dramatically
Let's look at how you can wait for any of the three tasks to complete.
public class MultipleAnyCallableRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) throws InterruptedException, ExecutionException {
ExecutorService executorService = Executors.newFixedThreadPool(3);
List<CallableTask> tasks = List.of(new CallableTask("in28Minutes"),
new CallableTask("Ranga"),
new CallableTask("Adam"));
String welcomeMessage = executorService.invokeAny(tasks);
System.out.println(welcomeMessage);
executorService.shutdown();
}
}Console Output
Hello Ranga
Console Output
Hello in28Minutes
Console Output
Hello Ranga
Console Output
Hello Adam
The method invokeAny() returns when the first of the sub-tasks is done. Also, the returned value is not a Future object. It's the return value of the call() method.
We can see that over different executions, the order of console output changes. This is because:
- All three tasks are created together, in a thread pool of size
3. - Therefore, these are independent threads, going into their RUNNABLE states almost at once.
In this step, we:
- Learned that
ExecutorServicehas a way to return the first result, from a poll ofCallablethreads
Recommended Exception handling Videos
There are two kinds of errors a programmer faces:
- Compile-time Errors: Flagged by the compiler when it detects syntax or semantic errors.
- Run-time Errors: Detected by the run-time environment when executing code
Example runtime errors include:
- Running out of heap-memory for objects, or space for the method call stack
- Dividing a number by
0 - Trying to read from an unopened file
Exceptions are unexpected conditions; their occurrence does not make a programmer bad (or good, for that matter). It is a programmer's responsibility to be aware of potential exceptional conditions in her program, and use a mechanism to handle them effectively.
Handling an exception generally involves two important aims:
- Provide a useful message to the end user.
- Log enough information to help a programmer identify root cause.
In the previous step, we gave you a few instances of exceptions, such as your program running out of memory, or your code trying to divide a number by 0.
Want to see a live example of the Java run-time throwing an exception? The next example will satisfy your thirst.
ExceptionHandlingRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.exceptionhandling;
public class ExceptionHandlingRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
callMethod();
System.out.println("callMethod Done");
}
static void callMethod() {
String str = null;
int len = str.length();
System.out.println("String Length Done");
}
} Console Output
java.lang.NullPointerException
Exception in thread "main" java.lang.NullPointerException
at com.in28minutes.exceptionhandling.ExceptionHandlingRunner.callMethod (ExceptionHandlingRunner.java:8)
at com.in28minutes.exceptionhandling.ExceptionHandlingRunner.main (ExceptionHandlingRunner.java:4)
A java.lang.NullPointerException is thrown by the Java run-time when we called length() on the null reference.
If an exception is not handled in the entire call chain, including main, the exception is thrown out and the program terminates. System.out.println() statements after the exception are never executed.
The runtime prints the call stack trace onto the console.
For instance, consider this simple class Test:
public class Test {
public static void main(String[] args) {
callOne();
}
public static void callOne() {
callTwo();
}
public static void callTwo() {
callThree();
}
public static void callThree() {
String name;
System.out.println("This name is %d characters long", name.length());
}
}However, the code name.length() used in callThree() caused a NullPointerException to be thrown. However, this is not handled, and the console coughs up the following display:
Exception in thread "main" java.lang.NullPointerException
at Test.callThree(Test.java:13)
at Test.callTwo(Test.java:9)
at Test.callOne(Test.java:6)
at Test.main(Test.java:3)
This is nothing but a call trace of the stack, frozen in time.
In this step, we:
- Saw a live example of an exception being thrown
- Understood how a call trace on the stack appears when a exception occurs
- Reinforced this understanding with another example
In Java, exception handling is achieved through a try-catch block.
ExceptionHandlingRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.exceptionhandling;
public class ExceptionHandlingRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
method1();
System.out.println("main() Done");
}
static void method1() {
method2();
System.out.println("method1() done");
}
static void method2() {
try {
String str = null;
int len = str.length();
System.out.println("method2() Done");
} catch (Exception ex) {
}
}
}Console Output
method1() Done
main() Done
We have handled an exception here with a try-catch block. Its syntax resembles this:
try {
//< program-logic code block >
} catch (Exception e) {
//< exception-handling code block >
}The exception (the NullPointerException) still occurs after adding this block, but now it's actually caught. Although we did nothing with the caught exception, we did avoid a sudden end of the program.
The statements following int len = str.length() in method2 are not executed.
However, all of method1()'s code was run (with the "method1 Done" message getting printed). main() method also completed execution successfully.
The program thus terminated gracefully. method1() and main() are both unaware of the NullPointerException occurring within method2().
Let's add ex.printStackTrace();.
ExceptionHandlingRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.exceptionhandling;
public class ExceptionHandlingRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
method1();
System.out.println("main() Done");
}
static void method1() {
method2();
System.out.println("method1() done");
}
static void method2() {
try {
String str = null;
int len = str.length();
System.out.println("method2() Done");
} catch (Exception ex) {
ex.printStackTrace();
}
}
}Console Output
java.lang.NullPointerException
Exception in thread "main" java.lang.NullPointerException
at com.in28minutes.exceptionhandling.ExceptionHandlingRunner.method2 (ExceptionHandlingRunner.java:14)
at com.in28minutes.exceptionhandling.ExceptionHandlingRunner.method1 (ExceptionHandlingRunner.java:8)
at com.in28minutes.exceptionhandling.ExceptionHandlingRunner.main (ExceptionHandlingRunner.java:4)
method1() Done
main() Done
printStackTrace() is provided by the Exception class, which every exception inherits from. This method prints the frozen call trace of the program when the exception occurred, but without terminating the program. The code next continues to run.
The stack trace provides useful information to you, the programmer,to debug the exception scenario.
In this step, we:
- Were introduced to Java's basic mechanism to handle exceptions, the
try-catchblock - Saw how a program runs and ends gracefully, when an exception is handled
- Observed how the
printStackTracemethod gives debug information to the programmer
The code in the try-catch block above does not work by black magic. From the call trace, it's clear that this program encounters a NullPointerException in method1(). What's surprising, is that it was caught by a catch clause meant for an Exception! The reason this worked is because NullPointerException is-a Exception.
You heard right! Java has a hierarchy of exception types, rooted at class Exception. For instance,
NullPointerExceptionis-aRuntimeException, andRuntimeExceptionis-aException.- So effectively,
NullPointerExceptionis-aException!
Different branches of this inheritance-tree actually denote different exception categories. We'll dwell on this topic a little later.
Let's add an additional catch for NullPointerException in method2.
ExceptionHandlingRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.exceptionhandling;
public class ExceptionHandlingRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
method1();
System.out.println("main() Done");
}
static void method1() {
method2();
System.out.println("method1() done");
}
static void method2() {
try {
String str = null;
int len = str.length();
System.out.println("method2() Done");
} catch (NullPointerException e) {
System.out.println("NullPointerException");
} catch (Exception ex) {
ex.printStackTrace();
}
}
}Console Output
NullPointerException
method1() Done
main() Done
Among all the catch clauses following the try, one and only one of them, may get executed. The first catch clause to match, in serial order after the try, always gets executed. If none match, the exception is not handled.
We placed an additional catch block within method2(), to handle NullPointerException . Typically, the most specific exception class is matched. Hence the catch block for NullPointerException matches.
You need to order the catch blocks after a try, from more-specific to less-specific matches.
package com.in28minutes.exceptionhandling;
public class ExceptionHandlingRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
method1();
System.out.println("main() Done");
}
static void method1() {
method2();
System.out.println("method1() done");
}
static void method2() {
try {
int[] numbers = {1, 2};
int num = numbers[3];
System.out.println("method2() Done");
} catch (NullPointerException e) {
System.out.println("NullPointerException");
} catch (Exception ex) {
ex.printStackTrace();
}
}
}Console Output
ArrayIndexOutOfBoundsException : 3
Exception in thread "main" java.lang.ArrayIndexOutOfBoundsException
at com.in28minutes.exceptionhandling.ExceptionHandlingRunner.method2 (ExceptionHandlingRunner.java:14)
at com.in28minutes.exceptionhandling.ExceptionHandlingRunner.method1 (ExceptionHandlingRunner.java:8)
at com.in28minutes.exceptionhandling.ExceptionHandlingRunner.main (ExceptionHandlingRunner.java:4)
method1() Done
main() Done
ArrayIndexOutOfBoundsException is-a IndexOutOfBoundsException, which is-a RuntimeException, which in turn is-a Exception.
ArrayIndexOutOfBoundsException is not a sub class of NullPointerException. Hence, it does not match with the first catch block. ArrayIndexOutOfBoundsException is a sub class of Exception. Hence, that catch block matched, and the statement ex.printStackTrace(); within it ran.
If we omit the handler for Exception, the ArrayIndexOutOfBoundsException is not caught by this try-catch block. Since it is not handled in method1(), or even later in main(), our program would have to stop suddenly.
In this step, we:
- Learned that there is an exception hierarchy in Java, rooted at
Exception - Looked at an example that could cause multiple exceptions to occur
- Observed how a handler for
Exceptioncould match any exception
When an exception occurs, the programmer's world can turn upside-down in a matter of moments. If not handled, the program terminates all of a sudden, with no light at the end of the tunnel.
FinallyRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.exceptionhandling;
import java.util.Scanner;
public class FinallyRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
Scanner scanner = new Scanner(System.in);
// ... Program logic, probably using scanner input
int num = numbers[5];
System.out.println("Before scanner close");
scanner.close();
}
}Console Output
Exception in thread "main" java.lang.ArrayIndexOutOfBoundsException
at com.in28minutes.exceptionhandling.FinallyRunner.main (FinallyRunner.java:8)
This example makes use of Scanner object to read from console. Ideally a Scanner object should be closed using scanner.close();.
However, in our example, it is not called because a line before it threw an exception. (int num = numbers[5]; tries to access the 5th element of a 4-element array).
What this means, is a system resource that has been acquired, is never released.
It's important to ensure that any acquired resource is always released; whether on normal or abrupt termination. Let's see how you do this while handling an exception.
FinallyRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.exceptionhandling;
import java.util.Scanner;
public class FinallyRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
Scanner scanner = null;
try {
scanner = new Scanner(System.in);
// ... Program logic, probably using scanner input
int[] numbers = {1, 2, 3, 4};
int num = numbers[5];
} catch (Exception e) {
e.printStackTrace();
} finally {
if(scanner != null) {
System.out.println("Before scanner close");
scanner.close();
}
}
System.out.println("Before exiting main");
}
}Console Output
ArrayIndexOutOfBoundsException
Exception in thread "main" java.lang.ArrayIndexOutOfBoundsException
at com.in28minutes.exceptionhandling.FinallyRunner.main (FinallyRunner.java:10)
Before scanner close
Before exiting main
Code in finally is almost always executed - even when there are exceptions.
We added a null check on scanner since scanner = new Scanner(System.in); could also result in an exception.
} finally {
if(scanner != null) {
System.out.println("Before scanner close");
scanner.close();
}
}In this step, we:
- Observed how exceptional conditions could result in resource leaks
- Learned about the
finallyclause in atry-catchblock
- Would the
finallyclause be executed if- The statement
//str = "Hello";remains as-is - The statement
//str = "Hello";has its comments removed?
- The statement
public static void method3() {
Connection connection = new Connection();
connection.open();
try {
String str = null;
//str = "Hello";
str.toString();
return;
} catch(Exception e) {
} finally {
connection.close();
}
}- Answer
- Yes
- Yes
-
When will code in a
finallyclause not get executed? -
Answer
- In case of statements within the same
finallyclause, preceding this code, throwing an exception - In case of a JVM crash. This can be simulated in some scenarios by calling
System.exitwith an appropriateintargument, within an appropriatecatchclause of the sametry-catch-finallyclause.
- In case of statements within the same
- Will the following code, a
try-finallywithout acatch?
public static void method4() {
Connection connection = new Connection();
connection.open();
try {
String str = null;
//str = "Hello";
str.toString();
return;
} finally {
connection.close();
}
}- Answer : Yes
- Will the following code, a
trywithout acatchor afinally?
public static void method5() {
Connection connection = new Connection();
connection.open();
try {
String str = null;
//str = "Hello";
str.toString();
return;
}
}- Answer : No
Sometimes, in Java you are forced to handle exceptions.
CheckedExceptionRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.exceptionhandling;
public class CheckedExceptionRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
Thread.sleep(2000);
}
}This program will not compile!
The reason we get flagged by a compiler error, lies in the signature of the sleep() method. Here is its definition within the Thread class:
public static native void sleep(long millis) throws InterruptedException {
//...
}This declaration is a bit different from what you normally expect for a method, isn't it! It contains a throws specification.
When a method throws an Exception, the calling method should:
- Handle it using
try-catchblock - Or declare
throwsin its signature
Let's use try-catch block to start off.
CheckedExceptionRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.exceptionhandling;
public class CheckedExceptionRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
try {
Thread.sleep(2000);
} catch (InterruptedException e) {
e.printStackTrace();
}
}
}main(), which is the caller ofsleep(), chooses the option of handlingInterruptedExceptionwith atry-catchblock.
throws is used to declare that a method might throw exceptions. This involves a throws keyword, followed by a list of exception types.
package com.in28minutes.exceptionhandling;
public class CheckedExceptionRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
try {
riskyMethod();
Thread.sleep(2000);
} catch (InterruptedException e) {
e.printStackTrace();
}
}
public static void riskyMethod() throws InterruptedException {
Thread.sleep(5000);
}
}Here, we have removed the try-catch block within riskyMethod(), because we want to follow another way of managing the exception. As an alternative, we added a throws specification to riskyMethod() to make the code compile.
We made main method handle the exception.
In this step, we:
- Discovered that certain exceptions in Java do not force you to handle them
- Learned that all the rest must be managed/handled
- Observed that there are two ways to manage those "Checked" exceptions:
- Handling with a
try-catchblock - Using a
throwsspecification
- Handling with a
Right at the root (top, we mean), the Java exception hierarchy looks like this:
class Error extends Throwable{}
class Exception extends Throwable{}
class InterruptedException extends Exception{}
class RuntimeException extends Exception{}
class NullPointerException extends RuntimeException{}
...Once an Error occurs, there is nothing a programmer could do. Examples include:
- The JVM running out of heap memory space
An Exception can be handled. There are two types of Exceptions.
RuntimeExceptionand its sub-classes. These come under the category of unchecked exceptions. Another example we've seen isNullPointerException, which inherits fromRuntimeException.- All other sub-classes of
Exception, excluding the sub-tree rooted atRuntimeException, are called checked exceptions. An instance we've encountered isInterruptedException.
If a method throws a checked exception is called, then either:
- The method call must be enclosed in a
try-catchblock for proper handling, or - The caller must throw this exception out, to its own caller. Its signature must also be enhanced using a
throwsspecification.
If an unchecked exception is involved, then:
- You have the options of handling with
try-catchblock. - It is not mandatory to handle it.
A checked exception must be handled, whereas as unchecked exception may or may not be handled.
