ALAGAPPA UNIVERSITY

[Accredited with ‘A+’ Grade by NAAC (CGPA:3.64) in the Third Cycle

and Graded as Category–I University by MHRD-UGC]
(A State University Established by the Government of Tamil Nadu)
KARAIKUDI – 630 003

Directorate of Distance Education

B.C.A.
IV - Semester
101 43

INTERNET
AND
JAVA PROGRAMMING
Authors:
Rajneesh Agrawal, Senior Scientist, Department of Information Technology, Government of India
Units: (1.2, 1.2.2, 1.2.4, 1.3-1.4, 2.2-2.4)
Rohit Khurana, CEO, ITL Education Solutions Ltd., 2nd Floor, GD-ITL Tower, Netaji Subhash Place, Pitampura, New Delhi
Units: (4.4, 4.5-4.6, 5, 6.0-6.3, 6.5-6.11, 7.0-7.6, 7.9-7.10, 8.2-8.5, 9, 10, 11.3-11.4, 13, 14)
Kalapatapu Kalyani, Asstt. Professor, Matrusri Institute of Post Graduate Studies, Affiliated to Osmania University & Recognized by
AICTE, Hyderabad
Units: (4.2, 6.4, 7.8)
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8.0-8.1, 8.6-8.12, 11.0-11.2, 11.5-11.9, 12)
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 SYLLABI-BOOK MAPPING TABLE
Internet and Java Programming
Syllabi Mapping in Book

BLOCK I: INTRODUCTION
Unit 1: Basic Internet Concepts: Connecting to the Internet - Domain Unit 1: Basic Internet Concepts
Name System - E-Mail (Pages 1-38);
Unit 2: The World Wide Web - Internet Search Engines - Web Unit 2: The World Wide Web
Browsers - Chatting and Conferencing on the Internet (Pages 39-54);
Unit 3: Internet Chats, Internet Relay
Unit 3: Online Chatting -Messaging - Usenet Newsgroup - Internet
Chat (IRC), FTP and Telnet
Relay Chat (IRC) - FTP - Telnet.
(Pages 55-66)

BLOCK 2 : FUNDAMENTALS OF OBJECT-ORIENTED

PROGRAMMING
Unit 4: Basic Concepts of OOP - Benefits - Applications, Java Unit 4: Basic Concepts of OOP
Evolution: Features - How Java Differs from C and C++, Java and (Pages 67-86);
Internet- Java Support System - Java Environment Unit 5: Overview of Java Language
Unit 5: Overview of Java Language - Introduction - Simple Java (Pages 87-110);
Program - Comments - Java Program Structure - Tokens - Java Unit 6: Operators and Expressions,
Statements - Implementing a Java Program - JVM - Command Line Decision-Making and Branching
(Pages 111-140)
Arguments. Constants - Variables - Data Types - Type Casting.
Unit 6: Operators and Expressions: Arithmetic Operators - Relational,
Logical, Assignment, Increment and Decrement, Conditional, Bitwise,
Special Operators - Arithmetic Expressions, Evaluation of Expression
- Precedence of Arithmetic Operators - Type Conversions - Operator
Precedence and Associativity - Mathematical Functions.
Decision Making and Branching: If -If…..Else - Nesting of If…….
Else - Else If- Switch. Decision Making and Looping: While - Do -
For - Jump in Loops - Labeled Loops.

BLOCK 3 : CLASSES, OBJECTS AND METHODS

Unit 7: Class: Defining a Class -Fields -Methods -Creating Objects -
Unit 7: Classes in Java
Accessing Class Members - Constructors - Methods Overloading -
(Pages 141-170);
Static Members -Nesting of Methods - Inheritance - Overriding
Unit 8: Arrays, Strings
Methods -Final Variables-Classes -Methods and Vectors
Unit 8: Arrays, Strings and Vectors : One Dimensional Arrays - (Pages 171-192);
Creating of Array - Two Dimensional Arrays- Strings -Vectors - Unit 9: Packages
Wrapper Classes - Enumerated Types - Interfaces: Multiple (Pages 193-222)
Inheritance
Unit 9: Packages: Defining Interface -Extending Interfaces -
Implementing Interfaces - Putting Classes Together
BLOCK 4: MULTITHEREADING , EXCEPTION AND APPLETS
Unit 10: Multithreaded Programming - Creating Threads - Extending Unit 10: Multithreaded Programming
the Thread Class - Stopping and Blocking a Thread - Life Cycle of a (Pages 223-252);
Thread - Using Thread Methods - Thread Exceptions - Priority - Unit 11: Managing Error
Synchronization - Implementing the ‘Runnable’ Interface and Exceptions
(Pages 253-282);
Unit 11: Managing Error and Exceptions: Types of Errors -Exceptions
Unit 12: Applet Programming
-Syntax of Exception Handling Code - Multiple Catch Statements -
(Pages 283-342)
Using Finally Statement - Throwing Our Own Exceptions - Using
Exceptions for Debugging - Graphics Programming: The Graphics
Class - Lines and Rectangles - Circles and Ellipses - Drawing Arcs -
Drawing Polygons - Line Graphs - Using Control Loops in Applets -
Drawing Bar Charts
Unit 12: Applet Programming: How Applets Differ from Applications
- Preparing to Write Applets - Building Applet Code - Applet Life
Cycle - Creating an Executable Applet - Designing a Web Page -
Applet Tag - Adding Applet to HTML File - Running the Applet -
Passing Parameters to Applets - Displaying Numerical Values -
Getting Input From The User

BLOCK 5 : MANAGING INPUT/OUTPUT FILES IN JAVA

Unit 13: Introduction - Concept of Streams -Stream Classes - Byte Unit 13: Introduction to Streams
Stream Classes - Character Stream (Pages 343-362);
Unit 14: I/O Classes: - Using Stream -Using The File Class -Input / Unit 14: I/O Classes
Output Exceptions - Creation of Files - Reading / Writing Characters (Pages 363-388)
- Reading Writing Bytes Random Access Files - Interactive Input
and Output -Other Stream Classes
 CONTENTS
BLOCK I: INTRODUCTION
UNIT 1 BASIC INTERNET CONCEPTS 1-38
1.0 Introduction
1.1 Objectives
1.2 Basic Internet Concepts
1.2.1 Internet Services
1.2.2 Equipments Required for an Internet Connection
1.2.3 Home Page
1.2.4 Internet and URL
1.3 Domain Name System (DNS)
1.4 E-Mail
1.4.1 Opening and E-Mail Account
1.4.2 Reading and Writing E-Mail
1.5 Answers to Check Your Progress Questions
1.6 Summary
1.7 Key Words
1.8 Self Assessment Questions and Exercises
1.9 Further Readings

UNIT 2 THE WORLD WIDE WEB 39-54

2.0 Introduction
2.1 Objectives
2.2 The World Wide Web
2.2.1 Web Page
2.3 The Internet Search Engines
2.4 Web Browsers
2.5 Chatting and Conferencing on the Internet
2.6 Answers to Check Your Progress Questions
2.7 Summary
2.8 Key Words
2.9 Self Assessment Questions and Exercises
2.10 Further Readings

UNIT 3 INTERNET CHATS, INTERNET RELAY CHAT (IRC),

FTP AND TELNET 55-66
3.0 Introduction
3.1 Objectives
3.2 Online Chatting and Messaging
3.3 Usenet Newsgroup
3.4 Internet Relay Chat (IRC)
3.5 FTP
 3.6 Telnet
3.7 Answers to Check Your Progress Questions
3.8 Summary
3.9 Key Words
3.10 Self Assessment Questions and Exercises
3.11 Further Readings

BLOCK II: FUNDAMENTALS OF OBJECT-ORIENTED PROGRAMMING

UNIT 4 BASIC CONCEPTS OF OOP 67-86

4.0 Introduction
4.1 Objectives
4.2 Overview of Java
4.3 Java Evolution and Features
4.4 Object Oriented Concepts
4.4.1 Benefits of OOP
4.4.2 Applications of OOP
4.5 How Java Differs from C++
4.6 Java Run-Time Environment
4.7 Answers to Check Your Progress Questions
4.8 Summary
4.9 Key Words
4.10 Self Assessment Questions and Exercises
4.11 Further Readings

UNIT 5 OVERVIEW OF JAVA LANGUAGE 87-110

5.0 Introduction
5.1 Objectives
5.2 Basic Features of Java Programming Language
5.2.1 Features
5.2.2 Java and C++
5.2.3 Java’s Importance in the Internet
5.3 Java Compiler, Java Virtual Machine Concepts and JDK (Java Development Kit)
5.4 Character Set and Tokens
5.4.1 Java Keywords
5.4.2 Identifiers
5.4.3 Constants
5.5 Structure of a Java Program
5.6 Data Types
5.6.1 Primitives Data Types
5.7 Variables
5.8 Java Program
5.9 Running Java Applications and Command Line Arguments
5.10 Type Casting
5.11 Answers to Check Your Progress Questions
5.12 Summary
5.13 Key Words
5.14 Self Assessment Questions and Exercises
5.15 Further Readings
UNIT 6 OPERATORS AND EXPRESSIONS, DECISION-MAKING
AND BRANCHING 111-140
6.0 Introduction
6.1 Objectives
6.2 Operators and Expressions
6.3 Java Program
6.4 Type Conversion
6.5 Control Statements
6.5.1 Selection Statements
6.5.2 Iteration Statements
6.5.3 Jump Statements
6.6 Labeled Loops
6.7 Answers to Check Your Progress Questions
6.8 Summary
6.9 Key Words
6.10 Self Assessment Questions and Exercises
6.11 Further Readings

BLOCK III: CLASSES, OBJECTS AND METHODS

UNIT 7 CLASSES IN JAVA 141-170

7.0 Introduction
7.1 Objectives
7.2 Defining a Class
7.2.1 Defining Methods
7.2.2 Creating Objects
7.3 Accessing Members of a Class
7.4 Constructors
7.5 Method Overloading
7.6 Static Members
7.7 Nested Classes
7.8 Inheritance
7.8.1 Super Keyword
7.8.2 Multilevel Hierarchy
7.8.3 Method Overriding
7.8.4 Dynamic Method Dispatch
7.8.5 Abstract Classes
7.9 Final Variables
7.9.1 Final Variables
7.9.2 Final Methods
7.9.3 Final Classes
7.10 Abstract Methods and Classes
7.11 Answers to Check Your Progress Questions
7.12 Summary
7.13 Key Words
7.14 Self Assessment Questions and Exercises
7.15 Further Readings
UNIT 8 ARRAYS, STRINGS AND VECTORS 171-192
8.0 Introduction
8.1 Objectives
8.2 Arrays
8.2.1 Single-Dimensional Arrays
8.2.2 Two-Dimensional Arrays
8.3 Strings
8.3.1 String Class
8.3.2 StringBuffer Class
8.4 Vectors
8.5 Wrapper Classes
8.6 Enumerated Types
8.7 Interfaces: Multiple Inheritance
8.8 Answers to Check Your Progress Questions
8.9 Summary
8.10 Key Words
8.11 Self Assessment Questions and Exercises
8.12 Further Readings

UNIT 9 PACKAGES 193-222

9.0 Introduction
9.1 Objectives
9.2 Packages and Java API Packages
9.3 Defining Packages
9.4 CLASSPATH
9.5 Accessibility of Packages Using Package Members
9.6 Adding a Class
9.7 Hiding a Class
9.8 Packages and Visibility Controls
9.9 Interface
9.9.1 Implementing Interface
9.9.2 Extending Interfaces
9.9.3 Variables in Interfaces
9.9.4 Interface and Abstract Classes
9.9.5 Extends and Implements Together
9.10 Answers to Check Your Progress Questions
9.11 Summary
9.12 Key Words
9.13 Self Assessment Questions and Exercises
9.14 Further Readings

BLOCK IV: MULTITHEREADING, EXCEPTION AND APPLETS

UNIT 10 MULTITHREADED PROGRAMMING 223-252

10.0 Introduction
10.1 Objectives
10.2 Concept of Threads
10.2.1 Main Thread
 10.3 Creating Threads
10.3.1 Extending Threads
10.3.2 Implementing Runnable Interface
10.4 Life Cycle of a Thread
10.5 Thread Methods
10.5.1 Using yield(), sleep() and stop() Methods
10.5.2 Using isAlive() and join() Methods
10.6 Thread Exceptions
10.7 Thread Priority
10.8 Synchronization of Threads
10.8.1 Synchronizing Methods
10.8.2 Synchronizing Statements
10.8.3 Deadlock
10.9 Inter-Thread Communication
10.10 Suspending, Resuming and Stopping Threads
10.11 Answers to Check Your Progress Questions
10.12 Summary
10.13 Key Words
10.14 Self Assessment Questions and Exercises
10.15 Further Readings

UNIT 11 MANAGING ERROR AND EXCEPTIONS 253-282

11.0 Introduction
11.1 Objectives
11.2 Types of Errors
11.3 Exception Handling
11.3.1 Handling of Exception
11.3.2 Types of Exceptions
11.3.3 Using try and catch Blocks
11.3.4 Multiple catch Blocks
11.3.5 Nested try Blocks
11.3.6 Using finally Block
11.3.7 Throw Keyword
11.3.8 Creating Your Own Exceptions
11.4 Graphics Programming
11.5 Answers to Check Your Progress Questions
11.6 Summary
11.7 Key Words
11.8 Self Assessment Questions and Exercises
11.9 Further Readings

