Unit 3: Inheritance , Interfaces, Packages, Exceptions and Assertions

Unit-3
Topics:
Inheritance –Types of Inheritance, using the extends keyword, Method overloading, super
keyword, final keyword, abstract class.
Interfaces, Packages: Interface, extending interface, Interface Vs Abstract class, Creating
package, using the package, access protection.
Exceptions and Assertions: Exception Handling techniques, User defined Exception,
exception encapsulation and enrichment, Assertions.

Definition of Inheritance
Inheritance is the process by which one class acquires the properties of another class. This is
important because it supports the concept of hierarchical classification. The class that is
inherited is called superclass. The class that is inheriting the properties is called subclass.
Therefore the subclass is the specialized version of the superclass. The subclass inherits all
the instance variable and methods, and adds its own code.

The properties from superclass to the subclass are inherited using the "extends" keyword.

The general for of inheritance will be as follow:

class subclass_name extends superclass_name

{
//body of the subclass
}

The following program creates a superclass called A and a subclass called B. Notice how the
keyword extends is used to create a subclass of A.
// A simple example of inheritance. SimpleInheritance.java
// Create a superclass.
class A
{
int i, j;
void showij()
{
System.out.println("i and j: " + i + " " + j);
}
}
// Create a subclass by extending class A.
class B extends A {
int k;
void showk()
{
System.out.println("k: " + k);
}
void sum()
{
System.out.println("i+j+k: " + (i+j+k));
}
 Unit 3: Inheritance , Interfaces, Packages, Exceptions and Assertions

}
class SimpleInheritance
{
public static void main(String args[])
{ // subclass object creation, which acquires all the properties of the superclass
B b = new B();
/* The subclass has access to all public members of its superclass. */
b.i = 7;
b.j = 8;
b.k = 9;
System.out.println("Contents of b: ");
b.showij();
b.showk();
System.out.println("Sum of i, j and k in b:");
b.sum();
}
}

Output:
Contents of b:
i and j: 7 8
k: 9
Sum of i, j and k in b:
i+j+k: 24

private member access and inheritance

Although a subclass includes all of the members of its superclass, it cannot access those
members of the superclass that have been declared as private. The private members of the
class are accessed by the members of that class only, but are not accessed by the code outside
that class in which they are declared. For example, consider the following simple class
hierarchy:

/* In a class hierarchy, private members remain private to their class. This program contains
an error and will not compile. */

// Create a superclass.
class A
{
int i; // public by default
private int j; // private to A
void setij(int x, int y)
{
i = x;
j = y;
}
}
// A's j is not accessible here.
class B extends A
 Unit 3: Inheritance , Interfaces, Packages, Exceptions and Assertions

int total;
void sum()
{
total = i + j; // ERROR, j is not accessible here
}
}
class Access
{
public static void main(String args[])
{
B b = new B(); // creating the object b
b.setij(10, 12);
b.sum(); // Error, private members are not accessed
System.out.println("Total is " + subOb.total);
}
}

Note:
This program will not compile because the reference to j inside the sum( ) method of B
causes an access violation. Since j is declared as private, it is only accessible by other
members of its own class. Subclasses have no access to it.

A Superclass Variable Can Reference a Subclass Object

A reference variable of a superclass can be assigned a reference to any subclass derived from
that superclass. You will find this aspect of inheritance quite useful in a variety of situations.
when a reference to a subclass object is assigned to a superclass reference variable, you will
have access only to those parts of the object defined by the superclass.
For example,

class Box
{
double width,height,depth;
}
class Boxweight extends Box
{
double weight;
Boxweight(double x, double y, double z, double z)
{
width=x; height=y; depth=z; weight=a;
}
void volume()
{
System.out.println("The volume is :"+(width*height*depth));
}
}
//main class
 Unit 3: Inheritance , Interfaces, Packages, Exceptions and Assertions

class BoxDemo
{
//creating superclass object
public static void main(String args[])
{
Box b=new Box();
//creating the subclass object
Boxweight bw=new Boxweight(2,3,4,5);
bw.volume();
//assigning the subclass object to the superclass object
b=bw; // b has been created with its own data, in which weight is not a member
System.out.println ("The weight is :"+b.weight);
// here it raises error, super class does not contain the volume() method
}
}
The uses of the "super" keyword
There are two uses of the super keyword.
i. super keyword is used to call the superclass constructor
ii. super keyword is used to access the members of the superclass.