In this step, we:
- Discovered that within the Java exception hierarchy, there are two categories:
- Checked exceptions
- Unchecked exceptions
- There are different strategies to manage these two categories
So far, we have seen how to handle an exception, that is thrown by a built-in Java method. Now, let's explore how we can alert a user about exceptional conditions in our own code, by throwing exceptions.
ThrowingExceptionRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.exceptionhandling;
class Amounts {
private String currency;
private int amount;
public Amounts(String currency, int amount) {
super();
this.currency = currency;
this.amount = amount;
}
public void add(Amount that) {
if(!this.currency.equals(that.currency)) {
throw new RuntimeException("Currencies Don't Match");
}
this.amount += that.amount;
}
public Sring toString() {
return amount + " " + currency;
}
}
public class ThrowingExceptionRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
Amount amount1 = new Amount("USD", 10);
//Amount amount2 = new Amount("USD", 20);
Amount amount2 = new Amount("EUR", 20);
amount1.add(amount2);
System.out.println(amount1);
}
}Console Output
Exception in thread "main" java.lang.RuntimeException:Currencies Don't Match
at com.in28minutes.exceptionhandling.ThrowingExceptionRunner.main (ThrowingExceptionRunner.java:26)
Since adding 10 USD and 20 EUR does not make sense in the real world, it's important to tell the user that add() won't work for different currencies. The most direct way is to throw an exception, which the code throw new RuntimeException("Currencies Don't Match"); does.
This thrown exception object can be handled inside main(). By calling printStackTrace() on the caught exception reference, you get debug information like before.
Exception is a Checked Exception. If a method throws an instance of Exception class, it needs to declare it - public void add(Amount that) throws Exception {.
ThrowingExceptionRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.exceptionhandling;
class Amounts {
private String currency;
private int amount;
public Amounts(String currency, int amount) {
super();
this.currency = currency;
this.amount = amount;
}
public void add(Amount that) throws Exception {
if(!this.currency.equals(that.currency)) {
throw new Exception("Currencies Don't Match : " + this.currency + " & that.currency);
}
this.amount += that.amount;
}
public String toString() {
return amount + " " + currency;
}
}
public class ThrowingExceptionRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
Amount amount1 = new Amount("USD", 10);
//Amount amount2 = new Amount("USD", 20);
Amount amount2 = new Amount("EUR", 20);
try {
amount1.add(amount2);
System.out.println(amount1);
} catch(Exception e) {
e.printStackTrace();
}
}
}Console Output
java.lang.RuntimeException:Currencies Don't Match : USD & EUR
Exception in thread "main" java.lang.RuntimeException:Currencies Don't Match
at com.in28minutes.exceptionhandling.ThrowingExceptionRunner.main (ThrowingExceptionRunner.java:26)
Exception is not a RuntimeException or one of its sub-classes, it is a checked exception. So, it needs to be declared when it is thrown - public void add(Amount that) throws Exception.
In this step, we:
- Learned that it is possible to throw an exception from code inside any method we write
- When a method throws checked exception, it should declare it.
It is also possible for you to throw a custom exception. You can do this by defining your own exception class, only that it must inherit from one of the built-in exception classes. Note that:
- If you sub-class a checked exception, your exception also becomes checked.
- If you sub-class an unchecked exception, your exception would be unchecked.
ThrowingExceptionRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.exceptionhandling;
class CurrenciesDoNotMatchException extends Exception {
public CurrenciesDoNotMatchException(String msg) {
super(msg);
}
}
class Amounts {
private String currency;
private int amount;
public Amounts(String currency, int amount) {
super();
this.currency = currency;
this.amount = amount;
}
public void add(Amount that) throws Exception {
if(!this.currency.equals(that.currency)) {
throw new CurrenciesDoNotMatchException("Currencies Don't Match : " + this.currency + " & " + that.currency);
}
this.amount += that.amount;
}
public String toString() {
return amount + " " + currency;
}
}
public class ThrowingExceptionRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
Amount amount1 = new Amount("USD", 10);
//Amount amount2 = new Amount("USD", 20);
Amount amount2 = new Amount("EUR", 20);
try {
amount1.add(amount2);
System.out.println(amount1);
} catch(Exception e) {
e.printStackTrace();
}
}
}Console Output
com.in28minutes.exceptionhandling.CurrenciesDoNotMatchException : Currencies Don't Match : USD & EUR
Exception in thread "main" com.in28minutes.exceptionhandling.CurrenciesDoNotMatchException : Currencies Don't Match : USD & EUR
at com.in28minutes.exceptionhandling.ThrowingExceptionRunner.main (ThrowingExceptionRunner.java:26)
The class CurrenciesDoNotMatchException clearly is a checked exception. Hence, rules that apply for throwing and handling checked applications, apply to it as well.
If instead, CurrenciesDoNotMatchException were to sub-class RuntimeException, it would be an unchecked exception. Adding the throws specification to the add() definition would not be needed. Also, no method in the call sequence of add() is required to handle it.
In this step, we:
- Discovered that Java allows you to define your own custom exception classes
- Whether a custom exception is checked or unchecked, depends on which exception it sub-classes.
