Classes and Objects

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 What do we know so far?
 Primitives: int, float, double, boolean, char
 Variables: Stores values of one type.
 Arrays: Store many of the same type.
 Control Structures: If-then, For Loops.
 Methods: Block of code that we can pass
arguments to and run multiple times.
 Is this all we want?

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 Object-Oriented Programming
 Programming using objects
 An object represents an entity
 Real world object: String, car, watch, …
 Abstract object: client, server, network
connection, …
 Objects have two parts:
 State: Properties of an object.
 Behavior: Things the object can do.

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 Objects
 Car Example:
 State: Color, engine size, automatic
 Behavior: Brake, accelerate, shift gear

 Person Example:
 State: Height, weight, gender, age
 Behavior: Eat, sleep, exercise, study

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 What is an Object?
 An Object has two primary components:
 state – properties of the object

 behavior – operations the object can perform

 Examples
object state behavior
dog breed, isHungry eat, bark
grade book grades mean, median
light on/off switch
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 Objects in Java
 A class defines a new type of Object

 To create an Object type to represent a

light switch . . .

class LightSwitch {

// state and behavior here

} 6
 Fields
 An Object's state is stored in variables
called fields
 Fields are declared (and optionally
initialized) inside the braces of the class
 Light switch example with a field . . .
class LightSwitch {

boolean on = true;

} 7
 Methods

 An Object's behavior is defined by its

methods

 Methods, like fields, are written inside

the braces of the class

 Methods can access the fields (the state)

of their object and can change them
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Light Switch Example
class LightSwitch {

boolean on = true; // field

boolean isOn() { // returns

return on; // the state
}

void switch() { // changes

on = !on; // the state
}
} 9
 Constructing Objects
 We use the new keyword to construct a
new instance of an Object

 We can assign this instance to a variable

with the same type of the Object

LightSwitch ls = new LightSwitch();

 Note: classes define new datatypes !

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 Using Fields and Methods
LightSwitch ls = new LightSwitch();
 To access the field of an instance of an
Object use instance.field
ls.on;

 To access the method of an instance use

instance.method(arguments)
ls.isOn();
ls.switch();
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 Example Using Light Switch

 What does this main method print out?

public static void main(String[] args){
LightSwitch ls = new LightSwitch();
System.out.println(ls.on);
ls.switch();
System.out.println(ls.isOn());

true
false
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 Person Example
class Person {
String name = "Jamal";
int age = 26;
String getName() { return name; }

void setName(String n) { name = n; }

int getAge() { return age; }

void setAge(int a) { age = a; }

boolean smellsGood(){return true;}

}
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 Constructing Person Objects
 To create an instance of the Person class
with a name of "kebede" and an age of 22
Person kebede = new Person();
kebede.setName("kebede");
kebede.setAge(22);

 Can we create a Person that has the name

Kebede and the age 22 from the moment it
is created?
 Answer: Yes! 14
 Constructors
 Constructors are special methods used to
construct an instance of a class

 They have no return type

 They have the same name as the class of the

Object they are constructing

 They initialize the state of the Object

 Call the constructor by preceding it with the

new keyword
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 Person Constructor
class Person {
String name;
int age;

Person(String n, int a) {
name = n;
age = a;
}
// . . .
}
 Now we can construct Kebede as follows:
Person kebede = new Person("Kebede", 22);
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 Default Constructor
 When you do not write a constructor in a
class, it implicitly has a constructor with no
arguments and an empty body
class LightSwitch {

// Leaving out the constructor

// is the same as . . .
LightSwitch() {}
}
 Result: every class has a constructor
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 Multiple Constructors
 A class can have multiple constructors
class LightSwitch {

boolean on;

LightSwitch() {
on = true;
}

LightSwitch(boolean o) {
on = o;
}
} 18
 Multiple constructor example 2
class C2{
int a,b;
C2()//no argument passing constructor
{
a=b=0;
}
C2(int x)//one argument passing constructor
{a=b=x;}
C2(int x, int y)//two arg passing constr
{ a=x;
b=y;
}
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 Multiple constructor example 2…
void display()
{
System.out.println("a and b"+a+b);
}}
Class Example{
Public static void main(String[] args){
C2 o1=new C2();//no arg passing consr calling
C2 o2=new C2(100);//one arg…
C2 o3=new C2(10,20);//two arg…
o1.display();
0
o2.display(); 100
o3.display(): 10 and 20
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 This Keyword
 Instance can refer to itself with the keyword this

class LightSwitch {
boolean on;

LightSwitch() {
this.on = true; //(same as
on=true;)
}

LightSwitch(boolean on) {
this.on = on;
}
} 21
 Cascading Constructors
 A constructor can call another constructor with
this(arguments)
class LightSwitch {
boolean on;

LightSwitch() {
this(true);
}

LightSwitch(boolean on) {
this.on = on;
}
}
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 Classes summary
 Classes have:
 fields to store the state of the objects in the class and
 methods to provide the operations the objects can
perform.
 We construct instances of a class with the keyword
new followed by a call to constructor method of the
class.

 If you do not provide a constructor, the class will

have one with no arguments and no statements by
default.
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Apple Example
class Apple {
String color;
double price;

Apple(String color, double price) {

this.color = color;
this.price = price;
}

Apple(double price) {
this("green", price);
}

String getColor() { return color; }

double getPrice() { return price; }
void setPrice(double p) { price = p; }
} 24
 Apple Quiz
 What will these lines print out?

Apple a = new Apple("red", 100.0);

System.out.println(a.getColor()); red
System.out.println(a.getPrice()); 100.0
a.setPrice(50.5);
System.out.println(a.getPrice()); 50.5

Apple b = new Apple(74.6);

System.out.println(b.getColor()); green
System.out.println(b.getPrice()); 74.6
b.setPrice(a.getPrice());
System.out.println(b.getPrice()); 50.5
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 Method overloading
 Java allows a method to be overloaded.
 Method overloading occurs when a class has two
or more methods with the same name but different
parameter lists.
 On calling a method,
 at first java matches up the method name
 and then the number and type of parameter to decide
which one of the definition to execute.
 This process is known as compile time
polymorphism.
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 Method overloading...
 In method overloading, we need to remember
certain points:
 You can overload a method as long as the
parameter lists are distinct (i.e. number of
parameters is different.)

E.g:
public double volume(double l,double w,
double h);//three parameters
public double volume(double l);//one
parameter
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 Method overloading...
 Changing the return type doesn’t affect whether
the overloading is valid or not.
 Changing the order of parameters is valid.
 E.g-
public void area(int x, int y, long z);
public void area(long a, int b, int c);

 If you simply change the name of parameters, it

is not valid.

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 Illustrating Method overloading
class Shape {
double length,width,area;
void area()
{
length=5;
width=6;
area=(length*width);
System.out.println(“Area is:”+area);
}
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 Illustrating Method overloading...
void area(double l, double w){
length=l;
width=w;
area=(length * width);
System.out.println(“Area is:”+area):
}}
Class ShapeArea{
public static void main(String[] args){
Shape s=new Shape();
s.area();
s.area(10,10);}} // output= Area is 30.0
Area is 100.0

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 Constructor overloading
 We can have several constructors but with a
different parameter with in a class.
 The property by which a class can have multiple
constructors is called constructor overloading.
 E.g:

Class Area{
double length,width,area;

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 Constructor overloading...
Area(){
length=5;
width=6;
area=(length*width);
System.out.println(“Area is:”+area);
}
Area(double l, double w){
length=l;
Width=w;
area=(length * width);
System.out.println(“Area is:”+area):
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 Constructor overloading...
Area(double l){
length=l;
area=(length * length);
System.out.println(“Area is:”+ area);
}}
class ShapeArea{
public static void main(String[] args){
Area a1=new Area();
Area a2=new Area(10,10);
Area a3=new Area(10);}}
Output: Area is: 30.0
Area is: 100.0 Area is: 100.0 33
 Equality Quiz 1
 Is (a == b) ?
int a = 7;
int b = 7;
 Answer: Yes
 Is (g == h) ?
Person g = new Person("Jamal", 26);
Person h = new Person("Jamal", 26);

 Answer: No
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 Primitives vs Objects
 Two datatypes in Java: primitives and objects

Primitives: byte, short, int, long, double, float,

boolean, char
== tests if two primitives have the same value

Objects: defined in Java classes

== tests if two references refer to the same
object 35
 References
 The new keyword always constructs a
new unique instance of a class
 When an instance is assigned to a
variable, that variable is said to
hold a reference or point to that object
Person g = new Person("Jamal", 26);
Person h = new Person("Jamal", 26);
 g and h hold references to two different
objects that happen to have identical state
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 Reference Inequality
 g != h because g and h hold references
to different objects
Person g = new Person("Jamal", 26);
Person h = new Person("Jamal", 26);

g h

"Jamal" "Jamal"
26 26

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 Reference Equality
 kebe1 == kebe2 because kebe1 and
kebe2 hold references to the same object
Person kebe1 = new Person("Kebe", 23);
Person kebe2 = kebe1;

kebe1

" Kebe"
23

kebe2

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 Equality Quiz 2
 true or false?
Person g = new Person("Jamal", 26);
Person h = new Person("Jamal", 26);
Person Abe1 = new Person("Abe", 23);
Person Abe2 = Abe1;

a) g == h false
b) g.getAge() == h.getAge() true
c) Abe1 == Abe2 true
d) Abe1.getAge() == Abe2.getAge(); true
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Static and Final

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 MyMath Example

public class MyMath {

public double PI = 3.14159;

public double square (double x) {

return x * x;
}

public static void main(String[ ] args) {

MyMath m = new MyMath();
System.out.println("m: value of PI is " + m.PI);
System.out.println("m: square of 5 is " + m.square(5));

