Chapter 3:cont..
Using Methods, Classes,
and Objects
2 Learning About Class
Concepts
Every object is a member of a class
Is-a relationships
Object “is a” concrete example of the class
Instantiation
Reusability
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3 Learning About Class
Concepts (cont'd.)
Methods often called upon to return piece of
information to source of request
Class client or class user
Application or class that instantiates objects of another
prewritten class
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4 Creating a Class
Assign name to class
Determine what data and methods will be part of
class
Class header
Optional access modifier
Keyword class
Any legal identifier for the name of class
public class
Accessible by all objects
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5 Creating a Class (cont'd.)
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6 Creating a Class (cont'd.)
Extend
Use as a basis for any other class
Data fields
Variables declared within class
But outside of any method
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7 Creating a Class (cont'd.)
private access for fields
No other classes can access field’s values
Only methods of same class allowed to use private
variables
Information hiding
Most class methods public
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8 Creating Instance Methods
in a Class
Classes contain methods
Nonstatic methods
Instance methods
“Belong” to objects
Typically declare nonstatic data fields
static class variables
Are not instance variables
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9
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10 Creating Instance Methods
in a Class (cont'd.)
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11 Declaring Objects and Using
Their Methods
Declaring class does not create any actual objects
Create instance of class
Supply type and identifier
Allocate computer memory for object
Use new operator
Employee someEmployee;
someEmployee = new Employee();
Or
Employee someEmployee = new Employee();
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12 Declaring Objects and Using
Their Methods (cont'd.)
Reference to the object
Name for a memory address where the object is held
Constructor method
Method that creates and initializes class objects
Can write own constructor methods
Java creates a constructor
Name of constructor method always same as name of
class
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13 Declaring Objects and Using
Their Methods (cont'd.)
After object instantiated
Methods accessed using:
Object’s identifier
Dot
Method call
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14 Declaring Objects and Using
Their Methods (cont'd.)
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15 Understanding Data Hiding
Data hiding using encapsulation
Data fields are usually private
Client application accesses them only through public
interfaces
Set method
Controls data values used to set variable
Get method
Controls how value is retrieved
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16 An Introduction to Using
Constructors
Employee chauffeur = new Employee();
Actually calling method named Employee()
Default constructor
Requires no arguments
Created automatically by Java compiler
For any class
Whenever you do not write constructor
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17 An Introduction to Using
Constructors (cont'd.)
Default constructor provides specific initial values to
object’s data fields
Numeric fields
Set to 0 (zero)
Character fields
Set to Unicode ‘\u0000’
Boolean fields
Set to false
Nonprimitive object fields
Set to null
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18 An Introduction to Using
Constructors (cont'd.)
Write a constructor method
Must have same name as class it constructs
Cannot have return type
public access modifier
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19 An Introduction to Using
Constructors (cont'd.)
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20 Understanding that Classes
are Data Types
Classes you create become data types
Declare object from one of your classes
Provide type and identifier
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21 You Do It
Creating a static method that requires no
arguments and returns no values
Calling a static method from another class
Creating a static method that accepts arguments
and returns values
Creating a class that contains instance fields and
methods
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22 You Do It (cont'd.)
Creating a class that instantiates objects of another
class
Adding a constructor to a class
Creating a more complete class
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23 Don’t Do It
Don’t place semicolon at end of method header
Don’t think “default constructor” means only
automatically supplied constructor
Don’t think that class’s methods must:
Accept its own fields’ values as parameters
Return values to its own fields
Don’t create class method that has parameter with
same identifier as class field
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24 Summary
Method
Series of statements that carry out a task
Declaration includes parameter type and local name
for parameter
Can pass multiple arguments to methods
Has return type
Class objects
Have attributes and methods associated with them
Instantiate objects that are members of class
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25 Summary (cont'd.)
Constructor
Method establishes object and provides specific initial
values for object’s data fields
Everything is an object
Every object is a member of a more general class
Implementation hiding, or encapsulation
private data fields
public access methods
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