- Saw an example of how to raise and handle a custom exception
try-with-resources makes managing resource in a try-catch-finally block. Let's look at an example.
package com.in28minutes.exceptionhandling;
import java.util.Scanner;
public class TryWithResourcesRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
try (Scanner scanner = new Scanner(System.in)) {
// ... Program logic, probably using scanner input
int[] numbers = {1, 2, 3, 4};
int num = numbers[5];
}
//scanner.close();
}
}The try-with-resources version was introduced in Java SE 7. It encloses the resource to be managed within parentheses, along with the try keyword.
In this case, Scanner is compatible with such resource management, because it's defined to implement the Closeable interface. This interface in turn, is a sub-class of the abstract class AutoCloseable.
Closeable extends AutoCloseable{};
Scanner implements Closeable{};
For try-with-resources, a catch and/or a finally clause are not mandatory.
Also, the call to scanner.close is no longer required.
In this step, we:
- Discovered a veriant of the
try-catch-finallyblock, calledtry-with-resources - Saw that it can be used to manage resource cleanly, provided the resource implements the
AutoCloseableinterface.
- Does the following program handle the exception thrown?
try {
AmountAdder.addAmounts(new Amount("RUPEE", 5), new Amount("RUPEE", 5);
String str = null;
str.toString();
} catch(CurrenciesDoNotMatchException ex) {
ex.printStackTrace();
}- Answer : No
The exception thrown is a NullPointerException, whereas the one we are trying to catch is a CurrenciesDoNotMatchException.
- Does the following code compile?
try {
AmountAdder.addAmounts(new Amount("RUPEE", 5), new Amount("RUPEE", 5);
String str = null;
str.toString();
} catch(Exception e) {
e.printStackTrace();
} catch(CurrenciesDoNotMatchException ex) {
ex.printStackTrace();
}Answer : No
The order of catch clauses for exceptions needs to be from less specific to more specific. CurrenciesDoNotMatchException is a sub-class of Exception. Hence, error.
- Does the following code compile?
try {
} catch (IOException | SQLException ex) {
ex.printStackTrace();
}- Answer : Yes
This feature was added in Java SE 7.
We would be aware that any computer has a hard disk, on which information is stored. This information is stored in units called files. For ease of access, file are grouped together and organized into directories. The operating system has a sub-system called the file-system, which has the responsibility of interfacing system and user programs, with files and directories on disk.
The Java Runtime System also communicates with the native file-system, and makes use of its services to provide a file programming interface to Java programmers.
In this section, we will explore a few basic ways in which programmers can interact with the native file-system, through the platform independent Java file API.
When we develop a Java software project in the Eclipse IDE environment, the root folder of the project has several interesting file and sub-folders contained within it. From now on, we use the terms "folder" and "directory" interchangeably, as they have equivalent meanings.
Let's write a simple Java program to list the contents of one such project folder.
The java.nio.file system package has a bunch of utility classes and interfaces to help us navigate the native file system.
DirectoryScanRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.files;
import java.nio.file.Files;
import java.nio.file.Paths;
import java.io.IOException;
public class DirectoryScanRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) throws IOException {
Files.list((Paths.get(".")).forEach(System.out::println);
}
}Console Output
./.classpath
./.project
./.DS_Store
./bin
./resources
./src
A Path class is the entity used to denote a pathname in Java NIO Library. NIO stands for "New I/O", which was introduced in Java SE, replacing the earlier, very awkward File I/O Library. It is no longer new though, but that's another issue!
"." denotes the current directory in the file-system.
The Paths.get() method returns the path-name of the specified directory in a format that the Files.get() method understands.
The Files.get() method does a lazy traversal of the directory it is provided with, in the sense that:
- It lists regular files it encounters.
- When faced with directory files, it merely lists them, without recursively traversing them.
The contents of the root directory are listed as path-names, with each path-name being relative to the root directory.
We can specify level 2 in Files.walk(currentDirectory, 2). So, folders until level 2 are scanned.
DirectoryScanRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.files;
import java.nio.file.Files;
import java.nio.file.Path;
import java.nio.file.Paths;
import java.io.IOException;
public class DirectoryScanRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) throws IOException {
Path currentDirectory = Paths.get(".");
//Files.list(currentDirectory).forEach(System.out::println);
Files.walk(currentDirectory, 2).forEach(System.out::println);
}
}Console Output
./.classpath
./.project
./.DS_Store
./bin
./bin/files
./resources
./src
./src/files
DirectoryScanRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.files;
import java.nio.file.Files;
import java.nio.file.Path;
import java.nio.file.Paths;
import java.io.IOException;
public class DirectoryScanRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) throws IOException {
Path currentDirectory = Paths.get(".");
Files.walk(currentDirectory, 4).forEach(System.out::println);
}
}Console Output
./.classpath
./.project
./.DS_Store
./bin
./bin/files
./bin/files/DirectoryScanRunner.class
./resources
./src
./src/files
./src/files/DirectoryScanRunner.java
We use a predicate Files.walk(currentDirectory, 4).filter(predicate) to filter only Java files.
DirectoryScanRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.files;
import java.nio.file.Files;
import java.nio.file.Path;
import java.nio.file.Paths;
import java.util.function.Predicate;
import java.io.IOException;
public class DirectoryScanRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) throws IOException {
Path currentDirectory = Paths.get(".");
Predicate<? super Path> predicate = path -> String.valueOf(Path).contains(".java");
//Files.walk(currentDirectory, 4).forEach(System.out::println);
Files.walk(currentDirectory, 4).filter(predicate)
.forEach(System.out::println);
}
}Console Output
./src/files/DirectoryScanRunner.java
We can use a matcher - Files.find(currentDirectory, 4, matcher) which is configured to check the path attribute for .java extension - (path, attributes) -> String.valueOf(path).contains(".java")
DirectoryScanRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.files;
import java.nio.file.Files;
import java.nio.file.Path;
import java.nio.file.Paths;
import java.util.function.Predicate;
import java.nio.file.attribute.BasicFileAttributes;
import java.util.function.BiPredicate;
import java.io.IOException;
public class DirectoryScanRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) throws IOException {
Path currentDirectory = Paths.get(".");
//Predicate<? super Path> predicate = path -> String.valueOf(path).contains(".java");
//Files.walk(currentDirectory, 4).filter(predicate).forEach(System.out::println);
BiPredicate<Path, BasicFileAttributes> matcher =
(path, attributes) -> String.valueOf(path).contains(".java");
Files.find(currentDirectory, 4, matcher);
}
}Console Output
./src/files/DirectoryScanRunner.java
DirectoryScanRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.files;
import java.nio.file.Files;
import java.nio.file.Path;
import java.nio.file.Paths;
import java.util.function.Predicate;
import java.nio.file.attribute.BasicFileAttributes;
import java.util.function.BiPredicate;
import java.io.IOException;
public class DirectoryScanRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) throws IOException {
Path currentDirectory = Paths.get(".");
//BiPredicate<Path, BasicFileAttributes> matcher =
//(path, attributes) -> String.valueOf(path).contains(".java");
BiPredicate<Path, BasicFileAttributes> directoryMatcher =
(path, attributes) -> attributes.isDirectory();
Files.find(currentDirectory, 4, directoryMatcher);
}
}Console Output
./bin
./bin/files
./resources/
./src/
./src/files
We are making use of a matcher checking attributes.isDirectory().
./resources/data.txt
123.122
asdfghjkl
Apple
Bat
Cat
FileReadRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.files;
import java.nio.file.Files;
import java.nio.file.Paths;
import java.io.IOException;
public class FileReadRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) throws IOException {
Path pathFileToRead = Paths.get("./resources/data.txt");
List<String> lines = Files.readAllLines(pathFileToRead);
System.out.println(lines);
}
}Console Output
[123.122, asdfghjkl, Apple, Bat, Cat]
Files.readAllLines(pathFileToRead) makes it easy to read content of a file to list of String values.
Files.readAllLines(pathFileToRead) makes it easy to read content of a file. However, streaming is a better options when reading large files or when less memory is available.
./resources/data.txt
123.122
asdfghjkl
Apple
Bat
Cat
FileReadRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.files;
import java.nio.file.Files;
import java.nio.file.Paths;
import java.io.IOException;
public class FileReadRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) throws IOException {
Path pathFileToRead = Paths.get("./resources/data.txt");
//List<String> lines = Files.readAllLines(pathFileToRead);
//System.out.println(lines);
Files.lines(pathFileToRead).forEach(System.out::println);
}
}Console Output
123.122
asdfghjkl
Apple
Bat
Cat
Files.lines(pathFileToRead) returns a stream which can be consumed as needed.
We can use map function to map to String::toLowerCase
./resources/data.txt
123.122
asdfghjkl
Apple
Bat
Cat
FileReadRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.files;
import java.nio.file.Files;
import java.nio.file.Paths;
import java.io.IOException;
public class FileReadRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) throws IOException {
Path pathFileToRead = Paths.get("./resources/data.txt");
//Files.lines(pathFileToRead).forEach(System.out::println);
Files.lines(pathFileToRead)
.map(String::toLowerCase)
.forEach(System.out::println);
}
}Console Output
123.122
asdfghjkl
apple
bat
cat
You can also filter file content using the filter method.
FileReadRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.files;
import java.nio.file.Files;
import java.nio.file.Paths;
import java.io.IOException;
public class FileReadRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) throws IOException {
Path pathFileToRead = Paths.get("./resources/data.txt");
//Files.lines(pathFileToRead).forEach(System.out::println);
//Files.lines(pathFileToRead).map(String::toLowerCase).forEach(System.out::println);
Files.lines(pathFileToRead)
.map(String::toLowerCase)
.filter(str -> str.contains("a"))
.forEach(System.out::println);
}
}Console Output
asdfghjkl
apple
bat
cat
Files.write can be used to write to a file.
FileWriteScanner.java
package com.in28minutes.files;
import java.nio.file.Files;
import java.nio.file.Paths;
import java.io.IOException;
public class FileWriteRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) throws IOException {
Path pathFileToWrite = Paths.get("./resources/file-write.txt");
List<String> list = List.of("Apple", "Boy", "Cat", "Dog", "Elephant");
Files.write(pathFileToWrite, list);
}
}./resources/file-write.txt
Apple
Boy
Cat
Dog
Elephant
Let's create a simple counter.
