Chapter 5 Methods

Lecture notes for computer programming 1

Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology
Prepared by: Iyad Albayouk

١
 Introducing Methods
A method is a collection of statements that are
grouped together to perform an operation.

Define a method Invoke a method

modifier return value type method name formal

parameters
method int z = max(x, y);
public static int max(int num1, int num2) {
header
int result;
method actual parameters
body parameter list (arguments)
if (num1 > num2)
result = num1;
else
result = num2;
return value
return result;
}

٢
 Introducing Methods, cont.
• Method signature is the combination of the
method name and the parameter list.
• The variables defined in the method header are
known as formal parameters.
• When a method is invoked, you pass a value to
the parameter. This value is referred to as actual
parameter or argument.

٣
 Introducing Methods, cont.
• A method may return a value. The
returnValueType is the data type of the value the
method returns. If the method does not return a
value, the returnValueType is the keyword void.
For example, the returnValueType in the main
method is void.

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Calling Methods
This program demonstrates calling a method max to return the
largest of the int values
public class TestMax {
/** Main method */
public static void main(String[] args) {
int i = 5; int j = 2; int k = max(i, j);
System.out.println("The maximum between " + i + " and " + j +
" is " + k); }
/** Return the max between two numbers */
public static int max(int num1, int num2) {
int result;
if (num1 > num2)
result = num1;
else
result = num2;
return result;
}
}
٥
 Calling Methods, cont.

pass the value of i

pass the value of j

public static void main(String[] args) { public static int max(int num1, int num2) {
int i = 5; int result;
int j = 2;
int k = max(i, j); if (num1 > num2)
result = num1;
System.out.println( else
"The maximum between " + i + result = num2;
" and " + j + " is " + k);
} return result;
}

٦
CAUTION
A return statement is required for a nonvoid
method. The following method is logically
correct, but it has a compilation error,
because the Java compiler thinks it possible
that this method does not return any value.
public static int sign(int n) {
if (n > 0) return 1;
else if (n == 0) return 0;
else if (n < 0) return –1;
}
To fix this problem, delete if (n<0) in the code.
٧
Reuse Methods from Other
Classes
NOTE: One of the benefits of methods is for reuse. The
max method can be invoked from any class besides
TestMax. If you create a new class Test, you can invoke
the max method using ClassName.methodName (e.g.,
TestMax.max).

٨
Call Stacks

Space required for the

max method
result: 5
num2: 2
num1: 5
Space required for the Space required for the Space required for the
main method main method main method
k: k: k: 5 Stack is empty
j: 2 j: 2 j: 2
i: 5 i: 5 i: 5

The main method The max method is The max method is The main method
is invoked. invoked. finished and the return is finished.
value is sent to k.

٩
 Passing Parameters
public static void nPrintln(String message, int n)
{
for (int i = 0; i < n; i++)
System.out.println(message);
}

Suppose you invoke the method using

nPrintln(“Welcome to Java”, 5);
What is the output?

Suppose you invoke the method using

nPrintln(“Computer Science”, 15);
What is the output?
١٠
 Pass by Value
This program demonstrates passing values to the methods.

public class TestPassByValue {

public static void main(String[] args) {
int num1 = 1; int num2 = 2;
System.out.println("Before invoking the swap method, num1 is " +
num1 + " and num2 is " + num2);
swap(num1, num2);
System.out.println("After invoking the swap method, num1 is " +
num1 + " and num2 is " + num2);
}
public static void swap(int n1, int n2) {
System.out.println("\tInside the swap method");
System.out.println("\t\tBefore swapping n1 is " + n1 + " n2 is " + n2);
int temp = n1;
n1 = n2;
n2 = temp;
System.out.println("\t\tAfter swapping n1 is " + n1 + " n2 is " + n2);
}
}
١١
 Pass by Value, cont.
The values of num1 and num2 are
passed to n1 and n2. Executing swap
does not affect num1 and num2.

Space required for the

swap method
temp:
n2: 2
n1: 1
Space required for the Space required for the Space required for the
main method main method main method Stack is empty
num2: 2 num2: 2 num2: 2
num1: 1 num1: 1 num1: 1

The main method The swap method The swap method The main method
is invoked is invoked is finished is finished

١٢
Overloading Methods
Example of overloading the max Method
public class TestMethodOverloading {
public static void main(String[] args) {
System.out.println("The maximum between 3 and 4 is “
+ max(3, 4));
System.out.println("The maximum between 3.0 and 5.4 is “
+ max(3.0, 5.4));
System.out.println("The maximum between 3.0, 5.4, and 10.14 is “
+ max(3.0, 5.4, 10.14));
}
public static int max(int num1, int num2) {
if (num1 > num2)
return num1;
else
return num2; }
public static double max(double num1, double num2) {
if (num1 > num2)
return num1;
else
return num2; }
public static double max(double num1, double num2, double num3) {
return max(max(num1, num2), num3); }} ١٣
Ambiguous Invocation
Sometimes there may be two or more
possible matches for an invocation of a
method, but the compiler cannot determine
the most specific match. This is referred to
as ambiguous invocation. Ambiguous
invocation is a compilation error.