Using the super to call the super class constructor

A subclass can call the constructor of the superclass by the using the super keyword in the
following form:

super(arg_list);

Here, the arg_list, is the list of the arguments in the superclass constructor. This must be the
first statement inside the subclass constructor. For example,
// BoxWeight now uses super to initialize its Box attributes.
class Box
{
double width,height,depth;
//superclass constructor
Box(double x, double y, double z)
{
width=x;height=y;depth=z;
}
class BoxWeight extends Box
{
double weight; // weight of box
// initialize width, height, and depth using super()
BoxWeight(double w, double h, double d, double m)
{
super(w, h, d); // call superclass constructor
weight = m;
}}
 Unit 3: Inheritance , Interfaces, Packages, Exceptions and Assertions

Using the super to access the super class members

The second form of super acts somewhat like this, except that it always refers to the
superclass of the subclass in which it is used. This usage has the following general form:

super.member;

Here, member can be either a method or an instance variable.

This second form of super is most applicable to situations in which member names of a
subclass hide members by the same name in the superclass. Consider this simple class
hierarchy:

// Using super to overcome name hiding.

class A
{
int i;
}
// Create a subclass by extending class A.
class B extends A
{
int i; // this i hides the i in A
B(int a, int b)
{
super.i = a; // i in A
i = b; // i in B
}
void show()
{
System.out.println("i in superclass: " + super.i);
System.out.println("i in subclass: " + i);
}
}
class UseSuper
{
public static void main(String args[])
{
B subOb = new B(1, 2);
subOb.show();
}
}

Creating a Multilevel Hierarchy

Up to this point, we have been using simple class hierarchies that consist of only a superclass
and a subclass. However, you can build hierarchies that contain as many layers of inheritance
as you like. As mentioned, it is perfectly acceptable to use a subclass as a superclass of
another. For example, given three classes called A, B, and C, C can be a subclass of B, which
is a subclass of A. When this type of situation occurs, each subclass inherits all of the traits
 Unit 3: Inheritance , Interfaces, Packages, Exceptions and Assertions

found in all of its superclasses. In this case, C inherits all aspects of B and A. To see how a
multilevel hierarchy can be useful, consider the following program.
Example program

class A
{
void methodA()
{
System.out.println("This is the method of A");
} Multi Level Inheritance
}
//class b extends the super class A
class B extends A class A{
{ methodA()
void methodB() }
{
System.out.println("This is the method of B");
}
class B{
}
methodB()
}
//class C extends the super class B
class C extends B
{
void methodC() class C{
{ methodC()
System.out.println("This is the method of C"); }
}
}
class Hierachy
{
public static void main(String args[])
{
C cobj=new C();
c.methodA();
c.methodB();
c.methodC();
}
}

Method Overriding
In a class hierarchy, when a method in a subclass has the same name and type signature as a
method in its superclass, then the method in the subclass is said to override the method in the
superclass. When an overridden method is called from within a subclass, it will always refer
to the version of that method defined by the subclass. The version of the method defined by
the superclass will be hidden. Consider the following example:
 Unit 3: Inheritance , Interfaces, Packages, Exceptions and Assertions

class A
{
void disp()
{
System.out.println("This is the class A method");
}
}
// extending the superclass properties
class B extends A
{
void disp()
{
System.out.println("This is the class B method");
}
}
// main class
class OverRide
{
public static void main(String args[])
{
B b=new B();
b.disp(); // super class method is hidden, subclass method is invoked
}
}

output:

This is the class B method

Dynamic Method Dispatch

Dynamic method dispatch is the mechanism by which a call to an overridden method is
resolved at run time, rather than compile time. Dynamic method dispatch is important
because this is how Java implements run-time polymorphism.

Let’s begin by restating an important principle: a superclass reference variable can refer to a
subclass object. Java uses this fact to resolve calls to overridden methods at run time. Here is
how. When an overridden method is called through a superclass reference, Java determines
which version of that method to execute based upon the type of the object being referred to at
the time the call occurs. Thus, this determination is made at run time.
Here is an example that illustrates dynamic method dispatch:

// Dynamic Method Dispatch or run-time polymorphism

class A
{
void callme()
{
System.out.println("Inside A's callme method");
}
}
 Unit 3: Inheritance , Interfaces, Packages, Exceptions and Assertions

class B extends A
{
// override callme()
void callme()
{
System.out.println("Inside B's callme method");
}
}
class C extends A
{
// override callme()
void callme()
{
System.out.println("Inside C's callme method");
}
}
class Dispatch
{
public static void main(String args[])
{
A a = new A(); // object of type A
B b = new B(); // object of type B
C c = new C(); // object of type C
A r; // obtain a reference of type A
r = a; // r refers to an A object
r.callme(); // calls A's version of callme
r = b; // r refers to a B object
r.callme(); // calls B's version of callme
r = c; // r refers to a C object
r.callme(); // calls C's version of callme
}
}
The output from the program is shown here:

Inside A’s callme method

Inside B’s callme method
Inside C’s callme method

Using Abstract Classes

Sometimes it may be need by the superclass to define the structure of the every method
without implementing it. The subclass can fill or implement the method according to its
requirements. This kind of situation can come into picture whenever the superclass unable to
implement the meaningful implementation of the method. For example, if we want to find the
area of the Figure given, which can be Circle, Rectangle, and Traingle. The class Figure
defines the method area(), when subclass implements its code it implements its own version
of the method. The Java's solution to this problem is abstract method.
 Unit 3: Inheritance , Interfaces, Packages, Exceptions and Assertions

To declare an abstract method, use this general form:

abstract type name(parameter-list);

As you can see, no method body is present.

To declare a class abstract, you simply use the abstract keyword in front of the class
keyword at the beginning of the class declaration. There can be no objects of an abstract
class. That is, an abstract class cannot be directly instantiated with the new operator. Such
objects would be useless, because an abstract class is not fully defined.

abstract class Figure

{
double a;
abstract void area();
}
//extending the super class
class Circle extends Figure
{ double r;
Circle(double x)
{
r=x;
}
//CIrcle implementing its own method
void area()
{
a=3.14*r*r;
System.out.println("The area of the traingle is :"+a);
}
}
//Extending the super class
class Triangle extends Figure
{ double l,b;
Triangle(double x,double y)
{
l=x;
b=y;
}
//Triangle implementing its own method
void area()
{
a=l*b;
System.out.println("The area of the traingle is :"+a);
}
}
class FigureDemo
{
public static void main(String args[])
{
 Unit 3: Inheritance , Interfaces, Packages, Exceptions and Assertions

Circle c=new Circle(4.5);

c.area();
Triangle t=new Triangle(2,3);
t.area();
}
}

Using final with Inheritance

The keyword final has three uses. First, it can be used to create the equivalent of a named
constant. The second, is used to prevent the method overriding. The third, is used to prevent
the inheritance.

1. Creating the constant using final keyword

The final keyword can be used to create constants. The general form of the statement is as
follow:
final type variable_name=value;
where type can be any primitive data type, and variable_name can be any valid identifier. For
example,
final int speed=120;

2. Using final to Prevent Overriding

While method overriding is one of Java’s most powerful features, there will be times when
you will want to prevent it from occurring. To disallow a method from being overridden,
specify final as a modifier at the start of its declaration. Methods declared as final cannot be
overridden. The following fragment illustrates final:

class A
{
final void meth()
{
System.out.println("This is a final method.");
}
}
class B extends A
{
void meth()
{ // ERROR! Can't override.
System.out.println("Illegal!");
}
}
Because meth( ) is declared as final, it cannot be overridden in B. If you attempt to do so, a
compile-time error will result. Methods declared as final can sometimes provide a
performance enhancement: The compiler is free to inline calls to them because it “knows”
they will not be overridden by a subclass. When a small final method is called, often the Java
compiler can copy the bytecode for the subroutine directly inline with the compiled code of
the calling method, thus eliminating the costly overhead associated with a method call.
Inlining is only an option with final methods. Normally, Java resolves calls to methods
dynamically, at run time. This is called late binding. However, since final methods cannot be
overridden, a call to one can be resolved at compile time. This is called early binding.
 Unit 3: Inheritance , Interfaces, Packages, Exceptions and Assertions

3. Using final to Prevent Inheritance

Sometimes you will want to prevent a class from being inherited. To do this, precede the
class declaration with final. Declaring a class as final implicitly declares all of its methods as
final, too. As you might expect, it is illegal to declare a class as both abstract and final since
an abstract class is incomplete by itself and relies upon its subclasses to provide complete
implementations.
Here is an example of a final class:

final class A
{
// ...
}
// The following class is illegal.

class B extends A
{
// ERROR! Can't subclass A
// ...
}
As the comments imply, it is illegal for B to inherit A since A is declared as final.