UNIT 12 APPLET PROGRAMMING 283-342

12.0 Introduction
12.1 Objectives
12.2 Applets
12.3 Applet Tag
12.3.1 The Applet Tag
12.3.2 The Applet Class
12.3.3 Adding an Applet to an HTML File
 12.3.4 Running the Applet
12.3.5 More About the Applet Tag
12.3.6 Passing Parameters to Applets
12.4 Applet Life Cycle
12.5 Methods Using Applets
12.6 Simple AWT Controls
12.6.1 Introducing the Abstract Window Toolkit (AWT)
12.6.2 Creating AWT Controls
12.7 Answers to Check Your Progress Questions
12.8 Summary
12.9 Key Words
12.10 Self Assessment Questions and Exercises
12.11 Further Readings

BLOCK V: MANAGING INPUT/OUTPUT FILES IN JAVA

UNIT 13 INTRODUCTION TO STREAMS 343-362

13.0 Introduction
13.1 Objectives
13.2 I/O Basics
13.3 Streams and Stream Classes
13.3.1 Byte Stream Classes
13.3.2 Character Stream Classes
13.3.3 The PrintStream Class
13.3.4 Predefined Streams
13.4 Answers to Check Your Progress Questions
13.5 Summary
13.6 Key Words
13.7 Self Assessment Questions and Exercises
13.8 Further Readings

UNIT 14 I/O CLASSES 363-388

14.0 Introduction
14.1 Objectives
14.2 Reading From and Writing to Console
14.3 Reading and Writing Files
14.4 Data Streams
14.4.1 The DataInputStream Class
14.4.2 The DataOutputStream Class
14.5 The StringTokenizer Class
14.6 The StreamTokenizer Class
14.7 The transient and volatile Modifiers
14.8 Using instanceof Operator
14.9 Native Methods
14.10 Answers to Check Your Progress Questions
14.11 Summary
14.12 Key Words
14.13 Self Assessment Questions and Exercises
14.14 Further Readings
 Introduction

INTRODUCTION
The Internet is the global system of interconnected computer networks that uses
NOTES
the Internet protocol suite (TCP/IP) to communicate between networks and
devices. It is a network of networks that consists of private, public, academic,
business, and government networks of local to global scope, linked by a broad
array of electronic, wireless, and optical networking technologies. The Internet
carries a vast range of information resources and services, such as the inter-linked
hypertext documents and applications of the World Wide Web (WWW), electronic
mail, telephony, and file sharing. Java is a multi-threaded object-oriented language
that incorporates many Internet features, such as security and the ability to stream
data from a uniform resources.
Java is a general-purpose programming language that is class-based, object-
oriented, and designed to have as few implementation dependencies as possible.
It is intended to let application developers Write Once, Run Anywhere (WORA),
meaning that compiled Java code can run on all platforms that support Java without
the need for recompilation. Java applications are typically compiled to bytecode
that can run on any Java Virtual Machine (JVM) regardless of the underlying
computer architecture. The syntax of Java is similar to C and C++, but it has
fewer low-level facilities than either of them. Java was originally developed by
James Gosling at Sun Microsystems (which has since been acquired by Oracle)
and released in 1995 as a core component of Sun Microsystems’ Java platform.
The original and reference implementation Java compilers, virtual machines, and
class libraries were originally released by Sun under proprietary licenses.
Fundamentally, Java inherited most of the concepts and fundamentals from
languages like C and C++. The inheritance of OOPs and programming concepts
aided in the early conception of the Java language by C and C++ users. In addition,
Java allows developers to create two types of programs, i.e., applications and
applets. Applications are programs that run on user operating systems and perform
tasks based on the input provided by the user and the processing logic defined by
the programmer. Applets are small applications that can be transmitted over the
Internet and are executed on the user computer by using a Java compatible Web
browser.
This book, Internet and Java Programming, is divided into five blocks
that are further divided into fourteen units which will help you understand the basic
Internet concepts, connecting to the Internet, Domain Name System (DNS), E-
mail, the World Wide Web (WWW), Internet search engines – web browsers –
chatting and conferencing on the Internet, online chatting, messaging, Usenet
Newsgroup, Internet Relay Chat (IRC), FTP, Telnet, basic concepts of OOP,
Java evolution: features, how Java differs from C and C++, Java and the Internet,
Java environment, Java language, simple Java Program, comments, tokens, Java
Self-Instructional
Material 11
Introduction statements, JVM, constants, variables, data types, type casting, operators and
expressions, arithmetic operators, arithmetic expressions, evaluation of expression,
precedence of arithmetic operators, operator precedence and associativity,
decision-making and branching, looping, class, fields, methods, accessing class
NOTES members, constructors, static members, inheritance, arrays, strings, vectors,
wrapper classes, interfaces: multiple inheritance, packages, interface, multithreaded
programming, threads, life cycle of a thread, managing error and exceptions,
graphics programming, applet programming, applet life cycle, applet tag, passing
parameters to applets, stream classes and I/O classes.
The book follows the Self-Instruction Mode or the SIM format wherein
each unit begins with an ‘Introduction’ to the topic followed by an outline of the
‘Objectives’. The content is presented in a simple, organized and comprehensive
form interspersed with ‘Check Your Progress’ questions and answers for better
understanding of the topics covered. A list of ‘Key Words’ along with a ‘Summary’
and a set of ‘Self Assessment Questions and Exercises’ is provided at the end of
the each unit for effective recapitulation. Logically arranged topics, relevant solved
examples and illustrations have been included for better understanding of the topics.

Self-Instructional
12 Material
 Basic Internet Concepts
BLOCK - I
INTRODUCTION

NOTES
UNIT 1 BASIC INTERNET
CONCEPTS
Structure
1.0 Introduction
1.1 Objectives
1.2 Basic Internet Concepts
1.2.1 Internet Services
1.2.2 Equipments Required for an Internet Connection
1.2.3 Home Page
1.2.4 Internet and URL
1.3 Domain Name System (DNS)
1.4 E-Mail
1.4.1 Opening and E-Mail Account
1.4.2 Reading and Writing E-Mail
1.5 Answers to Check Your Progress Questions
1.6 Summary
1.7 Key Words
1.8 Self Assessment Questions and Exercises
1.9 Further Readings

1.0 INTRODUCTION

The Internet is the global system of interconnected computer networks that uses
the Internet Protocol Suite (TCP/IP) to communicate between networks and
devices. It is a network of networks that consists of private, public, academic,
business, and government networks of local to global scope, linked by a broad
array of electronic, wireless, and optical networking technologies. The Internet
carries a vast range of information resources and services, such as the inter-linked
hypertext documents and applications of the World Wide Web (WWW), electronic
mail, telephony, and file sharing.
The origins of the Internet date back to the development of packet switching
and research commissioned by the United States Department of Defense in the
1960s to enable time-sharing of computers. The primary precursor network, the
ARPANET, initially served as a backbone for interconnection of regional academic
and military networks in the 1970s. The linking of commercial networks and
enterprises by the early 1990s marked the beginning of the transition to the modern
Internet, and generated a sustained exponential growth as generations of institutional,
personal, and mobile computers were connected to the network.
Self-Instructional
Material 1
Basic Internet Concepts The Internet has no single centralized governance in either technological
implementation or policies for access and usage; each constituent network sets its
own policies. The overreaching definitions of the two principal name spaces in the
Internet, the Internet Protocol address (IP address) space and the Domain Name
NOTES System (DNS), are directed by a maintainer organization, the Internet Corporation
for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN).
Electronic mail (email or e-mail) is a method of exchanging messages in the
form of ‘Mail’ between people using electronic devices. Ray Tomlinson is credited
as the inventor of e-mail; in 1971, he developed the first system able to send mail
between users on different hosts across the ARPANET, using the @ sign to link
the user name with a destination server. By the mid-1970s, this was the form
recognized as e-mail.
In this unit, you will study about the basic Internet concepts, connecting to
the Internet, Domain Name System (DNS) and e-mail.

1.1 OBJECTIVES

After going through this unit, you will be able to:

 Explain the significance of Internet concepts
 Define the importance of Internet
 Discuss how to get connected to the Internet
 Understand what Domain Name System (DNS) is
 Elaborate on e-mail concept

1.2 BASIC INTERNET CONCEPTS

The Internet, World Wide Web and Information Super Highway are terms which
have the lives of millions of people all over the world. The widespread impact of
Internet across the globe could not be possible without the development of
Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP). This protocol suite is
developed specifically for the Internet. The Information Technology revolution
could not have been achieved without this boundless chain of networks. It has
become a fundamental part of the lives of millions of people all over the world. All
the aforesaid services, provide us the necessary backbone for information sharing
in organizations and within common interest groups. That information may be in
several forms. It can be notes and documents, data to be processed by another
computer, files sent to colleagues, and even more exotic forms of data.
During late 60s and 70s, organizations were inundated with many different
LAN and WAN technologies such as packet switching technology, collision-
detection local area networks, hierarchical enterprise networks, and many other
excellent technologies. The major drawbacks of all these technologies were that
Self-Instructional
2 Material
they could not communicate with each other without expensive deployment of Basic Internet Concepts

communications devices. These were not only expensive but also put users at the
mercy of the monopoly of the vendor they were dealing with. Consequently, multiple
networking models were available as a result of the research and development
efforts made by many interest groups. This paved the way for development of NOTES
another aspect of networking known as protocol layering. This allows applications
to communicate with each other. A complete range of architectural models were
proposed and implemented by various research teams and computer manufacturers.
The result of this know-how is that today any group of users can find a physical
network and an architectural model suitable for their specific needs. This includes
cheap asynchronous lines with no other error recovery than a bit-per-bit parity
function, through full-function wide area networks (public or private) with reliable
protocols such as public packet switching networks or private SNA networks, to
high-speed but limited-distance local area networks.
It is now evident that organizations or users are using different network
technologies to connect computers over the network. The desire of sharing more
and more information among homogeneous or heterogeneous interest groups
motivated the researcher to device a technology whereby one group of users
could extend its information system to another group who had a different network
technology and different network protocols. This necessity was recognized in early
70s by a group of researchers in the United States of America (USA) who hit
upon a new principle popularly known as Internetworking. Other organizations
also became involved in this area of interconnecting networks, such as ITU-T
(formerly CCITT) and ISO. All were trying to define a set of protocols, layered in
a well-defined suite, so that applications would be able to communicate with each
other, regardless of the underlying network technology and the operating systems
where those applications run.
Internetworks
The availability of different operating systems, hardware platforms and the
geographical dispersion of computing resources necessitated the need of networking
in such a manner that computers of all sizes could communicate with each other,
regardless of the vendor, the operating system, the hardware platform, or
geographical proximity. Therefore, we may say that Internetworking is a scheme
for interconnecting multiple networks of dissimilar technologies. To interconnect
multiple networks of dissimilar technologies use both additional hardware and
software. This additional hardware is positioned between networks and software
on each attached computer. This system of interconnected networks is called an
Internetwork or an Internet.
To develop standards for Internetworking, Defense Advanced Research
Projects Agency (DARPA) funded research projects. ARPAnet, a project of
DARPA, introduced the world of networking with protocol suite concepts such
as layering, well before ISO’s initiative in this direction. DARPA continued its
Self-Instructional
Material 3
Basic Internet Concepts research for an Internetworking protocol suite. This may be seen in the early NCP
(Network Control Program) host-to-host protocol to the TCP/IP protocol suite,
which took its current form around 1978. DARPA was well known for its
pioneering of packet switching over radio networks and satellite channels and
NOTES ARPAnet was declared an operational network with responsibility of administering
it to Defense Communications Agency (DCA) in 1975. TCP/IP had not yet been
developed.
ARPAnet was basically a network based on leased lines connected by
special switching nodes, known as Internet Message Processors (IMP). Many
researchers were involved in TCP/IP research by 1979. This motivated DARPA
to form an informal committee to coordinate and guide the design of the
communication protocols and architecture. The committee was called the Internet
Control and Configuration Board (ICCB).
The first real implementation of the Internet was when DARPA converted
the machines of its research network ARPAnet to use the new TCP/IP protocols.
After this transition which started in 1980 and finished in 1983, DARPA demanded
that all computers willing to connect to its ARPAnet must use TCP/IP. The US
military adopted TCP/IP as standard protocol in 1983 and recommended that all
networks connected to the ARPAnet conform to the new standards.
The success of ARPAnet was more than the expectations of its own founders
and TCP/IP Internetworking became widespread. As a result, new wide area
networks (WAN) were created in the USA and connected to ARPAnet using
TCP/IP protocol. In turn, other networks in the rest of the world, not necessarily
based on the TCP/IP protocols, were added to the set of interconnected networks.
Computing facilities all over North America, Europe, Japan, and other parts of the
world are currently connected to the Internet via their own sub-networks,
constituting the world’s largest network. In 1990, ARPAnet was eliminated, and
the Internet was declared as the formal global network.
DARPA also funded a project to develop TCP/IP protocols for Berkeley
UNIX on the VAX and to distribute the developed codes free of charge with their
UNIX operating system. The first release of the Berkeley Software Distribution
(BSD) to include the TCP/IP protocol set was made available in 1983 (4.2BSD).
This led to the spread of TCP/IP among universities and research centers and has
become the standard communications subsystem for all UNIX connectivity. There
are many updated versions of BSD code available. These are 4.3BSD (1986),
4.3BSD Tahoe (1988), 4.3BSD Reno (1990) and 4.4BSD (1993).
Some examples of the different networks that have played key roles in this
development are described below:
The Internet
The word Internet is a short form of a complete word Internetwork or
interconnected network. Therefore, it can be said that the Internet is not a single
Self-Instructional
4 Material
network, but a collection of networks. The commonality between them in order to Basic Internet Concepts

communicate with each other is TCP/IP. The Internet consists of the following
groups of networks:
 Backbones: These are large networks that exist primarily to interconnect
NOTES
other networks. Some examples of backbones are NSFNET in the USA,
EBONE in Europe and large commercial backbones.
 Regional Networks: These connect, for example, universities and colleges.
ERNET (Education and Research Network) is an example in the Indian
context.
 Commercial Networks: They provide access to the backbones to
subscribers, and networks owned by commercial organizations for internal
use and also have connections to the Internet. Mainly, Internet Service
Providers come into this category.
 Local Networks: These are campus-wide university networks.
The networks connect users to the Internet using special devices that are
called gateways or routers. These devices provide connection and protocol
conversion of dissimilar networks to the Internet. Gateways or routers are
responsible for routing data around the global network until they reach their ultimate
destination as shown in Figure 1.1. The delivery of data to its final destination
takes place based on some routing table maintained by router or gateways. These
are mentioned at various places in this book as these are the fundamental devices
to connect similar or dissimilar networks together.
Over time, TCP/IP defined several protocol sets for the exchange of routing
information. Each set pertains to a different historic phase in the evolution of
architecture of the Internet backbone.

