Chapter 4

Writing Classes
Writing Classes
• We've been using predefined classes. Now we will
learn to write our own classes to define objects

• Chapter 4 focuses on:

 class definitions
 instance data
 encapsulation and Java modifiers
 method declaration and parameter passing
 constructors
 graphical objects
 events and listeners
 buttons and text fields

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Outline
Anatomy of a Class
Encapsulation
Anatomy of a Method
Graphical Objects
Graphical User Interfaces
Buttons and Text Fields

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Writing Classes
• The programs we’ve written in previous examples
have used classes defined in the Java standard
class library

• Now we will begin to design programs that rely on

classes that we write ourselves

• The class that contains the main method is just

the starting point of a program

• True object-oriented programming is based on

defining classes that represent objects with well-
defined characteristics and functionality

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Classes and Objects
• Recall from our overview of objects in Chapter 1
that an object has state and behavior
• Consider a six-sided die (singular of dice)
 It’s state can be defined as which face is showing
 It’s primary behavior is that it can be rolled

• We can represent a die in software by designing a

class called Die that models this state and
behavior
 The class serves as the blueprint for a die object

• We can then instantiate as many die objects as we

need for any particular program
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Classes
• A class can contain data declarations and method
declarations

int size, weight; Data declarations

char category;

Method declarations

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Classes
• The values of the data define the state of an object
created from the class

• The functionality of the methods define the

behaviors of the object

• For our Die class, we might declare an integer that

represents the current value showing on the face

• One of the methods would “roll” the die by setting

that value to a random number between one and
six

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Classes
• We’ll want to design the Die class with other data
and methods to make it a versatile and reusable
resource

• Any given program will not necessarily use all

aspects of a given class

• See RollingDice.java (page 157)

• See Die.java (page 158)

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The Die Class
• The Die class contains two data values
 a constant MAX that represents the maximum face value
 an integer faceValue that represents the current face
value

• The roll method uses the random method of the

Math class to determine a new face value
• There are also methods to explicitly set and
retrieve the current face value at any time

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The toString Method
• All classes that represent objects should define a
toString method

• The toString method returns a character string

that represents the object in some way
• It is called automatically when an object is
concatenated to a string or when it is passed to
the println method

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Constructors
• As mentioned previously, a constructor is a
special method that is used to set up an object
when it is initially created
• A constructor has the same name as the class
• The Die constructor is used to set the initial face
value of each new die object to one
• We examine constructors in more detail later in
this chapter

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Data Scope
• The scope of data is the area in a program in
which that data can be referenced (used)

• Data declared at the class level can be referenced

by all methods in that class

• Data declared within a method can be used only in

that method

• Data declared within a method is called local data

• In the Die class, the variable result is declared

inside the toString method -- it is local to that
method and cannot be referenced anywhere else

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Instance Data
• The faceValue variable in the Die class is called
instance data because each instance (object) that
is created has its own version of it
• A class declares the type of the data, but it does
not reserve any memory space for it
• Every time a Die object is created, a new
faceValue variable is created as well
• The objects of a class share the method
definitions, but each object has its own data space
• That's the only way two objects can have different
states

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Instance Data
• We can depict the two Die objects from the
RollingDice program as follows:

die1 faceValue 5

die2 faceValue 2

Each object maintains its own faceValue

variable, and thus its own state

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UML Diagrams
• UML stands for the Unified Modeling Language

• UML diagrams show relationships among classes

and objects

• A UML class diagram consists of one or more

classes, each with sections for the class name,
attributes (data), and operations (methods)

• Lines between classes represent associations

• A dotted arrow shows that one class uses the

other (calls its methods)

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UML Class Diagrams
• A UML class diagram for the RollingDice
program:

RollingDice Die
faceValue : int
main (args : String[]) : void
roll() : int
setFaceValue (int value) : void
getFaceValue() : int
toString() : String

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Outline
Anatomy of a Class
Encapsulation
Anatomy of a Method
Graphical Objects
Graphical User Interfaces
Buttons and Text Fields