Counter.java
package com.in28minutes.concurrency;
public class Counter {
private int i = 0;
public void increment() {
i++;
}
public int getI() {
return i;
}
}ConcurrencyRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.concurrency;
public class ConcurrencyRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
Counter counter = new Counter();
counter.increment();
counter.increment();
counter.increment();
System.out.println(counter.get());
}
}Quite straightforward!
Let's look at the code. It seemingly involves just one operation.
public void increment() {
i++;
}The operation i++ actually involves the following steps:
- Step 1. Read the value of
ifrom memory into the CPU registers - Step 2. Increment the value in the CPU registers
- Step 3. Store the incremented value back into the memory location of
i
i++ is not an atomic operation.
Let's take an example of two Threads, T1 and T2 running in ConcurrencyRunner access a single Counter object instance.
Let's say the threads concurrently invoke the increment and getI.
Assume the initial value of i is 15. Let's take a closer look at a possible scenario:
T1callsincrement()first, and successfully completes Step 1 ofi++. Gets a value of 15.- The scheduler switches threads to
T2. T2callsincrement()first, and successfully completes Step 1 ofi++.Gets a value of 15.- The scheduler switches to
T1.T1resumes execution ofincrement(), and completes steps 2 and 3 ofi++. Completes execution ofincrement(). Value ofiis over-written with16. - The scheduler switches to
T2. In it's CPU register context, i is15, not16.T2resumes execution ofincrement(), and completes steps 2 and 3 ofi++. Completes execution ofincrement().Value ofiin theCounterinstance is over-written with16.
Ideally, the final value of i after two increments should have been 17. This would result when the operations run serially one after the other.
This scenario, where the result of a concurrent computation (involving a sequence of operations) depends on the relative order of execution of those operations by the threads involved, is called a race condition.
There is a popular English saying: "There is many a slip, between the cup and the lip". This refers to the fact that anything can happen between the time when we hold a cup of tea in our hands, and the time when we actually get to take a sip of the tea.
This definitely rings true here.
The increment operation is not actually not as smooth as it seems. because it is not atomic, slip-ups can and will often occur. This brings us to the concept of Thread-Safety.
A method is said to be thread-safe, if it can be run in a concurrent environment (involving several concurrent invocations by independent threads) without race-conditions.
Adding the keyword synchronized to the signature of a class method makes it thread safe.
Counter.java
package com.in28minutes.concurrency;
public class Counter {
private int i = 0;
synchronized public void increment() {
i++;
}
public int getI() {
return i;
}
}After adding synchronized keyword to the method increment, only one thread will be able to execute the method, at a time. Hence, race condition is avoided.
synchronized keyword make the code thread safe. However, it causes all other threads to wait. This can result in performance issues. Let's look at an example:
BiCounter.java
package com.in28minutes.concurrency;
public class BiCounter {
private int i = 0;
private int j = 0;
synchronized public void incrementI() {
i++;
}
synchronized public void incrementJ() {
j++;
}
public int getI() {
return i;
}
public int getJ() {
return j;
}
}ConcurrencyRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.concurrency;
public class ConcurrencyRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
BiCounter counter = new BiCounter();
counter.incrementI();
counter.incrementJ();
counter.incrementI();
System.out.println(counter.get());
}
}Both incrementI() and incrementJ() of class BiCounter are synchronized. Therefore, at any given time, at most one thread can execute either of these methods! Which means that, while a thread T1 is executing counter.incrementI() within ConcurrencyRunner.main(), another thread T2 is not allowed to execute counter.incrementJ()!
Just imagine, if there are a total of 12 threads wanting to increment counter. When one thread is running, the other 11 have to wait!
Let's look at another synchronization option - Locks
BiCounterWithLocks.java
package com.in28minutes.concurrency;
import java.util.concurrent.locks.ReentrantLock;
public class BiCounterWithLocks {
private int i = 0;
private int j = 0;
private Lock LockForI = new ReentrantLock();
private Lock LockForJ = new ReentrantLock();
public void incrementI() {
lockForI.lock();
i++;
lockForI.unlock();
}
public void incrementJ() {
lockForJ.lock();
j++;
lockForJ.unlock();
}
public int getI() {
return i;
}
public int getJ() {
return j;
}
}i++ and j++ are the pieces of code to protect. We use two locks lockForI and lockForJ. If a thread wants to execute i++, it needs to first get a lock to it - implemented using lockForI.lock(). Once it performs the operation, it can release the lock lockForI.unlock().
The Locks lockForI and lockForJ are totally independent of each other. Therefore, a thread T2 can execute j++ within incrementJ(), at the same time that thread T1 is executing i++ within incrementI().
The operation i++, small though it might seem, gave us quite a bit headache!
If a seemingly minute operation might need so much worrying about, imagine writing concurrent data structures that manipulate linked lists with multiple link operations!
It would be really nice if someone could take care of these tiny operations for us, otherwise we would have hard time finding out what code to definitely lock, and what code need not be!