Ethernet
10 Mbps

Token-ring
4Mbps,
16Mbps
WAN
Router WAN
1200-
1200-
600Mbps
600Mbps
Router
Router

Ethernet
10 Mbps

Fig. 1.1 Local Area Networks Connected to the Internet via Gateways or Routers

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Basic Internet Concepts ARPAnet
ARPAnet was built by DARPA as described earlier. This initiated the packet
switching technology in the world of networking and therefore is sometimes referred
NOTES to as the “grand-daddy of packet networks”. The ARPAnet was established in
the late 60s for Department of Defense to accommodate research equipment on
packet switching technology besides allowing resource sharing for the Department’s
contractors. This network includes research centres, some military bases and
government locations. It soon became popular with researchers for collaboration
through electronic mail and other services. ARPAnet marks the beginning of Internet.
ARPAnet provided interconnection of various packet-switching nodes
(PSN) located across continental USA and Western Europe using 56 Kbps leased
lines. ARPAnet provided connection to minicomputers running a protocol known
as 1822 (after the number of a report describing it) and dedicated it to the packet-
switching task. Each PSN had at least two connections to other PSNs (to allow
alternate routing in case of circuit failure) and up to 22 ports for user computer
connections. Later on, DARPA replaced the 1822 packet switching technology
with the CCITT X.25 standard. The increase in data traffic made 56 Kbps capacity
of the lines insufficient. ARPAnet has now been replaced with new technologies as
backbone for the research side of the connected Internet.
1.2.1 Internet Services
The Internet is known as ‘the Network of Networks’. It is like a phone system
that connects almost anywhere around the world. It exchanges information and
acts as global link between small regional networks. Internet services offer a
gateway to a myriad of online databases, library catalogues and collections, and
software and document archives, in addition to frequently used store-and-forward
services, such as UserNet News and e-mail. The widely used Internet services
are as follows:
E-Mail
E-mail is the prime Internet service that facilitates services to people or users
across the world. Full Internet connectivity is not required for this. For example,
an electronic address provides these services to FTP sites through which mail can
be exchanged. Other Internet services, such as IP address resolver, Archie lookup,
WHOIS service is done via e-mail.
The header and body of the message make an e-mail message. The header
contains the information where the message is to be sent and the complete path
for reaching the destination, date and return path. The body of the message is the
actual message that has to be sent. The syntax of an e-mail address is user@
subdomain.subdomain.domain, e.g., abc@gmail.com. A service provider must
be connected with leased line, dial-up or connection with any network for sending
e-mail.
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File Transfer Protocol (FTP) Basic Internet Concepts

FTP is also prime Internet service that acts as protocol and transfers files over
TCP/IP network (Internet, UNIT, etc.). Once HTML page is developed on a
local machine for a website, it is first uploaded to the Web server through FTP. NOTES
Local machine is the machine on which you are initially logged into. It includes
functions to log on to the network, gives a list of directories and copies files. FTP
transfer is possible by entering URL preceded with ftp:// within address bar of a
web browser. The FTP operations can be performed by issuing FTP commands
at the command prompt or by using FTP utility running under a graphical user
interface on Windows OS. FTP tasks can be performed through a browser. For
example, type an IE address bar URL as ftp:// to get ftp services. For example,
ftp://YourLoginName@IPaddress.
The required steps used in connecting with FTP operations are as follows:
The local machine is connected with remote machine by typing ‘ftp
machinename’. The machinename is the full name, written as aaa.cs.state.edu, of
the remote machine to which the local machine is to be connected. Basically, the
machine name is the remote machine’s full name. If the machine name is not available
other option is taken as to type the ‘ftp machinenumber’ that demands the Net
address of the remote machine, e.g., 129.15.0.11. The FTP responds to the users
to enter their loginname and password. The anonymous ftp is used widely these
days. Many computer systems provide this facility so that you can access the
information of specific machine without creating an account on that particular
machine. These types of services are provided by anonymous FTP. You need not
to be registered user of the system. The anonymous FTP server contains relevant
software, documents and files used to configure networks, graphics, images, songs,
lyrics and other useful information. An electronic e-mail can be archived through
the anonymous FTP. The ready information is stored in machines for any user
across the Net who wants to get the required information.
Telnet
Telnet is used to connect remote network computers. It is the Internet service that
executes commands on remote host as if you are going to log in locally. For this,
the machine name and valid user name are required to be connected. The commands
that are issued on telnet are as follows:
Telnet Hostname: A connection to the host name is opened by this
command. For example, issuing the command as ‘telnet abc.maths.edu’ with that
machine which keeps the required information of abc.maths.edu site can connect
you.
Telnet Address: It gives the IP address of the connected host.

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Basic Internet Concepts Archie
If some programs are installed in a system unit and you want to know the availability
of the program on the Internet, you can get to know the machine along with such
NOTES programs via Archie. Basically, Archie is a program that searches files anywhere
on the Net by filename. This facility is maintained by a database with the Internet
sites accessible via anonymous ftp. The following Table 1.1 shows the various
types of Archie servers:
Table 1.1 Various Types of Archie Servers

Name IP Address
archie.rutgers.edu 128.6.18.15
archie.cs.mcgill.ca 132.206.51.250
archie.funet.fi 128.214.6.102
archie.rediris.es 130.206.1.2
archie.sura.net 192.239.16.13
archie.doc.ic.ac.uk 146.169.16.11

The Archie server can be accessed via Telnet, for example, ‘Telnet
archie.rutgers.edu’. For getting Archie server login to ‘Archie’. It requires no
password. You can look for files by its full name. For this, either ‘set type exact’
syntax is used or you can use ‘set type sub’ syntax. The ‘set type sub’ syntax is
used if the required name of the file is known. The ‘find file-name’ syntax is also
used to find the required file name.
Gopher
The Gopher protocol supports client–server software that searches files on the
Internet. A Gopher client is required for validating and testing of Gopher publishing
service. For example, WS Gopher 1.2 is available on the Internet as shareware.
The server based text files are hierarchically organized and viewed by end-users.
These end-users access the server by using Gopher applications of remote
computers. Gopher browsers initially display the text-based files. Most of the files
along with database are available on Gopher that converts HTTP compatible formats
and makes them available on the net.

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 Basic Internet Concepts

NOTES

In the preceding screen, the Internet service manager displays the services that are
installed on the server to which the Internet service manager is attached.
Finger
Finger service gives information about users, for example, username, person’s
first name and last name, information about recently logged in and also where they
logged in. But the users must enter the required information where they get
registration for particular e-mail services. Finger is also used to get a list of users
who are currently logged into the host. In fact, the Finger program accepts input
as an e-mail address that returns information of user. In some systems, Finger
gives the information about the currently logged on users.
World Wide Web (WWW)
WWW provides hypertext access to documents located anywhere on the Internet.
It is a very successful distributed information system. It is basically client–server
data transfer protocol that communicates via application level protocol. Its structural
components are clients–browsers, servers and caches. The Internet and semantic
components include hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP), hypertext markup language
(HTML) extensible markup language (XML) and uniform resource identifiers
(URIs). The clients who get various sites requested to the server via HTTP determine
the structure of WWW. Then web pages constructs HTML consists of graphics
and sound embedded files. For running the complete system, TCP/IP, DNS
networking protocols are required.

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Basic Internet Concepts The reason behind the evolution of Java programming language is to develop
distributed application. Distributed application means many CPUs are inter-
connected through different network topology so that each CPU can communicate
with one another. Java introduced the remote method invocation technique to
NOTES implement distributed application. The java.net package provides classes and
methods to develop networking-applications through different network protocols.
A group of computers connected by cable to share information is popularly
known as network. A network is a set of computers and peripherals that are
physically connected. Networking enables sharing of resources and communication.
Java applets can be downloaded from a website. This is one of the main attractions
of Java. Networking in Java is possible through the use of java.net package. The
classes within this package encapsulate the socket model developed by Berkeley
software division. The network requires some components, such as:
 Server
 Client
 Peer
 Protocol
 Physical Media
 Physical Devices
Servers provide services to the client. If a server provides application services,
then it is treated as an application server.
The client accesses services from the server. Peer is a computer that works
as a server as well as a client.
Clients
A computer, which requests for some service from another computer, is called a
client. The one that processes the request is called a server. A server waits till
one of its clients makes a request. It can accept multiple connections at a time to
the same port number. Multithreading is used to serve multiple users at the same
time.
Write the Client side Application
The following example shows this:
Program 1
import java.net.*;
import java.io.*;
public class DataClient1
{
public static DatagramSocket ds;
public static int clientport=9999,serverport=10000;
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 public static void main(String args[])throws Exception Basic Internet Concepts
{
byte buffer[]=new byte[2300];
ds=new DatagramSocket(clientport);
NOTES
System.out.println(“Client is waiting for server
to send data”);
DatagramPacket p=new
DatagramPacket(buffer,buffer.length);
while(true)
{
ds.receive(p);
String str=new String(p.getData(),0,p.getLength());
System.out.println(str);
}
}
}

Steps for Compilation and Execution of the Client Side Application

The various steps are as follows:
(a) Compile client side application: javac DataClient1.java
(b) Execute client side application: java DataClient
Output of the program:

Servers
Write the Server Side Application
The following example shows this:
Program 2
import java.net.*;
import java.io.*;
public class DataServer
{
public static DatagramSocket ds;
public static int clientport=9999,serverport=10000;
public static void main(String args[])throws Exception
{
byte buffer[]=new byte[2300];
ds=new DatagramSocket(serverport); Self-Instructional
Material 11
Basic Internet Concepts BufferedReader br=new BufferedReader(new
InputStreamReader(System.in));
System.out.println(“Enter Text”);
InetAddress ia=InetAddress.getByName(“localhost”);
NOTES while(true)
{
String s=br.readLine();
if((s==null)||s.equalsIgnoreCase(“end”))
{
break;
}
buffer=s.getBytes();
ds.send(new DatagramPacket(buffer,buffer.
length,ia,
clientport));
}
}
}

Steps for Writing, Compilation and Execution of the

Server Side Application
The various steps are:
(a) Write the server side application.
(b) Compile it, javac DataServer.java.
(c) Execute it, java DataServer.
Output of the program:

Communication between Server and Client Application Through

Multithreading
This can be seen as follows:
Write the Server Side Application
The following example shows this:
Program 3
import java.awt.*;
import java.awt.event.*;
Self-Instructional import java.io.*;
12 Material
import java.net.*; Basic Internet Concepts
public class AppServer extends Frame implements
ActionListener,Runnable
{
Button b1; NOTES
TextField tf;
TextArea ta;
ServerSocket ss;
Socket s;
PrintWriter pw;
BufferedReader br;
Thread th;
public AppServer()
{
Frame f=new Frame(“Server Side Chatting”);
f.setLayout(new FlowLayout());
f.setBackground(Color.orange);
b1=new Button(“Send”);
b1.setBackground(Color.pink);
b1.addActionListener(this);
tf=new TextField(15);
ta=new TextArea(12,20);
ta.setBackground(Color.cyan);
f.addWindowListener(new W1());
f.add(tf);
f.add(b1);
f.add(ta);
try{
ss=new ServerSocket(12000);
s=ss.accept();
br=new BufferedReader(new
InputStreamReader(s.getInputStream()));
pw=new PrintWriter(s.getOutputStream(),true);
}catch(Exception e)
{
}
th=new Thread(this);
th.setDaemon(true);
th.start();
setFont(new Font(“Arial”,Font.BOLD,20));

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Basic Internet Concepts f.setSize(200,200);
f.setLocation(300,300);
f.setVisible(true);
f.validate();
NOTES
}
private class W1 extends WindowAdapter
{
public void windowClosing(WindowEvent we)
{
System.exit(0);
}
}
public void actionPerformed(ActionEvent ae)
{
pw.println(tf.getText());
tf.setText(“”) ;
}
public void run()
{
while(true)
{
try{
ta.append(br.readLine() +”\n”);
}catch(Exception e)
{
}
}
}
public static void main(String args[])
{
AppServer a=new AppServer();
}
}

Steps for Compilation and Execution of the Server Side Application

The steps are:
(a) Compile server side application, javac AppServer.java.
(b) Execute server side application, java AppServer.