Packages and Interfaces

Introduction to Packages

One of the main feature of the Object Oriented Programming language is the ability to reuse the
code that is already created. One way for achieving this is by extending the classes and
implementing the interfaces. Java provides a mechanism to partition the classes into smaller chunks.
This mechanism is the Package. The Package is container of classes. The class is the container of the
data and code. The package also addresses the problem of name space collision that occurs when
we use same name for multiple classes. Java provides convenient way to keep the same name for
classes as long as their subdirectories are different.

Benefits of packages:
1. The classes in the packages can be easily reused.
2. In the packages, classes are unique compared with other classes in the other packages.
3. Packages provide a way to hide classes thus prevent classes from accessing by other
programs.
4. Packages also provide way to separate "design" from "coding".

Categories of Packages
The Java Packages are categorized into two categories (i) Java API Packages (ii) User Defined
Packages.
1. Java API Packages –Java API provides large number of classes grouped into different
packages according to the functionality. Most of the time we use the package available with Java
API.
 Unit 3: Inheritance , Interfaces, Packages, Exceptions and Assertions

java

io lang util awt net applet

Fig 1 Some of the Java API packages

Table 1 Java System Packages and their Classes

Sl No Package Name Contents
1 java.lang Contains language support classes. The java compiler
automatically uses this package. This includes the classes
such as primitive data types, String, StringBuffer,
StringBuilde etc;
2 java.util Contains the language utility classes such asa Vectors,
Hash Table , Date, StringTokenizer etc;
3 java.io Contains the classes that support input and out put
classes.
4 java.awt Contains the classes for implementing the graphical user
interfaces
5 Java.net Contains the classes for networking
6 Java.applet Contains the classes for creating and implementing the
applets.

Using the System Packages

Packages are organized in hierarchical structure, that means a package can contain another
package, which in turn contains several classes for performing different tasks. There are two ways to
access the classes of the packages.
i. fully qualified class name- this is done specifying package name containing the class and
appending the class to it with dot (.) operator.
Example: java.util.StringTokenizer(); Here, "java.util" is the package and
"StringTokenizer()" is the class in that package. This is used when we want to refer to
only one class in a package.

ii. import statement –this is used when we want to use a class or many classes in many
places in our program. Example: (1) import java.util.*;
(2) import java.util.StringTokenizer;
Naming Conventions
Packages can be named using the Java Standard naming rules. Packages begin with "lower
case" letters. It is easy for the user to distinguish it from the class names. All the class Name by
convention begin with "upper case" letters. Example:

double d= java.lang.Math.sqrt(3);
 Unit 3: Inheritance , Interfaces, Packages, Exceptions and Assertions

Here, "java.lang" is the package, and "Math" is the class name, and "sqrt()" is the method name.
2. User Define Packages
To create a package is quite easy: simply include a package command in the first line of the
source file. A class specified in that file belongs to that package. The package statement defines a
name space in which classes are stored. If you omit the package statement, the class names are put
in the default package, which has no name.
The general form of the package statement will be as followed: package pkg;
Here, "pkg" is the package name. Example: package MyPackage;

Java Uses file system directories to store packages. For example, the " .class" files for any
classes you declare to be part of the "MyPackage" must be store in the "MyPackage" directory. The
directory name "MyPackage" is different from "mypackage".
Notes: 1. The case for the package name is significant.
2. The directory name must match with package name.

We can create hierarchy of packages. To do so, simply separate package name from the
above one with it by use of the dot (.) operator. The general form of multileveled package statement
is shown here: package pkg1.pkg2.pkg3;
Example: package iicse.asection.java

Finding the Packages and CLASSPATH

Packages are mirrored by the directories. This raises an import question: how does Java-Run
time system look for the packages that you create? The answer has three parts: (1) By default, Java-
Run time system uses the current working directory as its starting point. Thus your package is in a
subdirectory of your directory, it will be found. (2) You can specify a directory path by setting the
CLASSPATH environment variable. (3) You can use - classpath option with java and iavac to specify
the path for the classes.

A Short Example Package: Balance.java

 Unit 3: Inheritance , Interfaces, Packages, Exceptions and Assertions

Open a notepad or text editor, write the above code and save it as "Balance.java" in the
folder name "Mypackage. Here, the package name and subdirectory(folder) name must be same.
This subdirectory(Folder) must be part of your main current directory (current Folder) in which you
write the main class PackTest1.java. That means the "PackTest1.java" source file and "MyPackage"
will be in the same directory (Folder). The "Balance.java" file must be compiled to generate the
".class" file in the same directory(folder), which will be accessed in another program by importing
the package.