١٤
Ambiguous Invocation, cont
public class AmbiguousOverloading {
public static void main(String[] args) {
System.out.println(max(1, 2));
}
public static double max(int num1, double num2) {
if (num1 > num2)
return num1;
else
return num2;
}
public static double max(double num1, int num2) {
if (num1 > num2)
return num1;
else
return num2;
}
}
١٥
Scope of Local Variables
A local variable: a variable defined inside a
method.
Scope: the part of the program where the
variable can be referenced.
The scope of a local variable starts from its
declaration and continues to the end of the
block that contains the variable. A local
variable must be declared before it can be
used.

١٦
Scope of Local Variables, cont.

You can declare a local variable with the same

name multiple times in different non-nesting
blocks in a method, but you cannot declare a
local variable twice in nested blocks.

١٧
 Scope of Local Variables, cont.
A variable declared in the initial action part of a for loop header has its scope in the
entire loop. But a variable declared inside a for loop body has its scope limited in the
loop body from its declaration and to the end of the block that contains the variable.

public static void method1() {

.
.
for (int i = 1; i < 10; i++) {
.
The scope of i .
int j;
.
The scope of j .
.
}
}
١٨
Scope of Local Variables, cont.
It is fine to declare i in two It is wrong to declare i in
non-nesting blocks two nesting blocks

public static void method1() { public static void method2() {

int x = 1;
int y = 1; int i = 1;
int sum = 0;
for (int i = 1; i < 10; i++) {
x += i; for (int i = 1; i < 10; i++) {
} sum += i;
}
for (int i = 1; i < 10; i++) {
y += i; }
}
}

١٩
Method Abstraction
You can think of the method body as a black
box that contains the detailed
implementation for the method.
Optional arguments Optional return
for Input value

Method Signature
Black Box
Method body

٢٠
Benefits of Methods
Write a method once and reuse it anywhere.
‫اﻛﺗب اﻟداﻟﺔ ﻣرة واﺣدة واﺳﺗﺧدﻣﮭﺎ ﻓﻲ اي ﻣﻛﺎن‬
Information hiding. Hide the implementation
from the user. ‫اﺧﻔﺎء ﻣﻌﻠوﻣﺎت اﻟﺗﻧﻔﯾذ ﻋن اﻟﻣﺳﺗﺧدم‬
Reduce complexity. ‫ﺗﻘﻠﯾل اﻟﺗﻌﻘﯾد‬

٢١
The Math Class
Class constants:
PI
E
Class methods:
Trigonometric Methods
Exponent Methods
Rounding Methods
min, max, abs, and random Methods

٢٢
Trigonometric Methods
sin(double a) Examples:

cos(double a) Math.sin(0) returns 0.0

tan(double a) Math.sin(Math.PI / 6)
returns 0.5
acos(double a) Math.sin(Math.PI / 2)
returns 1.0
asin(double a)
Math.cos(0) returns 1.0
atan(double a) Math.cos(Math.PI / 6)
returns 0.866
Math.cos(Math.PI / 2)
Radians returns 0

toRadians(90
٢٣
)
Exponent Methods
exp(double a) Examples:
Returns e raised to the power
of a. Math.exp(1) returns 2.71
Math.log(2.71) returns 1.0
log(double a)
Math.pow(2, 3) returns 8.0
Returns the natural logarithm
Math.pow(3, 2) returns 9.0
of a.
Math.pow(3.5, 2.5) returns
log10(double a) 22.91765
Returns the 10-based Math.sqrt(4) returns 2.0
logarithm of a. Math.sqrt(10.5) returns 3.24
pow(double a, double b)
Returns a raised to the power
of b.
sqrt(double a)
Returns the square root of a. ٢٤
Rounding Methods
double ceil(double x)
x rounded up to its nearest integer. This integer is returned
as a double value.
double floor(double x)
x is rounded down to its nearest integer. This integer is
returned as a double value.
double rint(double x)
x is rounded to its nearest integer. If x is equally close to
two integers, the even one is returned as a double.
int round(float x)
Return (int)Math.floor(x+0.5).
long round(double x)
Return (long)Math.floor(x+0.5).