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Output of the program: Basic Internet Concepts

NOTES

Write the Client Side Application

The following example shows this:
Program 4
import java.awt.*;
import java.awt.event.*;
import java.io.*;
import java.net.*;
public class AppClient extends Frame implements
ActionListener,Runnable
{
Button b;
TextField tf;
TextArea ta;
Socket s;
PrintWriter pw;
BufferedReader br;
Thread th;
public AppClient()
{
Frame f=new Frame(“Client Side Chatting”);
f.setLayout(new FlowLayout());
f.setBackground(Color.orange);
b=new Button(“Send”) ;
b.addActionListener(this);
f.addWindowListener(new W1());
tf=new TextField(15);
ta=new TextArea(12,20);
ta.setBackground(Color.cyan);
f.add(tf);
Self-Instructional
Material 15
Basic Internet Concepts f.add(b);
f.add(ta);
try{
s=new Socket(InetAddress.getLocalHost(),12000);
NOTES
br=new BufferedReader(new
InputStreamReader(s.getInputStream()));
pw=new PrintWriter(s.getOutputStream(),true);
}catch(Exception e)
{
}
th=new Thread(this);
th.setDaemon(true);
th.start();
setFont(new Font(“Arial”,Font.BOLD,20));
f.setSize(200,200);
f.setVisible(true);
f.setLocation(100,300);
f.validate();
}
private class W1 extends WindowAdapter
{
public void windowClosing(WindowEvent we)
{
System.exit(0);
}
}
public void actionPerformed(ActionEvent ae)
{
pw.println(tf.getText()) ;
tf.setText(“”) ;
}
public void run()
{
while(true)
{
try{
ta.append(br.readLine()+”\n”) ;
}catch(Exception e) {}
}
}
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 public static void main(String args[]) Basic Internet Concepts
{
AppClient a1=new AppClient();
}
NOTES
}

Steps for Compilation and Execution of the Client Side Application

The steps are:
(a) Compile the client side application, javac AppClient.java.
(b) Execute the client side application, java AppClient.
1.2.2 Equipments Required for an Internet Connection
Surfing the Internet is quite similar to scuba diving, with regard to the sophisticated
equipments deployed to access Internet. Just as we need certain equipments to
dive in the deep ocean for scuba diving, we require adequate paraphernalia to
successfully plunge into the huge ocean of interconnected computers and networks.
Now-a-days, Internet access necessitates a broadband connection, which
is, a high data rate Internet access. The dial-up access deploys a 56K dial up
modem, which uses a dedicated telephone line and is limited to the bit rate of less
than 56 Kbps. In contrast to this is the broadband technology, which provides
more than double the dial up bit rate and that too without intervening with the
telephone use. In other words, it means that Internet access and voice call can be
carried out simultaneously. The broadband connections are characterized by various
minimum bandwidths ranging from 64 Kbps up to 2.0 Mbps. Some standards
define the broadband connection as having download data transfer rates equal to
or faster than 256 Kbps, whereas others define it as having data transmission
speed exceeding 768 Kbps in either downstream or upstream direction. In general,
any connection of 256 Kbps or greater comes under broadband Internet.
Certain equipments which are required to access the Internet are as follows:
Amongst these, some of them are mandatory and some are optional:
 Computer: A computer which is used to browse the Internet may either
be a personal computer with Pentium processor or a Macintosh. It should
have enough power and memory concomitant with multimedia features.
Though 128 MB RAM is sufficient to have access to Internet but 512
MB RAM or more is recommended. Now-a-days, devices like smart
phones, mobile phones, Pocket PCs, etc. are also used to browse the
Internet.
 Modem: It stands for Modulator/Demodulator. This may either be
internally built in or externally connected. The modem is a device that
converts data in binary code used by the computer, to an analog signal
that can be transmitted over the telephone network and vice versa.

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Basic Internet Concepts
With the help of telephone lines, millions of computers worldwide are
connected with one another, either directly or indirectly. In order to
connect with the Internet Service Provider (ISP), these connections
require the regular dial up telephone lines or dedicated higher capacity
NOTES
telephone lines like leased lines, ISDN lines, etc.
 Internet Account with a Service Provider: An account with a service
provider is essential to create a link between the user’s computer and the
Internet. A service provider, which is popularly referred to as ISP (Internet
Service Provider), signifies phone or cable companies that provide last mile
connectivity. It may also refer to a cable line from the subscriber’s home to
his office and also to an exchange for long distance connectivity based on
monthly or annual charges.
 Widely used Current Standard Broadband Technologies: These
technologies are DSLs, that is, Digital Subscriber Line (DSL) and cable
modems. However, recent technologies like VDSL and optical fiber
connections are also gradually becoming popular in providing Internet access
in a much more cost-effective way than copper wire technology. Wi-Fi
networks are also used to provide Internet connections. However, these
are not served in the areas by cable or ADSL. The WiMAX has been
gaining popularity with regard to mobile and stationary broadband access.
 Internet Browser Software: It is the software tool which enables a user
to browse the Internet with the help of web addresses or URLs. A few of
the widely used browsers are Internet Explorer version 7 or 8 (IE),
Netscape, Mozilla Firefox, Chrome, AOL, Opera, etc.
 Anti-Virus Software: These are used to protect the user from the onslaught
of the nasty programs that obtain access to the user’s terminal when he is
surfing the network or downloading contents from there. Some examples
of anti-virus software are Symantec, Norton, McAfee, etc.
 Email Software: The email software may be chosen from the Outlook or
Outlook Express. Google, Yahoo and Hotmail offer free web-mail for the
same.
 Plug-In Software: It is considered an add-on to the user terminal. It enables
the user to avail services like music, video, multimedia, etc. on the Internet.
The most popular plug-in-softwares include Real Audio music player,
Macromedia Flash Player, Windows Media Player, Apple Quick Time,
Java Virtual Machine, etc.
 Stereo Speakers, Microphone and Webcam: These equipments enable
the user to play sounds, videos, to conduct Internet telephoning and to
send images to other users connected to the Internet.

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1.2.3 Home Page Basic Internet Concepts

Home page is known as the first page of the web page. It is replete with a myriad
of hyperlinks on its page. Creation of a home page connotes creating and launching
of the website. This is a consequential task which is accomplished by arranging NOTES
the website hosting, designing and coding of the website, monitoring the functioning
of the site and by scrutinizing the website traffic. Creating the website takes into
consideration, various factors which are to be implemented on the page. Launching
the website is an important operation. This requires information pertaining to name,
phone, URL description as well as the domain details. It should be ensured that
the website must be kept in the right direction. A comprehensive user’s guide that
conveys the relevant information of the website, must be provided to the user. This
can be done after successfully launching the website. The more accurate the details
are, the better the results would be. The task of launching the website can be
carried out in the local listing of Google and Yahoo. This optimizes the search
engine facilities for your website, which offers moderate list of options, searchable
information and the third party data providers, such as SuperPages, YellowPages,
CitySearches, etc. These search engines provide a great facility to recite the name
of your website. Such search engines also offer a free Jumpstart program in which
you can enter you website domain area, avail the ‘WAY’ (Who You Are) facility,
get reviews and list hours etc. There are many factors that determine the success
of a website on the net. The following factors should be taken into consideration
while creating and launching a Website:
 Message Board: It is a type of forum through which visitors of the website
interact with the site to enhance its popularity.
 Search Engine: This is a valuable retention tool which helps visitors search
for relevant information, provided the site is enlisted with a famous search
engine.
 Polls: This option on the website enables the visitors to vote as per their
satisfaction. For instance, the users can assess the performance of the web
services by giving their feedback with the help of the feedback option.
 Guestbooks: This website facility helps the users contact the organization
for which the particular site is created. Through this facility, the website
visitors can enter their name, email, comments and suggestions. Once this
information reaches the organization, the respective executive of the
organization contacts the visitors.
 Data Entry Forms: Through this option, the website visitors can place
orders and can also provide request information. Date entry forms also
facilitate storing of customer service data, which is later entered into a
computerized database or spreadsheet by the organization.

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Basic Internet Concepts

NOTES

Fig. 1.2 Data Entry Form for Customer Record

Figure 1.2 depicts the data entry form for customer record that provides
various text fields, submit buttons, links to navigate to another page, combo boxes
etc. If you click on the link Add another customer record? as specified in the
figure, it will provide another set of customer record fields to fill the detail of
customer information.
Creation of a Home Page
Creation of a home page requires eight steps which are as follows:
1. Select and Register a Web Page Domain Name
First select a suitable website domain name to monitor the conflict issues of
the same. Once a domain name is allotted to an organization or an individual,
it can not be further allotted to anyone. The registration of domain name is
unique and is carried out by Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and
Numbers (ICANN), which is an -accredited domain name registrar, such
as abc.com, xyz.com etc. The free website hosting service is also available
that can be availed without registering a domain name. The search engine
does not provide its services if any website lacks its registered domain
name.
2. Select and Configure a Website Hosting Service
The hosting cost of website ranges from $100 to $250 every year. The cost
varies from one website to another, depending on the websites’ features
such as ecommerce facilities, special processing requirements, high traffic
volume options, etc. At this stage, web hosting is checked for control over
content, security and usage of the site.

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3. Design, Code and Test the Website Basic Internet Concepts

A static website comprises of a single web page. It must have ‘index.html’

or ‘index.htm’. A bare-bone format of the web page, which constitutes the
HTML code, is as follows:
NOTES
<HTML>
<BODY> Hello Web! </BODY>
</HTML>

There are various types of software tools such as Adobe PhotoShop,

Microsoft FrontPage etc.
4. Deploy the Website to the Host
At this stage, the file transfer program is uploaded in order to download the
website. It also updates the pages between system units and website host
computer.
5. Security and Authentication
Before launching a website on the net, it is essential to implement the security
and full-proof authentication of the site. The following security methods are
required for the same:
 Login pages should be encrypted.
 Data validation should be conducted in the server-side.
 Managing the website with the help of encrypted connections.
 Website must be connected from secured network.
 Login credentials must not be shared.
 Maintaining a Password and key authentication.
 Use redundancy to protect the website.
After accomplishing the authentication only SSL is used with http://URL
scheme is used. The login form POST is encrypted after every login process.
The JavaScript is used for validating the web forms. The server side validation
safeguards from malicious security crackers but in a limited way. The website
must be equipped with encrypted connections because non-encrypted
connections make the website susceptible to login or password sniffing or
even man-in-middle-attacks.

Fig. 1.3 Login Screen

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Material 21
Basic Internet Concepts A secured connection must be associated with website and also secured
proxy server must be used, such as PuTTY secure proxy or
OpenSSHproxy. In order to maintain secure workstation, integrity auditing
must be conducted. The server failover and backups should also be
NOTES deployed as they diminish the possibility of server crashes. Data backup is
also important in so far that it safeguards from loosing the client’s data.
6. Online Payment mode
Before launching any website, it is essential to set up an online payment
mode, which is provided to the website. A website must be equipped with
facilities like payment through credit cards or by a third-party such as
Paypal, etc.
Other factors that should be considered while launching a website are
following:
 A website is launched with the help of File Protocol Program (FTP). It
is an economical option. The owner of website must instruct the web
designer and the system analysts to implement FTP before the launch of
the website.
 The web host firm place on the server must be provided on the site. For
example, site owner provides the disk to the web host firm so that they
can set up fee for the site.
 It is incumbent upon the owner of the website to remove the ‘teething’
problem before launching the website. Incoherent or incomplete website
can discourage the visitors. For example, if an organization provides e-
commerce services, it must ensure that up to date and relevant information
is available on its site. The teething problem may lead to problem of set
up and layout of the web screen.
A websites is written in HTML and is a collection of linked web pages on a
web server which can be electronically accessed. Web server is a machine
in which a website is located or hosted. It may be organization owned or
Internet Service Provider (ISP) owned. The web pages may be owned by
a university, a private company or an individual and are accessible to all
people. Most of the websites have their own homepages that facilitate
navigation by providing links to explore the details stored therein. The pages
of a good website are organized using a common theme.
7. Launching the Website
Launch of the site is carried out after designing and completion of the site. It
is essential to finalize the layout and style of the site before launching. It is
significant to note that before the launch of the website, its domain should
be registered.

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 8. Promote the Website Basic Internet Concepts

The information is sent on the web through search engines and their related
directories. The promotion scheme must be published on the website at
regular intervals. Therefore, this factor must be considered during creation
NOTES
of the website. The optimal way to promote the website is to update the
visitors on the specific website with the pertinent information. For example,
in case of online air ticket booking systems, any promotional scheme such
as shifting the seat arrangement from economic to business class or changing
the flight schedules etc. must be updated online to intimate the travellers and
the visitors about the same.
It provides a point of entry to a Website with help. It also contains all relevant
links of a particular website, so as to enable the user to explore the website for
information available therein.
1.2.4 Internet and URL
URL denotes Uniform Resource Locator. It is the address of a document on the
World Wide Web. Web browsers enable a person to enter either a known address
in the web server or a specific document within that server. Addresses usually
begin with http://, ftp://, gopher://, WAIS://, file:// etc. It is not feasible to maintain
WWW without using the URLs. These are also used to represent hypermedia
links and links to network services within the HTML documents. Any file or service
on the Internet can be presented with the help of the URL. The first part of the
URL that comes before the two slashes specifies the method of access or protocol
being followed for communications between the browser and the web server. The
second part coming after two slashes represents the address of the host machine,
whose data or services are being sought. The remaining parts signify the names of
the files, the port to connect to or the text to search for in a database. All the parts
of an address for obtaining a file or service from a host machine in a URL are
shown as a single unbroken line with no spaces and the locations of the host
machines or websites that run www servers are typically named with a www at
the beginning of the network address. The web browsers enable the users to
access web services by specifying a URL and connecting to that document or
service. Once the user gets connected with the web server, the web browsers
select the hypertext in an HTML document and send a request to open a URL.
Thus, hyperlinks are used not only to provide other texts and media in the same
document but also to facilitate other network services. Web browsers are not
simply web clients. They are full-featured FTP, Gopher and telnet clients.