PackTest1.java

Output
 Unit 3: Inheritance , Interfaces, Packages, Exceptions and Assertions

Saving Procedure will be as follows:

The Subdirectory "MyPackage" and the "PackTest 1"are in the same folder

Package and Member Accessing

The visibility of an element is specified by the access specifiers: public, private, and
protected and also the package in which it resides. The visibility of an element is determined by its
visibility within class, and visibility within the package.
- If any members explicitly declared as "public", they are visible everywhere, including in
different classes and packages.
 Unit 3: Inheritance , Interfaces, Packages, Exceptions and Assertions

- "private" members are accessed by only other members of its class. A private member is
unaffected by its membership in a package.
- A member specified as "protected" is accessed within its package and to all subclasses.

Class Member Access:

Sl No Class member Private Default Member Protected Public
Member Member Member
1 Visible within YES YES YES Yes
same class
2 Visible within No YES YES YES
the same
package by
subclasses
3 Visible within No YES YES YES
same package
by non-
subclass
4 Visible within NO NO YES YES
different
packages by
subclasses
5 Visible within NO NO NO YES
different
packages by
Non-
subclasses
Adding a class to a Package:
It is simple to add a class to already existing package. Consider the following Package:

A.java
package p1;

public class A
{
// body of the class
}

Here, the package p1 contains one public class by the name A. Suppose if we want to add another
class B to this package. This can be done as follows:

1. Define the class and make it public

2. Place the package statement in the begin of class definition
package p1;
public class B
{
//body of the class B
}
3. store this as "B.java" file under the directory p1.
 Unit 3: Inheritance , Interfaces, Packages, Exceptions and Assertions

4. Compile "B.java" file by switching to the subdirectory. This will create "B.class" file and place
it in the directory p1.
Now the package p1 will contain both A.class and B.class files

Introduction to Interfaces
Java supports the concept of Inheritance, that is acquiring the properties from one class to
other class. The class that acquire properties is called "subclass", and the class from which it acquire
is called "superclass". Here, one class can acquire properties from other class using the following
statement:

class A extends B
{
---------
---------
}
But, Java does not allow to acquire properties from more than one class, which we call it as
"multiple inheritance". We know that large number of real-life applications require the use of
multiple inheritance. Java provides an alternative approach known as "interface" to support the
concept of multiple inheritance.

Defining Interface
An interface is basically a kind of class. Like classes, interfaces contain the methods and
variables but with major difference. The difference is that interface define only abstract methods
and final fields. This means that interface do not specify any code to implement these methods and
data fields contain only constants. Therefore, it is the responsibility of the class that implements an
interface to define the code for these methods.
The syntax of defining an interface is very similar to that of class. The general form of an
interface will be as follows:

interface Interface_Name
{
variable declaration;
method declaration;
}
Here, interface is the keyword and the Interface_Name is any valid name for interface. The variables
are declared as follows:
static final type variable_name=value;

Note: All variable are declared as constants. Methods declaration will contain only a list of methods
without any body statement. For example:

return_ type method_name(Parameter_List);

Here is an example of an interface definition that contain two variable and one method

interface Area
{
static final double pi=3.14;
static final String name="Java";
 Unit 3: Inheritance , Interfaces, Packages, Exceptions and Assertions

void display();
}

Implementing the interface

Interfaces are used as "superclasses" whose properties are inherited by the classes. It is
therefore necessary to create a class that inherits the given interface. This is done as follows:

class Class_Name implements Interface_Name

{
//Body of the class
}

Here, Class_Name class, implements the interface "Interface_Name". A more general form
of implementation may look like this:

class Class_Name extends Superclass_Name implements interface1,

interface2,interface3..
{
// body of the class
}

This shows that a class can extend another class while implementing interfaces. When a class
implements more than one interface they are separated by a comma.