Java addresses this issue for basic data types, by providing a few classes that are inherently thread-safe. A good example is AtomicInteger, which is a wrapper around the int primitive type.
BiCounterWithAtomicInteger.java
package com.in28minutes.concurrency;
import java.util.concurrent.atomic.AtomicInteger;
public class BiCounterWithAtomicInteger {
private AtomicInteger i = new AtomicInteger();
private int AtomicInteger = new AtomicInteger();
public void incrementI() {
i.incrementAndGet();
}
public void incrementJ() {
j.incrementAndGet();
}
public int getI() {
return i.get();
}
public int getJ() {
return j.get();
}
}incrementAndGet is atomic. So, BiCounterWithAtomicInteger does not need to worry about synchronization.
Java gave us a ready-made solution for thread-safe primitive data, with wrappers such as AtomicInteger. The reasons this approach worked for int were:
- Simple, small-sized underlying type
- Wide-spread potential usage
How about collections?
Java provides classes like Vector (synchronized version of ArrayList) which can provide thread safety. But, these inherit the problems with using synchronized.
What are other options?
The code within the for loop does a get and then a put. It is not thread safe.
MapRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.collections;
import java.util.HashMap;
public class MapRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
String str = "Hello World";
Map<Character, Integer> occurrences = new HashMap<>();
char[] characters = str.toCharArray();
for(char character:characters) {
Integer count = occurrences.get(character);
if(count == null) {
occurrences.put(character, 1);
} else {
occurrences.put(character, count + 1);
}
}
}
}Concurrent Collections provide atomic versions of operations such as those encountered above:
- If entry does not exist, then create and initialize
- If entry exists, then update
The interface ConcurrentMap has methods to implement compound operations. Such operations include:
V putIfAbsent(K key, V value);
V computeIfPresent(K key,
BiFunction<? super K, ? super V, ? extends V> remappingFunction)
LongAdder provides an atomic increment method, which we are making use of to make the code a little more thread safe. However, different threads could be executing occurrences.get() and occurrences.put() in parallel. A race condition can still occur.
ConcurrentMapRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.concurrency;
import java.util.Map;
import java.util.HashTable;
import java.util.concurrent.atomic.LongAdder;
public class ConcurrentMapRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
String str = "ABCD ABCD ABCD";
for(char character:str.toCharArray()) {
LongAdder longAdder = occurances.get(character);
if(longAdder == null) {
longAdder = new LongAdder();
}
longAdder.increment();
occurances.put(character, longAdder);
}
}
}Console Output
[ =2, A=3, B=3, C=3, D=2]
We can use the method computeIfAbsent() from the collection ConcurrentHashMap to reduce the code to a single, atomic operation.
ConcurrentMapRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.concurrency;
import java.util.concurrent.ConcurrentMap;
import java.util.concurrent.ConcurrentHashMap;
import java.util.concurrent.atomic.LongAdder;
public class ConcurrentMapRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
ConcurrentMap<Character, LongAdder> occurances = new ConcurrentHashMap<>();
String str = "ABCD ABCD ABCD";
for(char character:str.toCharArray()) {
occurances.computeIfAbsent(character, ch -> new LongAdder()).increment();
}
System.out.println(occurances);
}
}Console Output
[ =2, A=3, B=3, C=3, D=2]
In HashTable, all methods are synchronized.
In ConcurrentHashMap, data structure is organized into disjoint regions. Access methods use different Locks for different regions, reducing performance impact during concurrent access.
All values in Copy-On-Write collections are stored in an internal immutable (not-changeable) array. A new array is created if there is any modification to the collection.
Read operations are not synchronized. Only write operations are synchronized.
Copy on Write approach is used in scenarios where reads greatly out number write’s on a collection.
CopyOnWriteArrayList & CopyOnWriteArraySet are implementations of this approach.
Copy on Write collections are typically used in Subject – Observer scenarios, where the observers very rarely change. Most frequent operations would be iterating around the observers and notifying them.
CopyOnWriteArrayListRunner.java
package com.in28minutes.concurrency;
import java.util.List;
import java.util.concurrent.CopyOnWriteArrayList;
public class CopyOnWriteArrayListRunner {
public static void main(String[] args) {
List<String> list = new CopyOnWriteArrayList<>();
// Total of 3 threads doing add()'s, maybe in a separate method
list.add("Ant");
list.add("Bat");
list.add("Cat");
//Total of 10000 threads looping on get(), again, in a separate method
for(String element:list) {
System.out.println(element);
}
}
}CopyOnWriteArrayList.add() method is a synchronized method. And the copy-on-write algorithm ensures that the copying is performed in a thread-safe manner, after which the write is done on a separate copy, while the get()'s continue on the original array. Once the add() is done, the collection starts using the new array, and discards the old one. This strategy continues for the lifetime of the program.
The CopyOnWriteArrayList.get method is NOT synchronized, since on the array that the reads work, there will be no direct write through an add().
Copy-On-Write collections should only be used for the specific usage scenarios, viz., very large number of data structure traversals (data element reads only), compared to mutations (data element insertions/deletions/modifications). In this way, high concurrency is achieved for traversals.
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