1.3 DOMAIN NAME SYSTEM (DNS)

The Domain Name System (DNS) is a distributed database that provides e-mail
routing information. It is used by TCP/IP protocols. These protocols map between
IP addresses and hostnames. The domain name extension type is tagged with
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Basic Internet Concepts distributed database because no single website across a network can access all the
information. Each site runs a server program for sites and maintains its own database
of information. Therefore, collecting information is possible through distributed method
that creates a mechanism for clients and servers to communicate with each other.
NOTES
The domain name extension is defined as the complete address of hosting
services provided on the sites. In the beginning, the Internet configuration used
numeric IP address, which was a very cumbersome task. To overcome this
problem, symbolic host names came into existence. For instance, initially, it was
typed as TELNET 10.12.7.14 but nowadays, TELNET MyHost command is
issued. With this command, the mapping between machine names and IP addresses
has also become centralized and coordinated. A name space is organized in two
ways—either hierarchical or flat. It basically maps each address to a unique
specified name. The address mappings of host names are maintained by Network
Information Centre (NIC) which maintains a single file known as the flat name
space. Hierarchical name space involves the nature and name of the organization
but in this case, the controlling authority is decentralized. The design of domain
name space is hierarchical. It follows inverted tree structure, that is, from the root
to the top. It can have up to 128 levels that start from level 0, that is, the root level
and may go up to level 127. A label can have a maximum of 63 characters. The
root level contains a Null string. Each node in the reversed tree keeps a domain
name. A fully qualified domain name contains a sequence of labels separated by
dots. The first part defines the nature of an organization, the second part signifies
the name of the organization and the third part refers to the department of the
organization. (see Figure 1.4). The authority to assign and control the name spaces
can be decentralized. For example, myHost.myDept.myDiv.myCorp.com

Fig. 1.4 Domain Name Extension Hierarchy

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 The domain name space is hierarchical in design. The names are defined in Basic Internet Concepts

an inverted-tree structure with the root at the top. The tree can have 128 levels,
that is, level 0 (root) to level 127. Each node in the tree has a label, which is a
string with maximum of 63 characters. The root label is a null string. DNS requires
that the children of a node have different labels. Each node in the tree has a domain NOTES
name. A full domain name is a sequence of labels separated by dots. The domain
names are always read from the node to the root. Table 1.2 shows the top-level
domains that are assigned in the United States.
If the domain name ends in a dot, it shows that the name is not complete.
This is known as AND. It is referred to as a Fully Qualified Domain Name (FQDN)
or an absolute domain name. For example,
myDept.myDiv.myCorp.com.
If the domain name does not end in a dot, then it means that it is complete.
This is called partially qualified domain name (PQDN). For example,
myDept.myDiv.myCorp
The nature of DNS is distributed where symbolic names are grouped into
zones of authority. These zones contain a database of symbolic names along with
IP addresses. Each zone is a part of sub-tree of hierarchical structure. The names
are administered independently within the zones and can be assigned to other
zones. The name server includes authority over the zones. Figure 1.5 shows that
the domain name can be searched by its extension type.

Fig. 1.5 Searching Domain Name by its Extension Type

Now we have two types of IP addresses in the form of decimal numbers

and text for the same host. You know that list of all IP addresses are maintained
centrally by ICANN in the form of distributed database directory. There are several
distributed servers, which maintain this list of IP addresses. The reasons behind
the distributed server are very logical and simple. It helps in disaster management
and in diverting the load of traffic in the form of requests from clients to other DNS
servers located at different sites. DNS server maintains database in both the textual
and the decimal notation form. For example, DNS server maintains the address of
the google site as www.google.com and 216.23.9.53.99. In this manner, DNS is
used to provide host-to-IP address mapping of remote hosts to the local hosts
and vice versa. It is now conspicuous that the DNS maintains a distributed database
to map between hostnames and IP addresses. Whenever a client requests a service
from a site, both the sites run DNS protocol to access the distributed database
which is nothing but Domain Name Systems. Therefore, the DNS provides the
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Basic Internet Concepts protocol, which allows the clients and servers to communicate with each other.
DNS also helps the system use a resolver, which resolves the host name to that IP
address, which can be understood by the server.
Now let us talk about how DNS is able to quickly translate the text of the
NOTES
IP addresses, from a directory of billions of such addresses and that too within a
fraction of seconds.. This could be made possible by using Domain concepts,
which use hierarchical arrangements of text addresses translation.
As illustrated in the Figure 1.6 you can see that at the top level is the root
server, which has a null label. Below this is another level domain, namely com,
edu, int which are grouped together. Below this different sub domains or groups
have been created. Table 1 depicts some commonly appearing domain names
with their respective sites. The DNS can accommodate almost all kinds of
organizations by allowing each group to choose between geographical or
organizational naming hierarchies.

Root

Server

edu com int

google
hotmail
yahoo

Fig. 1.6 DNS Hierarchy

Table 1.2 Internet Domains
Domain Indicative Site

Com Commercial institute

Edu Educational institute

Org Non-profit organization

Net Network service provider

Gov Government department

Mil Military

Biz Business

Country code For example, in for India, us for USA, au for Australia, jp for Japan and so on

As we know that the servers maintaining addresses are disseminated and

have locations throughout the world. Now the questions arises that how text
addresses are organized in hierarchical arrangement. Now consider the Figure
1.6 and Table 1.2 given above. The hierarchy is represented through zones and
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each zone depicts a hierarchy of one or more nodes without any overlapping. Basic Internet Concepts

Each zone is represented by a server and undoubtedly with one backup server.
The Root server, as shown in Figure 1.6, is the only one which is just indicative.
There may be several root servers at several locations in the world. Each root is
aware of the location of each DNS server of a specific domain. NOTES
The process is now very simple to understand. When you need to connect
with a particular site, you first send your request to your local host. If your local
host provides the translation, your request is completed. If not, your local host
then sends your request one level above in the hierarchy. If the server at one level
above is able to handle the same, you get your intended website at your desktop
through your local server. If not, then the server at one level above your local
server either sends your request again to another server or informs your local
server that your request has failed and eventually gives you the address of another
server to process your request. This process continues until a server, which knows
the address, is found. Otherwise, the request is filtered up to the root server.
Depending upon the domain address, the root server forwards the request to one
of the domain servers represented at the next level of hierarchy. This process
continues until the information of text address is returned to the Root server and
then back to your local server.

1.4 E-MAIL

Electronic mail is one of the most popular network services. The use of e-mail is
considered the foremost reason behind the popularity of Internet. The proliferation
of cyber cafés can be attributed to e-mail or World Wide Web. E-mail provides
an efficient and fast means of communication with relatives, friends or colleagues
throughout the world. With the help of email, one can not only communicate with
myriad people at a time but can also receive and send files and other information
within a fraction of seconds. The biggest advantage of email is that the intended
receiver of the message does not require to be present at their desktop at the time
of receiving of the message.
Definition
The term email connotes the basic communication facility provided by the Internet
to its users to send and receive messages in any part of the world. It is considered
one of the most popular applications of the Internet and is accounted for 90% of
net traffic. Email facilitates sending of messages in the form of a text, audio and
video or even a combination of these types. When a message is sent from the
source user, it reaches the recipient’s mail box. The email message received by the
recipient can be opened, discarded, edited, saved, responded back to or can
even be forwarded to some other recipient. Email messages are delivered instantly
after the transmission. An email can be sent by connecting to the network from any
location. An Internet connection usually requires a telephone line, a modem and a
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Basic Internet Concepts computer. Wireless connections have also become popular means of getting
connected to the Internet. This job is accomplished by the Simple Mail Transfer
Protocol (SMTP) running over TCP/IP.

NOTES Uses of Email

Email provides several features that are useful in day-to-day life. It is an efficient
and cost-effective way of communication across the world. With the help of email,
one can send common letters or circulars to several recipients. The email messages
are delivered instantly, even if they are sent to remote locations worldwide. Thus,
it saves time as well as money. Whereas the postal messages are time consuming.
Email also provides an address book facility which keeps a record of the email
addresses. This saves the user from the predicament of remembering the addresses
of the recipients. In addition, a lot of time, energy and money is saved as the user
creates a mailing list with a group name, so that a letter or a circular can be
transmitted by just typing the name of the particular group. Another advantage of
using email is that provided the email address typed in is correct, it enables the
sender to know immediately whether the message has been delivered to the
recipient,. In case the message is not delivered, the sender will receive a return
email message to inform him about the failure of the particular message. Email
goes beyond all time zones and barriers.
Email also provides the user with a facility of attachment which allows the
user to attach any file created in any application such as word processors, spread
sheet or power point presentations. For example, if the total amount of outstanding
against a client is computed in a spreadsheet, the client may be informed through
a letter in email along with an attachment showing his outstanding amount in the
spreadsheet. The primary advantages of email can be summarized in the following:
 It conducts paperless communication of messages quickly.
 It ensures simultaneous transmission of messages to several users. The
messages may comprise of pictures, video, film clips, text, animation or
even a combination of them. Voice and audio messages can also be
transmitted this way.
 The email messages can also be printed, prioritized, forwarded and
stored.
 Public bulletin boards can be created in which every member of the
organization can post and view messages. This can also be accomplished
in the case of shared text messages and application files used widely
across computer platforms.
 It allows delivery and receiving of faxes and meetings can also be
scheduled through email.

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1.4.1 Opening and E-Mail Account Basic Internet Concepts

Opening an E-mail account is not an issue. Now-a-days, all subscribers get facility
to open an email account free of cost. A number of web services like Google,
Hotmail, Yahoo, etc. are readily available to register a user to open an email account NOTES
and access it from anywhere in the world. However, to avail this facility, the user
should have access to a computer and an Internet connection. In addition to these
web services, organizations or ISPs also provide web interfaces to enable the
users to open their email accounts, though by charging them. In this case, the
organization or ISP possesses the personal record of the users and based on their
personal records and their relationship with them, they open their email accounts
and equip them with an email address. The email addresses comprise of email ids
meant for individual users, which could be their first name or a combination of their
name and surname or their date of birth, etc. along with the URL of the organization.
For example, in sanjay0203@teraclean.com, sanjay 0203 signifies email id
consisting of the name and birth date and month, whereas teraclean.com indicates
the URL of the organization.
In case of universally available web services like Google, Hotmail or Yahoo,
the user needs to open the website of the respective Web service by typing its
corresponding URL in the Web browser. For example, if the user wants to open
an account in the Google Web service, then he needs to key the Web address of
Google, that is, www.google.com. Once the Website of Google opens, the user
needs to click on the Gmail service of the Google. The Gmail interface provides
the facility for opening of a new account, for which it provides a registration form
to be filled up by the user. In accordance with the procedure, the user mentions his
personal information, email id and password in the form. Thereafter, he gets
registered and obtains an email address. This process of creating an email account
is described as follows:
Type the URL “http://www.google.com” in the address bar of a Web browser
such as an Internet Explorer, to visit the Google homepage as shown in Figure 1.7.

Fig. 1.7 Google Homepage

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Basic Internet Concepts The page displayed shows an icon namely Gmail as shown in Figure 1.7.
Once you click on the Gmail icon, it navigates you to another webpage as shown
in Figure 1.8. If you have an existing account with Gmail, you can type in your
email id and your password to log on to your account. If you are accessing the
NOTES Gmail for the first time, then you need to create an account for yourself. The
procedure for the same is as follows:

Fig. 1.8 Sign-in Page

Click on the “Sign up” icon as illustrated in Figure 1.8. This will lead you to
another webpage that contains the registration form as shown in Figure 1.9. Now
you are required to fill the form that asks for your personal details along with your
user ID and password to open a new email account for you.

Fig. 1.9 Registration Page

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 Once you are through with the registration process, after accepting the terms Basic Internet Concepts

and conditions, you become a member and thereafter you are able to use your
email account to send and receive emails. Now all you need is to remember your
user ID and your password for future use of your email account. In other words,
it means that whenever you need to log on to your newly created account, you NOTES
need to simply type your user ID and your password.
1.4.2 Reading and Writing E-Mail
Email is extensively used by people across the world. The procedure of reading
and writing an email is not a very sophisticated one. The steps involved are as
follows:
Reading an E-Mail Message
The email account can be accessed at anytime and from anywhere by logging on
to the particular email account, as mentioned earlier. To read or write an email,
you need to perform the following steps:
1. Type the URL “http://www.google.com” in the address bar of a Web browser.
2. Enter your user ID and the password as shown in Figure 1.10.

Fig. 1.10 Sign-In Page

Once you have signed in successfully, you can access your email account as
shown in Figure 1.11.