MyMath n = new MyMath();

System.out.println("n: value of PI is " + n.PI);
System.out.println("n: square of 5 is " + n.square(5));
}
} 41
 Objects Review
 In Example 1, to calculate the square of 5 we
need to create an instance of MyMath class:

MyMath m = new MyMath();

 Then we invoke it’s square() method with the

argument 5:

m.square(5);

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MyMath Output
 The results of invoking square() method on
instances m and n are the same:

m: value of PI is 3.14159
m: square of 5 is 25
n: value of PI is 3.14159
n: square of 5 is 25

 square() behaves the same no matter which

instance it is called on.

 So . . . why not have one square() method

for the entire class?
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 Also . . .
 The value of PI = 3.14159 is the
same for all instances of MyMath class.

 Why do we need to store a value of PI

separately for each instance of MyMath?

 Instead, can we have only one common

value of PI for the whole MyMath class?
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 MyMath with static
public class MyMath {

// add keyword "static" to field declaration

public static double PI = 3.14159;

// add keyword "static" to method declaration

public static double square (double x) {
return x * x;
}

// main method is always declared "static"

public static void main( String[ ] args) {
// MyMath m = new MyMath(); - No longer need this line!
// MyMath n = new MyMath(); - No longer need this line!

// Now invoke square() method on the MyMath class

System.out.println("Value of PI is " + MyMath.PI);
System.out.println("Square of 5 is" + MyMath.square(5));
}
} 45
 Static Pi Field
 We added word static to the declaration of
the final variable PI:

public static double PI = 3.14159;

 It means that now we have only one value of

variable PI for all instances of MyMath class;
PI is now a class data field

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 The final keyword
 We declared PI as
public static double PI = 3.14159;
but this does not prevent changing its value:
MyMath.PI = 999999999;

 Use keyword final to denote a constant :

public static final double PI = 3.14159;

 Once we declare a variable to be final, it's

value can no longer be changed!
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MyMath with static & final
public class MyMath {

// add keyword final to field declaration

public static final double PI = 3.14159;

public static double square (double x) {

return x * x;
}

public static void main( String[ ] args) {

System.out.println("Value of PI is " +
MyMath.PI);
System.out.println("Square of 5: " +
MyMath.square(5));
}
}
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 Static Fields

 Only one instance of a static field data for

the entire class, not one per object.

 "static" is a historic keyword from C/C++

 "Class fields" is a better term

 As opposed to "instance fields"

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 Static Square Method
 We also added the word "static" to the
declaration of the method square():

public static double square(double x) {

return x * x;
}

 Now the method square() is shared by all

instances of the class—only one square
method for the class, not one for each instance.
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 Static Methods
 Static methods do not operate on a
specific instance of their class

 Have access only to static fields and

methods of the class
 Cannot access non-static ones

 "Class methods" is a better term

 As opposed to "instance methods"
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 Java's Math Class
 Let's take a look at Java's Math class in the API

 You cannot create an instance of the Math Class,

it's just a place to store useful static methods

 All the methods and fields are static:

Math.sqrt(16)
Math.PI

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 Static Field Examples
 Constants used by a class
(usually used with final keyword)

 Have one per class; don’t need one in each object

public static final double TEMP_CONVERT= 1.8;

 Constants are all capital letters by tradition (C, C++)

 For example: PI , TEMP_CONVERT etc.

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 Static Method Examples
 For methods that use only the arguments and
therefore do not operate on an instance
public static double pow(double b, double p)
// Math class, takes b to the p power

 For methods that only need static data fields

 Main method in the class that starts the

program
 No objects exist yet for it to operate on!
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 QUIZ

Should it be static or non-static?

 Speed of light field static

 getName() method in a Person class non
 A sum method that returns the static
resulting of adding both its arguments
 Width data field in a Rectangle class non
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 Visibility control
 Every member of a class:
- The field
- Methods and
- Constructors
 Has an access specifier that determines
who has access to the member.
 Java provides four levels of access for
members of a class.
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 Visibility control…
 Public access: Granted using the public
keyword.
 It is referred to as universal access b/c
public members are accessible to any
other objects. For example:

public double i;
public void display():

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 Visibility control…
 Private access: Granted using the private
key word,
 It is the most restrictive of the four access
specifiers.
 It can’t be accessed outside the class. E.g.,
private double i;
private void sum():

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 Visibility control…
 Protected: Protected access granted
using the protected key word.
 A protected member is accessible to any
other class in the same package and also
child classes.
 no matter which class is the child with in.

protected double i;
protected void callme():
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 Visibility control…
 Default access: is also referred to as a
package access.
 You grant default access by not using
anyone of the three access specifiers.
 A member with default access is
accessible to any other classes in the
same packages.
double i;
void callme():
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