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Encapsulation
• We can take one of two views of an object:
 internal - the details of the variables and methods of the
class that defines it

 external - the services that an object provides and how

the object interacts with the rest of the system

• From the external view, an object is an

encapsulated entity, providing a set of specific
services

• These services define the interface to the object

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Encapsulation
• One object (called the client) may use another
object for the services it provides

• The client of an object may request its services

(call its methods), but it should not have to be
aware of how those services are accomplished

• Any changes to the object's state (its variables)

should be made by that object's methods

• We should make it difficult, if not impossible, for a

client to access an object’s variables directly

• That is, an object should be self-governing

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Encapsulation
• An encapsulated object can be thought of as a
black box -- its inner workings are hidden from the
client
• The client invokes the interface methods of the
object, which manages the instance data

Client Methods

Data

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Visibility Modifiers
• In Java, we accomplish encapsulation through the
appropriate use of visibility modifiers

• A modifier is a Java reserved word that specifies

particular characteristics of a method or data

• We've used the final modifier to define constants

• Java has three visibility modifiers: public,

protected, and private

• The protected modifier involves inheritance,

which we will discuss later

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Visibility Modifiers
• Members of a class that are declared with public
visibility can be referenced anywhere

• Members of a class that are declared with private

visibility can be referenced only within that class

• Members declared without a visibility modifier

have default visibility and can be referenced by
any class in the same package

• An overview of all Java modifiers is presented in

Appendix E

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Visibility Modifiers
• Public variables violate encapsulation because
they allow the client to “reach in” and modify the
values directly

• Therefore instance variables should not be

declared with public visibility

• It is acceptable to give a constant public visibility,

which allows it to be used outside of the class

• Public constants do not violate encapsulation

because, although the client can access it, its
value cannot be changed

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Visibility Modifiers
• Methods that provide the object's services are
declared with public visibility so that they can be
invoked by clients
• Public methods are also called service methods

• A method created simply to assist a service

method is called a support method
• Since a support method is not intended to be
called by a client, it should not be declared with
public visibility

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Visibility Modifiers

public private

Variables
Violate Enforce
encapsulation encapsulation

Support other
Methods
Provide services
methods in the
to clients
class

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Accessors and Mutators
• Because instance data is private, a class usually
provides services to access and modify data
values

• An accessor method returns the current value of a

variable

• A mutator method changes the value of a variable

• The names of accessor and mutator methods take

the form getX and setX, respectively, where X is
the name of the value

• They are sometimes called “getters” and “setters”

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Mutator Restrictions
• The use of mutators gives the class designer the
ability to restrict a client’s options to modify an
object’s state

• A mutator is often designed so that the values of

variables can be set only within particular limits

• For example, the setFaceValue mutator of the

Die class should have restricted the value to the
valid range (1 to MAX)

• We’ll see in Chapter 5 how such restrictions can

be implemented

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Outline
Anatomy of a Class
Encapsulation
Anatomy of a Method
Graphical Objects
Graphical User Interfaces
Buttons and Text Fields

© 2004 Pearson Addison-Wesley. All rights reserved 4-28

Method Declarations
• Let’s now examine method declarations in more
detail

• A method declaration specifies the code that will

be executed when the method is invoked (called)

• When a method is invoked, the flow of control

jumps to the method and executes its code

• When complete, the flow returns to the place

where the method was called and continues

• The invocation may or may not return a value,

depending on how the method is defined

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Method Control Flow
• If the called method is in the same class, only the
method name is needed

compute myMethod

myMethod();

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Method Control Flow
• The called method is often part of another class or
object

main doIt helpMe

obj.doIt(); helpMe();

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Method Header
• A method declaration begins with a method header

char calc (int num1, int num2, String message)

method
parameter list
name

return The parameter list specifies the type

type and name of each parameter

The name of a parameter in the method

declaration is called a formal parameter

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Method Body
• The method header is followed by the method body

char calc (int num1, int num2, String message)