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Basic Internet Concepts

NOTES

Fig. 1.11 E-Mail Account

Clicking on the Inbox icon lets you open your Inbox. The Inbox folder
contains all your previous email messages and also enables you to read the new
ones. You also have an option of deleting the previous messages or transferring
them to some other folders also. An email message in the Inbox can be read by
clicking on the email subject or any other clickable item therein. This displays the
contents of the message to be read and allows you to take appropriate action
accordingly. Some email messages are delivered along with attachments.
Attachments may comprise of textual messages, graphics, pictures, videos, sounds
or a combination of these types.
The email message depicts an attachment button within the message itself,
which on being clicked enables you to either open the attachment in relevant
applications or save it on your computer to be opened separately.
Writing an E-Mail Message
AS mentioned earlier, email account can be accessed by logging on to email
account. To write an email, you need to perform the following steps:
The Compose option on the left hand side of the screen enables you to
write an email message. Attachments can also be appended along with the email
messages wherever they are required. On selection of the compose option, a
screen as shown in Figure 6 will appear. The following steps are to be followed for
writing and sending an email message:
1. To: It is a field in which the valid email address of the recipient like User
ID@domain.com is typed in, so that the message can be delivered
correctly. In case of multiple recipients, email address of each recipient
is typed in the same box separated by comas.

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 2. Cc: It signifies the email address/(s) of the recipient/(s) to whom a carbon Basic Internet Concepts

copy of the message is to be transmitted. The recipient/(s) specified in

To field also receives the email address/(s) of the recipients in their
messages indicating that email address/(s) in the Cc field also receive/
(s) the same message. NOTES
3. Bcc: It denotes the email address/(s) of the recipient/(s) to whom a
copy of the message is transmitted. However, in this case, the recipient/
(s) in both To and Cc field remain oblivious of the other email addresses,
to which the message is sent. Bcc stands for blind carbon copy.
4. Subject: This box enables the sender to write the subject of the message,
so that recipient/(s) on receiving the message, could have a clear idea of
what the email message is about.
5. Message Box: It is the field in which you type your message which is
to be transmitted.
An attachment can also be appended to the email message before sending
it. There exists an Attachment button within the compose mail box. On clicking on
the Attachment button, you are asked to provide the location of the desired file to
be attached. You then click on the Browse button which enables you to select the
desired file from your computer. Finally, clicking on the Attach or OK button
attaches the document along with your email message.
Your message with or without attachment is now ready to be transmitted.
Now you need to follow the following steps:
1. If you want to postpone transmitting of your message, you have another
option called Draft in which you can save your message to be transmitted
later. The message saved in the Draft can also be modified before
transmission. The Draft webpage provides you a Send button. On
clicking on it, your message is transmitted and a copy of the message is
saved in your Sent mailbox, provided the send and save option has
been set.
2. If you do not want to postpone the transmission of your message, then
just click on the Send button. On clicking on it, your message will be
transmitted and a copy of the message will be saved in your Sent mailbox.

Check Your Progress

1. What is Internetworking?
2. Define the term ARPAnet.
3. What is Home page?
4. Explain the term Domain Name System (DNS).
5. What is E-mail? What is the advantage of e-mail?

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Basic Internet Concepts
1.5 ANSWERS TO CHECK YOUR PROGRESS
QUESTIONS

NOTES 1. Internetworking is a scheme for interconnecting multiple networks of

dissimilar technologies. To interconnect multiple networks of dissimilar
technologies use both additional hardware and software. This additional
hardware is positioned between networks and software on each attached
computer. This system of interconnected networks is called an Internetwork
or an Internet.
2. ARPAnet was basically a network based on leased lines connected by
special switching nodes, known as Internet Message Processors (IMP).
Many researchers were involved in TCP/IP research by 1979. This motivated
DARPA to form an informal committee to coordinate and guide the design
of the communication protocols and architecture. The committee was called
the Internet Control and Configuration Board (ICCB).
3. Home page is known as the first page of the web page. It is replete with a
myriad of hyperlinks on its page. Creation of a home page connotes creating
and launching of the website.
4. The Domain Name System (DNS) is a distributed database that provides
e-mail routing information. It is used by TCP/IP protocols. These protocols
map between IP addresses and hostnames. The domain name extension
type is tagged with distributed database because no single website across a
network can access all the information. Each site runs a server program for
sites and maintains its own database of information. Therefore, collecting
information is possible through distributed method that creates a mechanism
for clients and servers to communicate with each other.
5. Electronic mail is one of the most popular network services. The use of e-
mail is considered the foremost reason behind the popularity of Internet.
The proliferation of cyber cafés can be attributed to e-mail or World Wide
Web. E-mail provides an efficient and fast means of communication with
relatives, friends or colleagues throughout the world. With the help of email,
one can not only communicate with myriad people at a time but can also
receive and send files and other information within a fraction of seconds.
The biggest advantage of e-mail is that the intended receiver of the message
does not require to be present at their desktop at the time of receiving of
the message.

1.6 SUMMARY

 The Internet, World Wide Web and Information Super Highway are terms
which have the lives of millions of people all over the world.
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 The widespread impact of Internet across the globe could not be possible Basic Internet Concepts

without the development of Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol

(TCP/IP). This protocol suite is developed specifically for the Internet.
 The availability of different operating systems, hardware platforms and the
NOTES
geographical dispersion of computing resources necessitated the need of
networking in such a manner that computers of all sizes could communicate
with each other, regardless of the vendor, the operating system, the hardware
platform, or geographical proximity.
 Internetworking is a scheme for interconnecting multiple networks of
dissimilar technologies. To interconnect multiple networks of dissimilar
technologies use both additional hardware and software. This additional
hardware is positioned between networks and software on each attached
computer. This system of interconnected networks is called an Internetwork
or an Internet.
 ARPAnet was basically a network based on leased lines connected by
special switching nodes, known as Internet Message Processors (IMP).
Many researchers were involved in TCP/IP research by 1979. This motivated
DARPA to form an informal committee to coordinate and guide the design
of the communication protocols and architecture. The committee was called
the Internet Control and Configuration Board (ICCB).
 Regional networks connect, for example, universities and colleges. ERNET
(Education and Research Network) is an example in the Indian context.
 Commercial networks provide access to the backbones to subscribers,
and networks owned by commercial organizations for internal use and also
have connections to the Internet. Mainly, Internet Service Providers come
into this category.
 The Gopher protocol supports client–server software that searches files on
the Internet. A Gopher client is required for validating and testing of Gopher
publishing service.
 World Wide Web (WWW) provides hypertext access to documents located
anywhere on the Internet. It is a very successful distributed information
system. It is basically client–server data transfer protocol that communicates
via application level protocol. Its structural components are clients–browsers,
servers and caches.
 Home page is known as the first page of the web page. It is replete with a
myriad of hyperlinks on its page. Creation of a home page connotes creating
and launching of the website.
 The Domain Name System (DNS) is a distributed database that provides
e-mail routing information. It is used by TCP/IP protocols. These protocols
map between IP addresses and hostnames.

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Basic Internet Concepts  The domain name extension type is tagged with distributed database because
no single website across a network can access all the information. Each site
runs a server program for sites and maintains its own database of information.
 Depending upon the domain address, the root server forwards the request
NOTES
to one of the domain servers represented at the next level of hierarchy. This
process continues until the information of text address is returned to the
Root server and then back to your local server.
 Electronic mail is one of the most popular network services. The use of e-
mail is considered the foremost reason behind the popularity of Internet.
The proliferation of cyber cafés can be attributed to e-mail or World Wide
Web.
 E-mail provides an efficient and fast means of communication with relatives,
friends or colleagues throughout the world. With the help of email, one can
not only communicate with myriad people at a time but can also receive
and send files and other information within a fraction of seconds.
 The biggest advantage of email is that the intended receiver of the message
does not require to be present at their desktop at the time of receiving of
the message.
 The term e-mail connotes the basic communication facility provided by the
Internet to its users to send and receive messages in any part of the world.
It is considered one of the most popular applications of the Internet and is
accounted for 90% of net traffic.
 E-mail facilitates sending of messages in the form of a text, audio and video
or even a combination of these types.

1.7 KEY WORDS

 Internetworking: Internetworking is a scheme for interconnecting multiple

networks of dissimilar technologies. To interconnect multiple networks of
dissimilar technologies use both additional hardware and software, this
additional hardware is positioned between networks and software on each
attached computer.
 ARPAnet: ARPAnet was basically a network based on leased lines
connected by special switching nodes, known as Internet Message
Processors (IMP).
 Regional networks: These connect, for example, universities and colleges.
ERNET (Education and Research Network) is an example in the Indian
context.

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  Commercial networks: They provide access to the backbones to Basic Internet Concepts

subscribers, and networks owned by commercial organizations for internal

use and also have connections to the Internet. Mainly, Internet Service
Providers come into this category.
NOTES
 Home page: Home page is known as the first page of the web page. It is
replete with a myriad of hyperlinks on its page. Creation of a home page
connotes creating and launching of the website.
 Domain Name System (DNS): The Domain Name System (DNS) is a
distributed database that provides e-mail routing information. It is used by
TCP/IP protocols. These protocols map between IP addresses and
hostnames.

1.8 SELF ASSESSMENT QUESTIONS AND

EXERCISES

Short-Answer Questions
1. Define the term Internetworking.
2. What is Home page?
3. Explain the importance of Domain Name System (DNS).
4. Explain why E-mail is considered an important application.
Long-Answer Questions
1. Discuss the basic Internet concepts with the help of appropriate examples.
2. Briefly explain the concept of Internet and Internetworking giving appropriate
examples.
3. Differentiate between client and server applications with the help of programs.
4. Explain the equipment and software required for connecting to the Internet.
5. Briefly explain the structure and significance of Domain Name System (DNS)
for Internet.
6. What is E-mail? What are its uses? Give the steps for opening, reading and
writing an E-mail.

1.9 FURTHER READINGS

Krishnamoorty, R. and Prabhu R. Krishnamoorty. 2009. Internet and Java

Programming. New Delhi: New Age International (P) Ltd.

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Basic Internet Concepts Balagurusamy, E. 2007. Programming with Java, Third Edition. New Delhi:
Tata McGraw-Hill.
Das, Rashmi Kant. 2009. Core Java for Beginners, Revised Edition. New Delhi:
Vikas Publishing House Pvt. Ltd.
NOTES
Keogh, Jim. 2002. The Complete Reference J2SE, Fifth Edition. New York:
Tata McGraw-Hill.
Naughton, Patrick and Herbert Schidt. 1999. Java 2: The Complete Reference,
Third Edition. New Delhi: Tata McGraw-Hill.

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 The World Wide Web

UNIT 2 THE WORLD WIDE WEB

Structure
NOTES
2.0 Introduction
2.1 Objectives
2.2 The World Wide Web
2.2.1 Web Page
2.3 The Internet Search Engines
2.4 Web Browsers
2.5 Chatting and Conferencing on the Internet
2.6 Answers to Check Your Progress Questions
2.7 Summary
2.8 Key Words
2.9 Self Assessment Questions and Exercises
2.10 Further Readings

2.0 INTRODUCTION

The World Wide Web (WWW), commonly known as the Web, is an information
system where documents and other web resources are identified by Uniform
Resource Locators (URLs), such as https://example.com/, which may be interlinked
by hypertext, and are accessible over the Internet. The resources of the Web are
transferred via the HyperText Transfer Protocol (HTTP) and may be accessed by
users by a software application called a ‘Web Browser’ and are published by a
software application called a ‘Web Server’.
English engineer and computer scientist Sir Timothy John Berners-Lee
invented the World Wide Web (WWW) in 1989. He wrote the first web browser
in 1990 while employed at CERN near Geneva, Switzerland. The browser was
released outside CERN in 1991, first to other research institutions starting in January
1991 and then to the general public in August 1991. The World Wide Web has
been central to the development of the Information Age and is the primary tool
billions of people use to interact on the Internet.
Web resources may be any type of downloaded media, but web pages are
hypertext media that have been formatted in HyperText Markup Language (HTML).
Such formatting allows for embedded hyperlinks that contain URLs and permit
users to navigate to other web resources. In addition to text, web pages may
contain references to images, video, audio, and software components which are
displayed in the user’s web browser as coherent pages of multimedia content. A
web browser (commonly referred to as a browser) is a software user agent for
accessing information on the World Wide Web. To connect to a website’s server
and display its pages, a user needs to have a web browser program. This is the
program that the user runs to download, format and display a web page on the
user’s computer. A web search engine or the Internet search engine is a software Self-Instructional
Material 39
The World Wide Web system that is designed to carry out web search (Internet search), which means to
search the World Wide Web in a systematic way for particular information specified
in a web search query. The information may be a mix of web pages, images,
videos, infographics, articles, research papers and other types of files. Some search
NOTES engines also mine data available in databases or open directories.
In this unit, you will study about the World Wide Web, the Internet search
engines, web browsers, chatting and conferencing on the Internet.

