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Static Keyword Java

Static variables and methods belong to the class itself rather than any instance of the class. They can be accessed without creating an instance and are initialized when the class is first loaded. Non-static members are instance-specific and must be accessed through an object reference after constructing an instance. Static elements are useful for utility methods and shared data, though care must be taken with concurrency if variables will be accessed by multiple threads.

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Golmei Shaheam
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36 views

Static Keyword Java

Static variables and methods belong to the class itself rather than any instance of the class. They can be accessed without creating an instance and are initialized when the class is first loaded. Non-static members are instance-specific and must be accessed through an object reference after constructing an instance. Static elements are useful for utility methods and shared data, though care must be taken with concurrency if variables will be accessed by multiple threads.

Uploaded by

Golmei Shaheam
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
Download as PPT, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Static Keyword

What is static
• The static keyword is used when a member
variable of a class has to be shared between
all the instances of the class.
• All static variables and methods belong to the
class and not to any instance of the class
When can we access static variable
• When a class is loaded by the virtual machine
all the static variables and methods are
available for use.
• Hence we don’t need to create any instance of
the class for using the static variables or
methods.
• Variables which don’t have static keyword in
the definition are implicitly non static.
Example
Class staticDemo{
public static int a = 100; // All instances of staticDemo have this variable as a common `
variable
public int b =2 ;
public static showA(){
System.out.println(“A is “+a);
}
}
Class execClass{
public static void main(String args[]){
staticDemo.a = 35; // when we use the class name, the class is loaded, direct access to
a without any instance
staticDemo.b=22; // ERROR this is not valid for non static variable
staticDemo demo = new staticDemo();
demo.b = 200; // valid to set a value for a non static variable after creating an instance.
staticDemo.showA(); //prints 35
}
}
Static and Non-static
• We can access static variables without
creating an instance of the class
• We cannot use non static methods and
variables without creating an instance of the
class as they are bound to the instance of the
class.
• They are initialized by the constructor when
we create the object using new operator.
How it works
Basic Steps of how objects are created
1. Class is loaded by JVM
2. Static variable and methods are loaded and initialized
and available for use
3. Constructor is called to instantiate the non static
variables
4. Non static variables and methods are now available

• As all the non static variable are


available only after the constructor
is called, there is a restriction on
using non static variable in static
methods.
Why do we need this
• Static methods are identified to be mostly
used when we are writing any utility methods.
• We can also use static variables when sharing
data.
• When sharing data do keep in mind about
multithreading can cause inconsistency in the
value. (synchronize the variable)
Further Reading
• http://docs.oracle.com/javase/tutorial/java/ja
vaOO/classvars.html

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