٢٥
Rounding Methods Examples
Math.ceil(2.1) returns 3.0
Math.ceil(2.0) returns 2.0
Math.ceil(-2.0) returns –2.0
Math.ceil(-2.1) returns -2.0
Math.floor(2.1) returns 2.0
Math.floor(2.0) returns 2.0
Math.floor(-2.0) returns –2.0
Math.floor(-2.1) returns -3.0
Math.rint(2.1) returns 2.0
Math.rint(2.0) returns 2.0
Math.rint(-2.0) returns –2.0
Math.rint(-2.1) returns -2.0
Math.rint(2.5) returns 2.0
Math.rint(-2.5) returns -2.0
Math.round(2.6f) returns 3
Math.round(2.0) returns 2
Math.round(-2.0f) returns -2
Math.round(-2.6) returns -3 ٢٦
 min, max, and abs
max(a, b)and min(a, Examples:
b)
Returns the maximum or Math.max(2, 3) returns 3
minimum of two parameters.
Math.max(2.5, 3) returns
abs(a) 3.0
Returns the absolute value Math.min(2.5, 3.6)
of the parameter. returns 2.5
random() Math.abs(-2) returns 2
Returns a random double Math.abs(-2.1) returns
value 2.1
in the range [0.0, 1.0).

٢٧
 The random Method
Generates a random double value greater than or equal to 0.0
and less than 1.0 (0 <= Math.random() < 1.0).

Examples:

Returns a random integer

(int)(Math.random() * 10)
between 0 and 9.

Returns a random integer

50 + (int)(Math.random() * 50)
between 50 and 99.

In general,
Returns a random number between
a + Math.random() * b
a and a + b, excluding a + b.

٢٨
 View java.lang.Math Documentation
You can view the complete
documentation for the Math
class online from
http://java.sun.com/j2se/1.5.
2/docs/api/index.htm.

٢٩
 Case Study: Generating Random
Characters
Computer programs process numerical data and
characters. You have seen many examples that
involve numerical data. It is also important to
understand characters and how to process them.
As introduced in Section 2.9, each character has a
unique Unicode between 0 and FFFF in hexadecimal
(65535 in decimal). To generate a random character
is to generate a random integer between 0 and
65535 using the following expression: (note that
since 0 <= Math.random() < 1.0, you have to add 1 to
65535.)
(int)(Math.random() * (65535 + 1))
٣٠
 Case Study: Generating
Random Characters, cont.
Now let us consider how to generate a random
lowercase letter. The Unicode for lowercase
letters are consecutive integers starting from
the Unicode for 'a', then for 'b', 'c', ..., and 'z'.
The Unicode for 'a' is
(int)'a'
So, a random integer between (int)'a' and
(int)'z' is
(int)((int)'a' + Math.random() * ((int)'z' - (int)'a' + 1)
٣١
Case Study: Generating
Random Characters, cont.
As discussed in Section 2.9.4, all numeric
operators can be applied to the char operands.
The char operand is cast into a number if the
other operand is a number or a character. So,
the preceding expression can be simplified as
follows:
'a' + Math.random() * ('z' - 'a' + 1)

So a random lowercase letter is

(char)('a' + Math.random() * ('z' - 'a' + 1)) ٣٢
Case Study: Generating
Random Characters, cont.
To generalize the foregoing discussion, a random
character between any two characters ch1 and ch2
with ch1 < ch2 can be generated as follows:

(char)(ch1 + Math.random() * (ch2 – ch1 + 1))

٣٣
 The RandomCharacter Class
// RandomCharacter.java:
RandomCharacter.java: Generate random characters
public class RandomCharacter {
/** Generate a random character between ch1 and ch2 */
public static char getRandomCharacter(char ch1, char ch2) {
return (char)(ch1 + Math.random() * (ch2 - ch1 + 1));
}

/** Generate a random lowercase letter */

public static char getRandomLowerCaseLetter()
getRandomLowerCaseLetter() {
return getRandomCharacter('a',
getRandomCharacter('a', 'z');
}

/** Generate a random uppercase letter */

public static char getRandomUpperCaseLetter()
getRandomUpperCaseLetter() {
return getRandomCharacter('A',
getRandomCharacter('A', 'Z');
}

/** Generate a random digit character */

public static char getRandomDigitCharacter()
getRandomDigitCharacter() {
return getRandomCharacter('0', '9');
}

/** Generate a random character */

public static char getRandomCharacter()
getRandomCharacter() {
return getRandomCharacter('\
getRandomCharacter('\u0000', '\
'\uFFFF');
uFFFF');
}
}
٣٤
 Implementation
Bottom-up approach is to implement one method in the
structure chart at a time from the bottom to the top. For
each method implemented, write a test program to test it.
Both top-down and bottom-up methods are fine. Both
approaches implement the methods incrementally and
help to isolate programming errors and makes debugging
easy. Sometimes, they can be used together.