2.1 OBJECTIVES

After going through this unit, you will be able to:

 Explain the significance of the World Wide Web
 Define the importance of the Internet search engines
 Discuss the significance of the web browsers
 Elaborate on the concept chatting and conferencing on the Internet

2.2 THE WORLD WIDE WEB

The World Wide Web (WWW), commonly known as the Web, is an information
system where documents and other web resources are identified by Uniform
Resource Locators (URLs), such as https://example.com/, which may be interlinked
by hypertext, and are accessible over the Internet. The resources of the Web are
transferred via the HyperText Transfer Protocol (HTTP) and may be accessed by
users by a software application called a ‘Web Browser’ and are published by a
software application called a ‘Web Server’.
English engineer and computer scientist Sir Timothy John Berners-Lee
invented the World Wide Web (WWW) in 1989. He wrote the first web browser
in 1990 while employed at CERN near Geneva, Switzerland. The browser was
released outside CERN in 1991, first to other research institutions starting in January
1991 and then to the general public in August 1991. The World Wide Web has
been central to the development of the Information Age and is the primary tool
billions of people use to interact on the Internet.
You have already studied at length about the World Wide Web (WWW)
which is considered a major reason behind the popularity of Internet. WWW
refers to a system of information and communications through which the users can
access hypermedia information on servers. It is treasure trove of boundless
information, in which all items have a reference through which they can be retrieved.
In other words, any kind of information on any topic is readily available on the net.
WWW comprises of a collection of websites which are publicly accessible. A
website usually contains multiple pages which are replete with different types of
information about different topics. Following are the constituents of a website:
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40 Material
  Home Page: This page tells the visitors across net about what is that. It The World Wide Web

also tells the visitors across net about what is that. The home page also
locates the relevant sites on the net. It also provides detailed information
about its service domain.
NOTES

Fig. 2.1 Home Page Screen

The Figure 2.1 shows the Home Page of the site that provides various
buttons to search the types. The website depicted here is meant for online searching
of thesaurus, encyclopedia, style guide, word games and Spanish-English dictionary.
The web service provider helps establish a home page on the net. It is also
known as electronic description of the organizations and its products and services.
In real life, it is similar to a brochure or a catalog. An attractive home page grabs
the attention of the visitors and that is why its cost per page is higher as compared
to regular web pages. A home page can be setup with the help of Integrated
Services Digital Network (ISDN) line as it generates HTML which represents the
graphical interface.
For example, if you type www.google.com, it brings you the Google home
page which is illustrated in Figure 2.2.

Fig. 2.2 Google Home Page Self-Instructional

Material 41
The World Wide Web  About page: This page provides the visitors with a detailed information of
the launched website. For example, an online air ticket booking system
gives a detailed description of its services for an air reservation domain.
 Press page: This page on the site helps people interact with media. It also
NOTES
encourages the visitors to include the address, e-mail and phone/mobile
numbers. It also publishes news on its website on a daily basis. Before
launching any site, it is essential to check whether the press page, contact
page and other attractive features are available on the website.
 Contact page: The contact page provides the visitors with the city map,
email address, phone numbers and other relevant information, so that the
visitors can personally contact the organization or the service providers.
2.2.1 WEB PAGE
The WWW is a subset of the Internet and comprises of a huge collection of
documents stored in computers across the world. The web encompasses special
sites called websites along the Internet, that support web browsing. By clicking on
the links that appear on the webpage, one can navigate from one place to another.
Hence, webpage can be defined as a single hypertext document written in
HyperText Markup Language (HTML) and described in HTML basics. A
webpage normally incorporates the basic information and links to navigate in the
websites to which it belongs. Documents in the World Wide Web are classified
into three types, namely static, dynamic and active documents.
Static Webpage
These are fixed content documents which perpetually provide the same information
in response to all download requests from all web users. Static documents are
stored in a web server to be accessed by the web client. The web client, on
requesting for a web page, gets a copy of the same. The contents of such files are
not subject to modification on part of the web user as the web user does not have
right to alter them. However, the web pages can be modified in the server per say.
Thus, the static web pages display the same information to all the web users and
provide hypertext links to perform navigation through static documents. Their
biggest advantage is that they are cache friendly. This enables the web pages to
display one copy of the same web page to many people simultaneously. However,
it becomes difficult to maintain web pages in case of large sites as they demand
consistency and updation.
Dynamic Webpage
These web pages provide interactive web navigation and help modify the content
like text, images, form fields, etc. on a web page, depending on different contexts
or conditions. The dynamic web pages make use of two types of inter-activities,
which are enlisted in the following:

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42 Material
  Client side scripting - It is used to modify interface behaviours within a The World Wide Web

specific web page. This modification is based on the mouse or keyboard

actions and is conducted at specified time intervals. The dynamic behaviour
takes place within the presentation. The presentation technologies like
JavaScript or ActionScript for dynamic HTML (DHTML) and Flash for NOTES
media types of the presentation are used. The client side scripting also
facilitates the use of remote scripting in which the DHTML page requests
for additional information from the server. The content is generated on the
web client’s machine in which the web browser retrieves a page from the
server and processes the code embedded in the web page, so that the
contents of the retrieved page can be displayed to the web user. Sometimes,
the web browsers do not support the language and the commands of the
scripting language, in the client-side dynamic pages.
 Server side scripting - It is used to modify the requested web page source
amongst pages to either adjust the sequence or reload the web pages
delivered to the browser. Server responses are based on certain conditions
like data in a posted HTML form, parameters in the URL, the type of
browser being used, the passage of time or a database or server state.
Server side scripting dynamic web pages are designed with the help of
server-side languages like PHP, Perl, ASP, JSP, etc.
Both the techniques may be used simultaneously to develop the dynamic
web pages. The advantages of dynamic web pages are that these facilitate easy
update of the web pages and faster web page loading. In the dynamic web pages,
the content and the design are located separately, thereby allowing frequent
modifications to the web pages including the text and image updates.
Active Documents
The programs that run at the client side are known as the active documents.
Whenever a web client requests for an active document, the web server provides
a copy of the same in the form of byte code. The document is now ready to be run
at the web client machine. As the active document is served in the binary form,
compression and decompression can be applied at the server and the client side
to reduce the bandwidth requirement and throughput.

2.3 THE INTERNET SEARCH ENGINES

Search engines are the software that enable searching of the content available on
Internet. A search engine is an information retrieval system which is used to access
and retrieve information stored in WWW or a computer system attached to the
Internet. Search engines also help minimize the time required to find the relevant
information on the computer system. The computer system could be a standalone
system or it could also be attached to the Internet. The search engines are popular
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Material 43
The World Wide Web amongst people as web search engines help explore information on the World
Wide Web.
Search engines are the interface to a group of contents, which allow the
users to type in the keywords, so that the engine can find several matching contents
NOTES
to the corresponding keywords out of millions of web pages. The keywords
provided by the user are referred to as a search query. Several styles of search
query syntax are used by the net users. Search query differs for different types of
search engines, that is, some search engines enable users to enter two or three
words separated by space, whereas others may require users to provide entire
documents, pictures, sounds, and various forms of languages. Some search engines
attempt to enhance the search queries to provide a quality set of items through a
process known as query expansion.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Search-engine-diagram-
en.svg

Index-Based Search Engine

In case of such engines, the list of items to meet the criteria specified by the query,
is typically sorted or indexed. Indexing the contents by relevance, that is, from the
highest to lowest, minimizes the time needed to explore the desired information.
Some search engines use probabilistic approach to rank the contents, depending
on measures of similarity, popularity or authority. Boolean search engines typically
provide contents which match exactly irrespective of the order in which the
keywords are typed. However, the term boolean search engine may also allude to
the use of boolean-style syntax. Thus, in order to provide a set of matching contents
that are based on some criteria, the search engine will collect metadata concerning
the group of contents under consideration, through a process called indexing. The
advantage of indexing is that it calls for a smaller amount of computer storage.
Types and Characteristics
Some of the popular search engines with their types and characteristics are
following:
 Alta Vista – It is a crawler type of search engine which comes up with
results based on how many times the search words appear in the text. It
searches the complete text.
 Excite – It is also a crawler type of search engine and it makes use of meta
tags.
 Google – It is the most widely used search engine. It is also a crawler type
and its results are based on the number of times, the other sites link to the
ranked site.
 Yahoo – This is also a crawler type search engine and its functions are
similar to that of Google.

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 The World Wide Web
2.4 WEB BROWSERS

A browser is a software, which your computer uses to view WWW documents

and access the Internet. The browser program residing in your computer provides NOTES
you with the facilities like text formatting, hypertext links, images, sounds, motion
and other features. Internet Explorer and Netscape are considered the most widely
used browsers. Browsers have sub programs called plug-ins to handle the
documents found on the Web. It may also have other plug-ins stored elsewhere in
the computer.
Web browsers are used to interpret special hypertext pages consisting of
the HyperText Markup Language (HTML) and JavaScript so that they can be
displayed in the given format. Some of the widely used web browsers are Internet
Explorer, Netscape Navigator, Mozilla Firefox, Google Chrome, Lynx, Opera,
Apple’s Safari, etc.
Components of a Web Browser (Browser Architecture)
A Web browser comprises of three parts. These are controllers, client programs
and interpreters.
 Controller: The controller obtains input from the keyboard or the mouse
to access web pages with the help of a client program. After accessing the
web pages, the controller uses one of the interpreters to display the web
pages on the host screen.
 Client Programs: These are used to establish TCP sessions with the web
server or the proxy server. To accomplish this task, the client programs
make use of HTTP, FTP, Gopher or Telnet.
 Interpreters: These are used to display the web pages on the web user’s
screen. The interpreters which are used to translate web pages on the client’s
screen are HTML, CGI and JAVA. Such interpreters depend on the type
of document. The HTML, which is a markup language and which allows
the browser to change the format of the web pages, is used for scripting
web pages. The HTML also helps store instructions along with the text, so
that any browser can read the instructions and format the text according to
the respective host machine.

2.5 CHATTING AND CONFERENCING ON THE

INTERNET

Online chat may refer to any kind of communication over the Internet that offers a
real-time transmission of text messages from sender to receiver. Chat messages
are generally short in order to enable other participants to respond quickly. Thereby,

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Material 45
The World Wide Web a feeling similar to a spoken conversation is created, which distinguishes chatting
from other text-based online communication forms, such as the Internet forums
and e-mail. Online chat may address point-to-point communications as well as
multicast communications from one sender to many receivers and voice and video
NOTES chat, or may be a feature of a web conferencing service.
Online chat may be primarily defined as any direct text-based or video-
based (webcams), one-on-one chat or one-to-many group chat (formally also
known as synchronous conferencing), using tools, such as instant messengers,
Internet Relay Chat (IRC), talkers and possibly Multi-User Dungeons (MUDs).
The expression online chat comes from the word chat which means ‘Informal
Conversation’. Online chat includes web-based applications that allow
communication – often directly addressed, but anonymous between users in a
multi-user environment. Web conferencing is a more specific online service, i.e.,
often sold as a service, hosted on a web server controlled by the vendor.
The first online chat system was called Talkomatic, created by Doug Brown
and David R. Woolley in 1973 on the PLATO System at the University of Illinois.
It offered several channels, each of which could accommodate up to five people,
with messages appearing on all users’ screens character-by-character as they were
typed. Talkomatic was very popular among PLATO users into the mid-1980s. In
2014, Brown and Woolley released a web-based version of Talkomatic.
The first online system to use the actual command ‘Chat’ was created for
The Source in 1979 by Tom Walker and Fritz Thane of Dialcom, Inc. Other chat
platforms flourished during the 1980s.
Conferencing on the Internet
Conferencing brings together groups of people to share their experiences,
information, and expertise. Traditional conferences have required that people share
the same physical space and time. With the advent of technology, and
telecommunications, conferences no longer require a shared physical space, but
still require a coordinated time for participants to meet. The Internet, and other
technologies, support conferencing across spatial boundaries by connecting people
electronically. There is a variety of Internet conferencing tools, including video
cameras, whiteboard software, groupware tools, and Web conferencing products.
Videoconferencing: Video represents real-time moving images, usually at
30 frames per second (fps) or slower, broadcast and received over the Internet.
Video is a powerful medium for human communication, since it supports visual
and audio signals for social interaction. Video also requires a large bandwidth for
transmission and reception, since each second of video represents between 10
and 30 frames.

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46 Material
 Shared Whiteboard: In the today’s business world, most conference rooms The World Wide Web

have a whiteboard, similar to a school blackboard but with coloured markers

instead of chalk for drawing and writing. Shared whiteboards support collaborative
writing or drawing on the Internet by sending and receiving the contents of the
whiteboard or drawing window to everyone who participates in the conference. NOTES
Bulletin Board Systems (or BBS): An online bulletin board is a shared
meeting place for people on the Internet. Setting up a BBS involves a dedicated
computer as a server, installation of the essential software, establishing users, and
operating the BBS.
Chat Windows or Rooms: Chat windows or rooms permit people to
share the data electronically what they type. The Internet Relay Chat (IRC) is the
original interactive chat feature, and many Web browser programs support IRC.
Web Tours: It is the latest conferencing tool which supports a group of
people, all browsing the Web, with a single person acting as the tour guide. The
responsibility of the tour guide is to take all online people browsing the Web to
remarkable and relevant Websites.
Groupware or Computer-Supported Cooperative Work (CSCW)
Tools: Groupware tools support people working together using computer
technology. Groupware often includes e-mail, shared scheduling, shared
whiteboard, and chat areas, and collaborative writing and design.
Internet Phone SKYPE
Skype is a piece of software that lets you talk over the Internet to anyone, anywhere
in the world for free.
Features
 Free Skype-to-Skype calls can be made to anyone, anywhere across the
globe
 Calls can be made to mobiles and other ordinary phones at rates that are
cheaper than normal landline or mobile costs.
 Through video calls, you can see the persons you talk to
 SMS (short message service) can be sent to anyone, even when on the
move, and the call-forwarding option can be activated to enable them to
contact you.
 Group-chats that can include up to 100 people or conference calls including
up to nine others can be held
 The Web can be searched with the Google Toolbar (optional install)
 Downloads are free

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Material 47
The World Wide Web

NOTES

System Requirements
 A PC with Windows 2000 or XP (Windows 2000 users must have DirectX
9.0 to make video calls)
 An Internet connection (preferably broadband; GPRS is not supported for
voice calls, and results may vary depending on the satellite connection).
 Separate or built-in speakers and microphone
 A computer with at least a 1GHz processor, 256 MB RAM and a webcam
is needed to make video calls
 At least a 128 MB RAM, a 400 MHz processor, and 50 MB free disk
space on the hard drive
Steps for Opening a New Skype ID
 Click to say that you do not already have a Skype Name.
 Create a memorable Skype Name that you wish to use as your User Name.
 Think of a password. This should contain at least 4 characters and be difficult
for other people to guess.
 You are legally required to read and agree to the License Agreement, the
Terms of Service, and the Privacy Statement. Click on each to view
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48 Material
  Your alternate e-mail ID, if provided here, will be kept a secret. However, The World Wide Web

if people already know it, they can find you in the directory.
 Click on Sign In to start using Skype.
 You will now be signed in and the Getting Started guide will open up. (You NOTES
might need to have permission for this guide to open.)
Steps for Chatting on Skype
 Click on the name of the person you wish to chat with and select the Send
message icon.
 Set a chat topic by opening Chat Options and clicking on Set Topic. (You
may omit this step and commence immediately, if you so desire).
 The main window will display your messages as well as your contact’s
replies.
 To chat with more than one person, click Add more people to this chat.
 Type your message in the chat box and press enter on your keyboard.
 Select the name of the person you wish to chat with and click Add. A
Skype chat can include up to 100 participants.
 When you add a contact, they will appear in the Chat participants list.
 Once all the contacts have been added, click OK. You will now automatically
return to the chat window.
 All the chat participants will now become visible to each other; you can
send messages (and files) to the group.
 You can also bookmark a chat if you wish to return to it later. To do so,
click on Book at the top of the chat window and select Bookmark Chat.
Your Bookmarked Chats will now have this chat listed on it.
 To exit a chat room without getting alerts of new messages, click Leave.

