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

Java Programming, Sixth Edition

 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

Java Programming, Sixth Edition

 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

Java Programming, Sixth Edition

 5 Creating a Class (cont'd.)

Java Programming, Sixth Edition

 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

Java Programming, Sixth Edition

 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

Java Programming, Sixth Edition

 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

Java Programming, Sixth Edition

 9

Java Programming, Sixth Edition

 10 Creating Instance Methods
in a Class (cont'd.)

Java Programming, Sixth Edition

 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();

Java Programming, Sixth Edition

 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

Java Programming, Sixth Edition

 13 Declaring Objects and Using
Their Methods (cont'd.)
 After object instantiated
 Methods accessed using:
 Object’s identifier
 Dot
 Method call

Java Programming, Sixth Edition

 14 Declaring Objects and Using
Their Methods (cont'd.)

Java Programming, Sixth Edition

 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

Java Programming, Sixth Edition

 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

Java Programming, Sixth Edition

 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

Java Programming, Sixth Edition

 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

Java Programming, Sixth Edition

 19 An Introduction to Using
Constructors (cont'd.)

Java Programming, Sixth Edition

 20 Understanding that Classes
are Data Types
 Classes you create become data types
 Declare object from one of your classes
 Provide type and identifier

Java Programming, Sixth Edition

 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

Java Programming, Sixth Edition

 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

Java Programming, Sixth Edition

 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

Java Programming, Sixth Edition

 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

Java Programming, Sixth Edition

 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

Java Programming, Sixth Edition