Java - Generics

It would be nice if we could write a single sort method that could sort the elements in an Integer array, a String array, or an array of any type that supports ordering.

Java Generic methods and generic classes enable programmers to specify, with a single method declaration, a set of related methods, or with a single class declaration, a set of related types, respectively.

Generics also provide compile-time type safety that allows programmers to catch invapd types at compile time.

Using Java Generic concept, we might write a generic method for sorting an array of objects, then invoke the generic method with Integer arrays, Double arrays, String arrays and so on, to sort the array elements.

Generic Methods

You can write a single generic method declaration that can be called with arguments of different types. Based on the types of the arguments passed to the generic method, the compiler handles each method call appropriately. Following are the rules to define Generic Methods −

All generic method declarations have a type parameter section depmited by angle brackets (< and >) that precedes the method s return type ( < E > in the next example).

Each type parameter section contains one or more type parameters separated by commas. A type parameter, also known as a type variable, is an identifier that specifies a generic type name.

The type parameters can be used to declare the return type and act as placeholders for the types of the arguments passed to the generic method, which are known as actual type arguments.

A generic method s body is declared pke that of any other method. Note that type parameters can represent only reference types, not primitive types (pke int, double and char).

Example

Following example illustrates how we can print an array of different type using a single Generic method −

pubpc class GenericMethodTest {
   // generic method printArray
   pubpc static < E > void printArray( E[] inputArray ) {
      // Display array elements
      for(E element : inputArray) {
         System.out.printf("%s ", element);
      }
      System.out.println();
   }

   pubpc static void main(String args[]) {
      // Create arrays of Integer, Double and Character
      Integer[] intArray = { 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 };
      Double[] doubleArray = { 1.1, 2.2, 3.3, 4.4 };
      Character[] charArray = {  H ,  E ,  L ,  L ,  O  };

      System.out.println("Array integerArray contains:");
      printArray(intArray);   // pass an Integer array

      System.out.println("
Array doubleArray contains:");
      printArray(doubleArray);   // pass a Double array

      System.out.println("
Array characterArray contains:");
      printArray(charArray);   // pass a Character array
   }
}

Array integerArray contains:
1 2 3 4 5 

Array doubleArray contains:
1.1 2.2 3.3 4.4 

Array characterArray contains:
H E L L O

pubpc class MaximumTest {
   // determines the largest of three Comparable objects
   
   pubpc static <T extends Comparable<T>> T maximum(T x, T y, T z) {
      T max = x;   // assume x is initially the largest
      
      if(y.compareTo(max) > 0) {
         max = y;   // y is the largest so far
      }
      
      if(z.compareTo(max) > 0) {
         max = z;   // z is the largest now                 
      }
      return max;   // returns the largest object   
   }
   
   pubpc static void main(String args[]) {
      System.out.printf("Max of %d, %d and %d is %d

", 
         3, 4, 5, maximum( 3, 4, 5 ));

      System.out.printf("Max of %.1f,%.1f and %.1f is %.1f

",
         6.6, 8.8, 7.7, maximum( 6.6, 8.8, 7.7 ));

      System.out.printf("Max of %s, %s and %s is %s
","pear",
         "apple", "orange", maximum("pear", "apple", "orange"));
   }
}

Max of 3, 4 and 5 is 5

Max of 6.6,8.8 and 7.7 is 8.8

Max of pear, apple and orange is pear

pubpc class Box<T> {
   private T t;

   pubpc void add(T t) {
      this.t = t;
   }

   pubpc T get() {
      return t;
   }

   pubpc static void main(String[] args) {
      Box<Integer> integerBox = new Box<Integer>();
      Box<String> stringBox = new Box<String>();
    
      integerBox.add(new Integer(10));
      stringBox.add(new String("Hello World"));

      System.out.printf("Integer Value :%d

", integerBox.get());
      System.out.printf("String Value :%s
", stringBox.get());
   }
}

Integer Value :10
String Value :Hello World