Chapter 8

Objects

 A variable of a data type that is a class. Also called

an instance of a class.
 Stores data
 Can perform actions and provide communication
 State of object refers to the data it stores
 Behavior of object refers to the action and
communication it provides

Slide 1 © 2007 Lawrenceville Press

 Chapter 8
Class

 An abstract data type

 Used to create, or instantiate, objects
 Provides encapsulation, also called information hiding

Slide 2 © 2007 Lawrenceville Press

 Chapter 8
The Circle Class

Slide 3 © 2007 Lawrenceville Press

 Chapter 8
A Class

public class Circle { body

private static final double PI = 3.14;
private double radius; variables

public Circle() { constructor

radius = 1;
}

public void setRadius(double newRadius) { method

radius = newRadius;
}

Slide 4 © 2007 Lawrenceville Press

 Chapter 8
Methods in a Class

 An accessor method is used to determine the value

of a variable
 A modifier method is used to change the value of a
variable
 A helper method is called from within a class by
other methods

Slide 5 © 2007 Lawrenceville Press

 Chapter 8
Overloading Constructors

 Constructors can be overloaded to provide more

options for instantiating an object
 The compiler uses the number and types of
parameters to determine which constructor to
execute

Slide 6 © 2007 Lawrenceville Press

 Chapter 8
Instance and Class Variables

 Each object of a class has its own copy of the

instance variables in the class.
 A class variable is declared with the keyword static
and only one copy of a class variable is maintained
for all objects to refer to.

Circle spot1 = new Circle(2); radius 2 PI 3.14

Circle spot2 = new Circle(5); radius 5 PI

Slide 7 © 2007 Lawrenceville Press

 Chapter 8
Instance and Class Methods

 Instance methods must be called from an instance of

the class. Accessor and modifier methods are always
instance methods because they change the state of
an object.
 Class methods are declared using the keyword
static and can be called from the class itself.

Slide 8 © 2007 Lawrenceville Press

 Chapter 8
Differences Between Instance and
Class Members

 Instance variables are created each time an object is

declared.
 Class variables are created once for the class and
then objects of the class refer to this copy.
 Instance methods can only be called from an object
of the class.
 Class methods can be called from the class itself.

Slide 9 © 2007 Lawrenceville Press

 Chapter 8
The Object Class
 Superclass of all other classes. Classes, such as
Circle and String, are subclasses:

 All subclasses inherit the Object methods, which

include equals() and toString().
 Inherited superclass methods can be redefined, or
overridden, in subclasses.

Slide 10 © 2007 Lawrenceville Press

 Chapter 8
Classes Using Classes

 A class containing a member variable that is a class

data type.
 Demonstrates a has-a relationship. The class "has-a"
class.

Slide 11 © 2007 Lawrenceville Press

 Chapter 8
Object-Oriented Development

 Objects are selected to model a program

specification
 Objects are created from new classes or from
existing classes
 Objects send messages to other objects to perform a
task

Slide 12 © 2007 Lawrenceville Press

 Chapter 8
Features of Object-Oriented Programming

 Reusability: existing classes can be used over and

over again in different applications, which reduces
development time and decreases the likelihood of
bugs.
 Modular: Components are separately written and
maintained.

Slide 13 © 2007 Lawrenceville Press