Example program using interface

InterfaceTest.Java
// interface definition starts here
interface Area
{
static final double pi=3.14;
double compute(double x, double y);
}
//class definition starts here
class Rectangle implements Area
{
public double compute(double x, double y)
{
return(x*y);
}
}
class Circle implements Area
{
public double compute(double x, double y)
{
return(pi*x*x);
}
}
class InterfaceTest
 Unit 3: Inheritance , Interfaces, Packages, Exceptions and Assertions

{
public static void main(String args[])
{
Rectangle rec= new Rectangle();
Circle c=new Circle();
Area area;
area=rec; //reference double
a=area.compute(10,20); System.out.println("The
area of the rectangle is "+a);
area=c;
a=area.compute(10,5);
System.out.println("The area of the Circle is "+a);
}
}

OutPut:

Extending the Interfaces

Like classes interfaces also can be extended. That is, an interface can be subinterfaced from
other interface. The new subinterface will inherit all the members from the superinterface in the
manner similar to the subclass. This is achieved using the keyword extends as shown here:

interface Interface_Name1 extends Interface_Name2

{
//Body of the Interface_name1
}

For example, MenuTest.java

interface Const
{
static final int code=501;
static final String branch="CSE";
}
interface Item extends Const
{
void display();
 Unit 3: Inheritance , Interfaces, Packages, Exceptions and Assertions

}
class Menu implements Item
{
public void display()
{
System.out.println("The Branch code is "+code+" and the Branch is "+branch);
}
}
class MenuTest{
public static void main(String args[])
{
Menu m=new Menu(); // this contains the interfaces Item and Const
m.display();
}
}
Output:

Exceptions and Assertions:

Introduction to Exception

An Exception is an abnormal condition that arises in a code sequence at run time. In

other words, an exception is run-time error. A Java exception is an object that describes an
exceptional (that is, error) condition that has occurred in a piece of code. When an
exceptional condition arises, an object representing that exception is created and thrown in
the method that caused the error. That method may choose to handle the exception itself, or
pass it on. Either way, at some point, the exception is caught and processed.
 Unit 3: Inheritance , Interfaces, Packages, Exceptions and Assertions

Exception handling Techniques

Exception handling is managed by Java by via five keywords:

 try
 catch
 throw
 throws
 finally.
Working:
1. Briefly, here is how they work. Program statements that you want to monitor for
exceptions are placed within a try block.
2. If an exception occurs within the try block, it is thrown. Your code can catch this
exception (using catch) and handle it in some rational manner.
3. System-generated exceptions are automatically thrown by the Java run-time system.
To manually throw an exception, use the keyword throw.
4. Any exception that is thrown out of a method must be specified as such by a throws
clause.
5. Any code that absolutely must be executed after a try block completes is put in a
finally block.

Syntax:

try
{
// block of code to monitor for errors
}
catch (ExceptionType1 exOb)
{
// exception handler for ExceptionType1
}
catch (ExceptionType2 exOb)
{
// exception handler for ExceptionType2
}
// ...
finally
{
// block of code to be executed after try block ends
}

Exception Types
All exception types are subclasses of the built-in class Throwable. Thus, Throwable
is at the top of the exception class hierarchy. Immediately below (Fig 2) Throwable are two
subclasses that partition exceptions into two distinct branches. One branch is headed by
Exception. This class is used for exceptional conditions that user programs should catch.
This is also the class that you will subclass to create your own custom exception types. There
is an important subclass of Exception, called RuntimeException. Exceptions of this type are
automatically defined for the programs that you write and include things such as division by
zero and invalid array indexing.
 Unit 3: Inheritance , Interfaces, Packages, Exceptions and Assertions

The other branch is topped by Error, which defines exceptions that are not expected
to be caught under normal circumstances by your program. Exceptions of type Error are
used by the Java run-time system to indicate errors having to do with the run-time
environment, itself. Stack overflow is an example of such an error. This chapter will not be
dealing with exceptions of type Error, because these are typically created in response to
catastrophic failures that cannot usually be handled by your program.

Throwable class

Exception class
Error

Run_Time Exception IOException

Fig 2: Exception Types

The Java Built-in Exceptions are broadly classified into two categories: Checked and
Unchecked exceptions. The Checked Exceptions are those for which the compiler checks to
see whether they have been handled in your program or not. Unchecked or Run_Time
Exceptions are not checked by the compiler. These Unchecked Exceptions are handled by the
Java Run_Time System automatically.
Checked Exceptions Unchecked Exceptions
ClassNotFoundException Arithmetic Exception
NoSuchFieldException ArrayIndexOutOfBoundsException
NoSuchMethodException NullPointerException
InerruptedException ClassCastException
IOException BufferOverFlowException
IllegalAccessException BufferUnderFlowException

Uncaught Exceptions:

Before you learn how to handle exceptions in your program, it is useful to see what happens
when you don’t handle them. This small program includes an expression that intentionally
causes a divide-by-zero error:

class Exc0
{
public static void main(String args[])
{
int d = 0;
 Unit 3: Inheritance , Interfaces, Packages, Exceptions and Assertions

int a = 42 / d;
}
}
When the Java run-time system detects the attempt to divide by zero, it constructs a
new exception object and then throws this exception. This causes the execution of Exc0 to
stop, because once an exception has been thrown, it must be caught by an exception handler
and dealt with immediately.
In the above program we have not provided any exception handler, in this context the
exception is caught by the default handler. The default handler displays string describing
the exception.
Here is the exception generated when this example is executed:

java.lang.ArithmeticException: / by zero
at Exc0.main(Exc0.java:4)

Notice how the class name, Exc0; the method name, main; the filename, Exc0.java; and the
line number, 4, are all included in the simple stack trace. Also, notice that the type of
exception thrown is a subclass of Exception called ArithmeticException, which more
specifically describes what type of error happened.

Using try and catch

Although the default exception handler provided by the Java run-time system is useful for
debugging, you will usually want to handle an exception yourself. Doing so provides two
benefits.
 First, it allows you to fix the error.
 Second, it prevents the program from automatically terminating.
Most users would be confused (to say the least) if your program stopped running and printed
a stack trace whenever an error occurred! Fortunately, it is quite easy to prevent this.

To guard against and handle a run-time error, simply enclose the code that you want to
monitor inside a try block. Immediately following the try block, include a catch clause that
specifies the exception type that you wish to catch. To illustrate how easily this can be done,
the following program includes a try block and a catch clause that processes the
ArithmeticException generated by the division-by-zero error:

Exc2.java
class Exc2
{
public static void main(String args[])
{
int d, a;
try {
// monitor a block of code.
d = 0;
a = 42 / d;
System.out.println("This will not be printed.");
 Unit 3: Inheritance , Interfaces, Packages, Exceptions and Assertions

}
catch (ArithmeticException e)
{ // catch divide-by-zero error
System.out.println("Division by zero.");
}
System.out.println("After catch statement.");
}
}
Note: println() statement inside the "try" will never execute, because once the exception is
raised the control is transferred to the "catch" block. Here is catch is not called, hence it will
not return the control back to the "try" block. The "try" and "catch" will form like a unit. A
catch statement cannot handle the exception thrown by another "try" block.

Displaying a Description of an Exception

Throwable overrides the toString( ) method (defined by Object) so that it returns a string
containing a description of the exception. You can display this description in a println( )
statement by simply passing the exception as an argument. For example, the catch block in
the preceding program can be rewritten like this:
catch (ArithmeticException e)
{
System.out.println("Exception: " + e);
a = 0; // set a to zero and continue
}
When this version is substituted in the program, and the program is run, each divide-by-zero
error displays the following message:

Exception: java.lang.ArithmeticException: / by zero

Multiple catch Clauses

In some cases, more than one exception could be raised by a single piece of code. To handle
this type of situation, you can specify two or more catch clauses, each catching a different
type of exception. When an exception is thrown, each catch statement is inspected in order,
and the first one whose type matches that of the exception is executed. After one catch
statement executes, the others are bypassed, and execution continues after the try/catch
block. The following example traps two different exception types:

// Demonstrate multiple catch statements.

class MultiCatch
{
public static void main(String args[])
{
try
{
int a = args.length;
System.out.println("a = " + a);
int b = 42 / a;
int c[] = { 1 };
c[42] = 99;
}
 Unit 3: Inheritance , Interfaces, Packages, Exceptions and Assertions

catch(ArithmeticException e)
{
System.out.println("Divide by 0: " + e);
}
catch(ArrayIndexOutOfBoundsException e)
{
System.out.println("Array index oob: " + e);
}
System.out.println("After try/catch blocks.");
}
}

Nested try Statements

The try statement can be nested. That is, a try statement can be inside the block of another
try. Each time a try statement is entered, the context of that exception is pushed on the stack.
If an inner try statement does not have a catch handler for a particular exception, the stack is
unwound and the next try statement’s catch handlers are inspected for a match. This
continues until one of the catch statements succeeds, or until all of the nested try statements
are exhausted. If no catch statement matches, then the Java run-time system will handle the
exception.

throw:
So far, you have only been catching exceptions that are thrown by the Java run-time system
implicitly. However, it is possible for your program to throw an exception explicitly, using
the throw statement. The general form of throw is shown here:

throw ThrowableInstance;

Here, ThrowableInstance must be an object of type Throwable or a subclass of Throwable.