{
int sum = num1 + num2;
char result = message.charAt (sum);

return result; sum and result

} are local data

They are created

The return expression each time the
must be consistent with method is called, and
the return type are destroyed when
it finishes executing

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The return Statement
• The return type of a method indicates the type of
value that the method sends back to the calling
location

• A method that does not return a value has a void

return type

• A return statement specifies the value that will be

returned

return expression;

• Its expression must conform to the return type

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Parameters
• When a method is called, the actual parameters in
the invocation are copied into the formal
parameters in the method header

ch = obj.calc (25, count, "Hello");

char calc (int num1, int num2, String message)

{
int sum = num1 + num2;
char result = message.charAt (sum);

return result;
}
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Local Data
• As we’ve seen, local variables can be declared
inside a method

• The formal parameters of a method create

automatic local variables when the method is
invoked

• When the method finishes, all local variables are

destroyed (including the formal parameters)

• Keep in mind that instance variables, declared at

the class level, exists as long as the object exists

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Bank Account Example
• Let’s look at another example that demonstrates
the implementation details of classes and methods

• We’ll represent a bank account by a class named

Account

• It’s state can include the account number, the

current balance, and the name of the owner

• An account’s behaviors (or services) include

deposits and withdrawals, and adding interest

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Driver Programs
• A driver program drives the use of other, more
interesting parts of a program
• Driver programs are often used to test other parts
of the software
• The Transactions class contains a main method
that drives the use of the Account class,
exercising its services
• See Transactions.java (page 172)
• See Account.java (page 173)

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Bank Account Example

acct1 acctNumber 72354

balance 102.56

name “Ted Murphy”

acct2 acctNumber 69713

balance 40.00

name “Jane Smith”

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Bank Account Example
• There are some improvements that can be made to
the Account class

• Formal getters and setters could have been

defined for all data

• The design of some methods could also be more

robust, such as verifying that the amount
parameter to the withdraw method is positive

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Constructors Revisited
• Note that a constructor has no return type
specified in the method header, not even void

• A common error is to put a return type on a

constructor, which makes it a “regular” method
that happens to have the same name as the class

• The programmer does not have to define a

constructor for a class

• Each class has a default constructor that accepts

no parameters

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Outline
Anatomy of a Class
Encapsulation
Anatomy of a Method
Graphical Objects
Graphical User Interfaces
Buttons and Text Fields

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Graphical Objects
• Some objects contain information that determines
how the object should be represented visually

• Most GUI components are graphical objects

• We can have some effect on how components get

drawn

• We did this in Chapter 2 when we defined the

paint method of an applet

• Let's look at some other examples of graphical

objects

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Smiling Face Example
• The SmilingFace program draws a face by
defining the paintComponent method of a panel

• See SmilingFace.java (page 177)

• See SmilingFacePanel.java (page 178)

• The main method of the SmilingFace class

instantiates a SmilingFacePanel and displays it

• The SmilingFacePanel class is derived from the

JPanel class using inheritance

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Smiling Face Example
• Every Swing component has a paintComponent
method

• The paintComponent method accepts a Graphics

object that represents the graphics context for the
panel

• We define the paintComponent method to draw

the face with appropriate calls to the Graphics
methods

• Note the difference between drawing on a panel

and adding other GUI components to a panel

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Splat Example
• The Splat example is structured a bit differently

• It draws a set of colored circles on a panel, but

each circle is represented as a separate object that
maintains its own graphical information

• The paintComponent method of the panel "asks"

each circle to draw itself

• See Splat.java (page 180)

• See SplatPanel.java (page 181)
• See Circle.java (page 182)

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Outline
Anatomy of a Class
Encapsulation
Anatomy of a Method
Graphical Objects
Graphical User Interfaces
Buttons and Text Fields

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Graphical User Interfaces
• A Graphical User Interface (GUI) in Java is created
with at least three kinds of objects:
 components
 events
 listeners

• We've previously discussed components, which

are objects that represent screen elements
 labels, buttons, text fields, menus, etc.