٣٥
Package
There are three reasons for using packages:

1. To avoid naming conflicts. When you develop

reusable classes to be shared by other
programmers, naming conflicts often occur. To
prevent this, put your classes into packages so
that they can be referenced through package
names.
2. To distribute software conveniently. Packages
group related classes so that they can be easily
distributed.
3. To protect classes. Packages provide protection
so that the protected members of the classes are
accessible to the classes in the same package,
but not to the external classes. ٣٦
Package-Naming Conventions
Packages are hierarchical, and you can have packages within
packages. For example, java.lang.Math indicates that Math is
a class in the package lang and that lang is a package in the
package java. Levels of nesting can be used to ensure the
uniqueness of package names.

Choosing a unique name is important because your package

may be used on the Internet by other programs. Java
designers recommend that you use your Internet domain
name in reverse order as a package prefix. Since Internet
domain names are unique, this prevents naming conflicts.
Suppose you want to create a package named mypackage
on a host machine with the Internet domain name
prenhall.com. To follow the naming convention, you would
name the entire package com.prenhall.mypackage. By
convention, package names are all in lowercase.
٣٧
Package Directories
Java expects one-to-one mapping of the package name and
the file system directory structure. For the package named
com.prenhall.mypackage, you must create a directory, as
shown in the figure. In other words, a package is actually a
directory that contains the bytecode of the classes.

com.prenhall.mypackage

The com directory does not have to be the

root directory. In order for Java to know
where your package is in the file system,
you must modify the environment variable
classpath so that it points to the directory
in which your package resides.

٣٨
Setting classpath Environment
The com directory does not have to be the root directory. In order for Java to
know where your package is in the file system, you must modify the environment
variable classpath so that it points to the directory in which your package resides.

Suppose the com directory is under c:\book. The following line adds c:\book into
the classpath:
classpath=c:\book;

The period (.) indicating the current directory is always in classpath. The directory
c:\book is in classpath so that you can use the package com.prenhall.mypackage
in the program.

٣٩
 Putting Classes into Packages
Every class in Java belongs to a package. The class is added to the package when
it is compiled. All the classes that you have used so far in this book were placed in
the current directory (a default package) when the Java source programs were
compiled. To put a class in a specific package, you need to add the following line
as the first noncomment and nonblank statement in the program:

package packagename;

٤٠
 Putting Classes into Packages
Problem
This example creates a class named Format and places it in the package
mypackage. The Format class contains the format(number, numOfDecimalDigits)
method that returns a new number with the specified number of digits after the
decimal point. For example, format(10.3422345, 2) returns 10.34, and format(-
0.343434, 3) returns –0.343.

Solution
1. Create Format.java as follows and save it into c:\test\mypackage.
// Format.java: Format number.
package mypackage;
mypackage;

public class Format {

public static double format(
double number, int numOfDecimalDigits)
numOfDecimalDigits) {
return Math.round(number * Math.pow(10, numOfDecimalDigits))
numOfDecimalDigits)) /
Math.pow(10, numOfDecimalDigits);
numOfDecimalDigits);
}
}
2. Compile Format.java. Make sure Format.class is in
c:\test\mypackage.
٤١
 Using Classes from Packages
There are two ways to use classes from a package.
• One way is to use the fully qualified name of the class. For example, the fully
qualified name for JOptionPane is javax.swing.JOptionPane. For Format in the
preceding example, it is mypackage.Format. This is convenient if the class is used a
few times in the program.
• The other way is to use the import statement. For example, to import all the
classes in the javax.swing package, you can use
import javax.swing.*;

An import that uses a * is called an import on demand declaration. You can also
import a specific class. For example, this statement imports
javax.swing.JOptionPane:
import javax.swing.JOptionPane;

The information for the classes in an imported package is not read in at compile time
or runtime unless the class is used in the program. The import statement simply tells
the compiler where to locate the classes.

٤٢
 Using Packages
Problem
This example shows a program that uses the Format class in the mypackage package.

Solution
1. Create TestFormatClass.java as follows and save it into c:\test.
The following code gives the solution to the problem.

// TestFormatClass.java: Demonstrate using the Format class

import mypackage.Format;

public class TestFormatClass {

/** Main method */
public static void main(String[] args) {
System.out.println(Format.format(10.3422345, 2));
System.out.println(Format.format(-0.343434, 3));
}
}

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