Example Program:
ThrowDemo.java
class ThrowDemo
{
public static void main(String args[])
{
method1();
}
static void method1()
{
System.out.println("Inside the method1:");
try
{
method2();
}
catch(Exception e)
{
System.out.println("The Exception is:"+e);
}
 Unit 3: Inheritance , Interfaces, Packages, Exceptions and Assertions

System.out.println("After Method 2");

}
static void method2()
{
throw new ArithmeticException(" Testing Throw");
}
}

throws:
If a method is capable of causing an exception that it does not handle, it must specify this
behavior so that callers of the method can guard themselves against that exception. You do
this by including a throws clause in the method’s declaration. A throws clause lists the types
of exceptions that a method might throw. This is necessary for all exceptions, except those of
type Error or RuntimeException, or any of their subclasses. All other exceptions that a
method can throw must be declared in the throws clause. If they are not, a compile-time error
will result.

This is the general form of a method declaration that includes a throws clause:

type method-name(parameter-list) throws exception-list

{
// body of method
}

Here, exception-list is a comma-separated list of the exceptions that a method can throw.

Example Program:

ThrowsDemo.java

import java.io.*;
class ThrowsDemo
{
public static char prompt(String str) throws IOException, ArithmeticException
{
//called method throws two exceptions
System.out.println(str+":");
int x=20,y=0;
int z=x/y;
return (char) System.in.read();
}
 Unit 3: Inheritance , Interfaces, Packages, Exceptions and Assertions

public static void main(String args[])

{
char ch;
try
{
//calling a method- here main is caller
ch=prompt("Enter a Character:");
//it is the responsibility of the caller to handle it
}
catch(IOException e)
{
System.out.println("Exception is:"+e);
}
catch(ArithmeticException ae)
{
System.out.println("Exception is:"+ae);
}
}
}
Output:

finally:

The finally block is always is executed. It is always used to perform house keeping
operations such as releasing the resources, closing the files that already opened etc,. That
means the statement that put inside the finally block are executed compulsorily. It is always
followed by the try-catch statements.
Syntax:
try
{
// statements
}
catch(Exception e) {
//Handlers
}
finally
{
//statements
}
Exception encapsulation and enrichment
 Unit 3: Inheritance , Interfaces, Packages, Exceptions and Assertions

The process of wrapping the caught exception in a different exception is called "Exception
Encapsulation". The Throwable super class has added one parameter in its constructor for the
wrapped exception and a "getCause()" method to return the wrapped exception. Wrapping is
also used to hide the details of implementation.
Syntax:
try
{
throw new ArithmeticException();
}
catch(AritmeticExceptions ae)
{
//wrapping exception
throw new ExcepDemo("Testing User Exception",ae);
}
Disadvantages of wrapping:
 It leads to the long Stack traces.
 It is a difficult task to figure out where the exception is
Solution:
The possible solution is Exception enrichment. Here we don’t wrap exception but we add
some information to the already thrown exception and rethrow it.
Example program:

class ExcepDempo extends Exception

{
String message;
ExcepDemo(String msg)
{
message=msg;
}
public void addInformation(String msg)
{
message=message+msg;
}
}
class ExcepEnrich
{
static void testException()
{
try{
throw new ExcepDemo("Testing user Exceptio:");
}
catch(ExcepDemo e)
{
e.addInformation("Example Exception");
}
}
public static void main(String args[])
{
try
{
 Unit 3: Inheritance , Interfaces, Packages, Exceptions and Assertions

testException();
}
catch(Exception e)
{
System.out.println(e);
}
}
}

Assertions:
Assertions are added after java 1.4 to always createreliable programs that are Correct and
robust programs. The assertions are boolean expressions.Conditions such as positve number
or negative number are examples.
Syntax:
assert expression1;
or
assert expression1:expression2;
Where assert is the keyword. Expression 1 is the boolean expression, expression2 is the
string that describes the Exceptions.
Note: assertions must be explicitly enabled. The –ea option is used to enable the exception
and –da is used to disable the exception.
AI.java
class AI
{
static void check(int i)
{
assert i>0:" I must be positive:";
System.out.prinln("Your I value if fine");
}
pulbic static void main(String args[])
{
check(Integer.parseInt(args[0]);
}
}

Compiling the program:

c:>javac AI.java
Running the Program:
C:>java –ea AI
---------------------***End of 3 rd unit***------------------------------------------