• Some components are containers that hold and

organize other components
 frames, panels, applets, dialog boxes

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Events
• An event is an object that represents some activity
to which we may want to respond
• For example, we may want our program to perform
some action when the following occurs:
 the mouse is moved
 the mouse is dragged
 a mouse button is clicked
 a graphical button is clicked
 a keyboard key is pressed
 a timer expires

• Events often correspond to user actions, but not

always

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Events and Listeners
• The Java standard class library contains several
classes that represent typical events

• Components, such as a graphical button, generate

(or fire) an event when it occurs

• A listener object "waits" for an event to occur and

responds accordingly

• We can design listener objects to take whatever

actions are appropriate when an event occurs

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Events and Listeners

Event

Component Listener

A component object A corresponding listener

may generate an event object is designed to
respond to the event

When the event occurs, the component calls

the appropriate method of the listener,
passing an object that describes the event

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GUI Development
• Generally we use components and events that are
predefined by classes in the Java class library

• Therefore, to create a Java program that uses a

GUI we must:
 instantiate and set up the necessary components

 implement listener classes for any events we care about

 establish the relationship between listeners and

components that generate the corresponding events

• Let's now explore some new components and see

how this all comes together

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Outline
Anatomy of a Class
Encapsulation
Anatomy of a Method
Graphical Objects
Graphical User Interfaces
Buttons and Text Fields

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Buttons
• A push button is a component that allows the user
to initiate an action by pressing a graphical button
using the mouse

• A push button is defined by the JButton class

• It generates an action event

• The PushCounter example displays a push button

that increments a counter each time it is pushed

• See PushCounter.java (page 186)

• See PushCounterPanel.java (page 187)

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Push Counter Example
• The components of the GUI are the button, a label
to display the counter, a panel to organize the
components, and the main frame

• The PushCounterPanel class is represents the

panel used to display the button and label

• The PushCounterPanel class is derived from

JPanel using inheritance

• The constructor of PushCounterPanel sets up the

elements of the GUI and initializes the counter to
zero

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Push Counter Example
• The ButtonListener class is the listener for the
action event generated by the button

• It is implemented as an inner class, which means it

is defined within the body of another class

• That facilitates the communication between the

listener and the GUI components

• Inner classes should only be used in situations

where there is an intimate relationship between
the two classes and the inner class is not needed
in any other context

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Push Counter Example
• Listener classes are written by implementing a
listener interface
• The ButtonListener class implements the
ActionListener interface
• An interface is a list of methods that the
implementing class must define
• The only method in the ActionListener interface
is the actionPerformed method
• The Java class library contains interfaces for
many types of events
• We discuss interfaces in more detail in Chapter 6

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Push Counter Example
• The PushCounterPanel constructor:
 instantiates the ButtonListener object

 establishes the relationship between the button and the

listener by the call to addActionListener

• When the user presses the button, the button

component creates an ActionEvent object and
calls the actionPerformed method of the listener

• The actionPerformed method increments the

counter and resets the text of the label

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Text Fields
• Let's look at another GUI example that uses
another type of component

• A text field allows the user to enter one line of

input

• If the cursor is in the text field, the text field

component generates an action event when the
enter key is pressed

• See Fahrenheit.java (page 190)

• See FahrenheitPanel.java (page 191)

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Fahrenheit Example
• Like the PushCounter example, the GUI is set up
in a separate panel class
• The TempListener inner class defines the listener
for the action event generated by the text field
• The FahrenheitPanel constructor instantiates
the listener and adds it to the text field
• When the user types a temperature and presses
enter, the text field generates the action event and
calls the actionPerformed method of the listener
• The actionPerformed method computes the
conversion and updates the result label

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Summary
• Chapter 4 focused on:
 class definitions
 instance data
 encapsulation and Java modifiers
 method declaration and parameter passing
 constructors
 graphical objects
 events and listeners
 buttons and text fields

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