Check Your Progress

1. What is World Wide Web (WWW)?
2. Who invented World Wide Web (WWW)?
3. What are search engines?
4. What is the importance of a web browser?
5. What is conferencing? How it is done?

2.6 ANSWERS TO CHECK YOUR PROGRESS

QUESTIONS

1. The World Wide Web (WWW), commonly known as the Web, is an

information system where documents and other web resources are identified
by Uniform Resource Locators (URLs), such as https://example.com/, which Self-Instructional
Material 49
The World Wide Web may be interlinked by hypertext, and are accessible over the Internet. The
resources of the Web are transferred via the HyperText Transfer Protocol
(HTTP) and may be accessed by users by a software application called a
‘Web Browser’ and are published by a software application called a ‘Web
NOTES Server’.
2. English engineer and computer scientist Sir Timothy John Berners-Lee
invented the World Wide Web (WWW) in 1989. He wrote the first web
browser in 1990 while employed at CERN near Geneva, Switzerland. The
browser was released outside CERN in 1991, first to other research
institutions starting in January 1991 and then to the general public in August
1991. The World Wide Web has been central to the development of the
Information Age and is the primary tool billions of people use to interact on
the Internet.
3. Search engines are the software that enable searching of the content available
on Internet. A search engine is an information retrieval system which is used
to access and retrieve information stored in WWW or a computer system
attached to the Internet. Search engines also help minimize the time required
to find the relevant information on the computer system. The computer
system could be a standalone system or it could also be attached to the
Internet.
4. A browser is a software, which your computer uses to view WWW
documents and access the Internet. The browser program residing in your
computer provides you with the facilities like text formatting, hypertext links,
images, sounds, motion and other features. Internet Explorer and Netscape
are considered the most widely used browsers. Browsers have sub programs
called plug-ins to handle the documents found on the Web. It may also
have other plug-ins stored elsewhere in the computer.
5. Conferencing brings together groups of people to share their experiences,
information, and expertise. Traditional conferences have required that people
share the same physical space and time. With the advent of technology, and
telecommunications, conferences no longer require a shared physical space,
but still require a coordinated time for participants to meet. The Internet,
and other technologies, support conferencing across spatial boundaries by
connecting people electronically. There is a variety of Internet conferencing
tools, including video cameras, whiteboard software, groupware tools, and
Web conferencing products.

2.7 SUMMARY

 The World Wide Web (WWW), commonly known as the Web, is an

information system where documents and other web resources are identified
by Uniform Resource Locators (URLs), such as https://example.com/, which
Self-Instructional may be interlinked by hypertext, and are accessible over the Internet.
50 Material
 The resources of the Web are transferred via the HyperText Transfer Protocol The World Wide Web

(HTTP) and may be accessed by users by a software application called a

‘Web Browser’ and are published by a software application called a ‘Web
Server’.
NOTES
 English engineer and computer scientist Sir Timothy John Berners-Lee
invented the World Wide Web (WWW) in 1989. He wrote the first web
browser in 1990 while employed at CERN near Geneva, Switzerland. The
browser was released outside CERN in 1991, first to other research
institutions starting in January 1991 and then to the general public in August
1991.
 The World Wide Web has been central to the development of the Information
Age and is the primary tool billions of people use to interact on the Internet.
 The web service provider helps establish a home page on the net. It is also
known as electronic description of the organizations and its products and
services. In real life, it is similar to a brochure or a catalog.
 An attractive home page grabs the attention of the visitors and that is why
its cost per page is higher as compared to regular web pages. A home page
can be setup with the help of Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN)
line as it generates HTML which represents the graphical interface.
 Search engines are the software that enable searching of the content available
on Internet. A search engine is an information retrieval system which is used
to access and retrieve information stored in WWW or a computer system
attached to the Internet.
 Search engines also help minimize the time required to find the relevant
information on the computer system. The computer system could be a
standalone system or it could also be attached to the Internet.
 Search engines are the interface to a group of contents, which allow the
users to type in the keywords, so that the engine can find several matching
contents to the corresponding keywords out of millions of web pages. The
keywords provided by the user are referred to as a search query.
 A browser is a software, which your computer uses to view WWW
documents and access the Internet. The browser program residing in your
computer provides you with the facilities like text formatting, hypertext links,
images, sounds, motion and other features. Internet Explorer and Netscape
are considered the most widely used browsers.
 Browsers have sub programs called plug-ins to handle the documents found
on the Web. It may also have other plug-ins stored elsewhere in the computer.
 Web browsers are used to interpret special hypertext pages consisting of
the HyperText Markup Language (HTML) and JavaScript so that they can
be displayed in the given format. Some of the widely used web browsers
are Internet Explorer, Netscape Navigator, Mozilla Firefox, Google Chrome,
Self-Instructional
Lynx, Opera, Apple’s Safari, etc. Material 51
The World Wide Web  Online chat may refer to any kind of communication over the Internet that
offers a real-time transmission of text messages from sender to receiver.
 Chat messages are generally short in order to enable other participants to
respond quickly. Thereby, a feeling similar to a spoken conversation is
NOTES
created, which distinguishes chatting from other text-based online
communication forms, such as the Internet forums and e-mail.
 Online chat may address point-to-point communications as well as multicast
communications from one sender to many receivers and voice and video
chat, or may be a feature of a web conferencing service.
 Online chat may be primarily defined as any direct text-based or video-
based (webcams), one-on-one chat or one-to-many group chat (formally
also known as synchronous conferencing), using tools, such as instant
messengers, Internet Relay Chat (IRC), talkers and possibly Multi-User
Dungeons (MUDs).
 The expression online chat comes from the word chat which means ‘Informal
Conversation’. Online chat includes web-based applications that allow
communication – often directly addressed, but anonymous between users
in a multi-user environment. Web conferencing is a more specific online
service, i.e., often sold as a service, hosted on a web server controlled by
the vendor.
 Conferencing brings together groups of people to share their experiences,
information, and expertise. Traditional conferences have required that people
share the same physical space and time. With the advent of technology, and
telecommunications, conferences no longer require a shared physical space,
but still require a coordinated time for participants to meet.
 The Internet, and other technologies, support conferencing across spatial
boundaries by connecting people electronically. There is a variety of Internet
conferencing tools, including video cameras, whiteboard software,
groupware tools, and Web conferencing products.
 Videoconferencing represents real-time moving images, usually at 30 frames
per second (fps) or slower, broadcast and received over the Internet. Video
is a powerful medium for human communication, since it supports visual
and audio signals for social interaction. Video also requires a large bandwidth
for transmission and reception, since each second of video represents
between 10 and 30 frames.

2.8 KEY WORDS

 World Wide Web (WWW): The World Wide Web (WWW), commonly
known as the Web, is an information system where documents and other
web resources are identified by Uniform Resource Locators (URLs), such
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52 Material
 as https://example.com/, which may be interlinked by hypertext, and are The World Wide Web

accessible over the Internet.

 Search engines: Search engines are the software that enable searching of
the content available on Internet. A search engine is an information retrieval
NOTES
system which is used to access and retrieve information stored in WWW or
a computer system attached to the Internet.
 Client programs: These are used to establish TCP sessions with the web
server or the proxy server. To accomplish this task, the client programs
make use of HTTP, FTP, Gopher or Telnet.
 Browser: A browser is a software, which your computer uses to view
WWW documents and access the Internet, it residing in your computer
and provides you with the facilities like text formatting, hypertext links, images,
sounds, motion and other features. Internet Explorer and Netscape are
considered the most widely used browsers.
 Videoconferencing: Video represents real-time moving images, usually at
30 frames per second (fps) or slower, broadcast and received over the
Internet. Video is a powerful medium for human communication, since it
supports visual and audio signals for social interaction. Video also requires
a large bandwidth for transmission and reception, since each second of
video represents between 10 and 30 frames.

2.9 SELF ASSESSMENT QUESTIONS AND

EXERCISES

Short-Answer Questions
1. Define the term World Wide Web (WWW).
2. What are Internet search engines?
3. Explain the importance of web browsers.
4. Explain how chatting and conferencing is done on the Internet.
Long-Answer Questions
1. Discuss the basic concepts of World Wide Web (WWW) with the help of
appropriate examples.
2. Briefly explain the concept of Internet search engines giving appropriate
examples.
3. Explain the structure and significance of Web Browsers for the Internet.
4. Why chatting and conferencing is becoming popular on the Internet? Discuss
about the various software that support it.

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The World Wide Web
2.10 FURTHER READINGS

Krishnamoorty, R. and Prabhu R. Krishnamoorty. 2009. Internet and Java

NOTES Programming. New Delhi: New Age International (P) Ltd.
Balagurusamy, E. 2007. Programming with Java, Third Edition. New Delhi:
Tata McGraw-Hill.
Das, Rashmi Kant. 2009. Core Java for Beginners, Revised Edition. New Delhi:
Vikas Publishing House Pvt. Ltd.
Keogh, Jim. 2002. The Complete Reference J2SE, Fifth Edition. New York:
Tata McGraw-Hill.
Naughton, Patrick and Herbert Schidt. 1999. Java 2: The Complete Reference,
Third Edition. New Delhi: Tata McGraw-Hill.

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 Internet Chats, Internet Relay

UNIT 3 INTERNET CHATS, Chat (IRC), FTP and Telnet

INTERNET RELAY CHAT

NOTES
(IRC), FTP AND TELNET
Structure
3.0 Introduction
3.1 Objectives
3.2 Online Chatting and Messaging
3.3 Usenet Newsgroup
3.4 Internet Relay Chat (IRC)
3.5 FTP
3.6 Telnet
3.7 Answers to Check Your Progress Questions
3.8 Summary
3.9 Key Words
3.10 Self Assessment Questions and Exercises
3.11 Further Readings

3.0 INTRODUCTION

Internet is a network of computers linking many different types of computers all

over the world. It is a network of networks sharing a common mechanism for
addressing (identifying) computers, and a common set of communication protocols
for communications between two computers on the network. The communications
infrastructure of the Internet consists of its hardware components and a system of
software layers that control various aspects of the architecture. Internet Service
Providers (ISPs) establish the worldwide connectivity between individual networks
at various levels of scope. End-users who only access the Internet when needed
to perform a function or obtain information, represent the bottom of the routing
hierarchy.
Internet chats not only allow you to send and receive instant messages, they
also allow you to share pictures, and files. A ‘Usenet Newsgroup’ is a repository
usually within the Usenet system, for messages posted from many users in different
locations using Internet. They are discussion groups and are not devoted to
publishing news.
Internet Relay Chat (IRC) is an application layer protocol that facilitates
communication in the form of text. The chat process works on a client/server
networking model. IRC clients are computer programs that users can install on
their system or web based applications running either locally in the browser or on
a 3rd party server. The File Transfer Protocol (FTP) is a standard network protocol
used for the transfer of computer files between a client and server on a computer
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network. The word ‘Telnet’ is derived from telecommunications and network. It Material 55
Internet Chats, Internet Relay is one of the oldest protocols in the TCP/IP suite, first developed in the 1960s.
Chat (IRC), FTP and Telnet
Telnet allows a user on one computer system to directly access and interact with
remote computers anywhere on a network or the Internet. The connection between
the local system and the remote system is referred to as the Telnet session.
NOTES
In this unit, you will study about the online chatting and messaging, Usenet
Newsgroup, Internet Relay Chat (IRC), FTP and Telnet.

3.1 OBJECTIVES

After going through this unit, you will be able to:

 Explain the concept of online chatting and messaging
 Define the importance of the Usenet Newsgroup
 Discuss the significance of the Internet Relay Chat (IRC)
 Elaborate on the concept FTP and Telnet

3.2 ONLINE CHATTING AND MESSAGING

Internet chats not only allow you to send and receive instant messages, they also
allow you to share pictures, and files. Some Internet chat rooms include emoticons
which are smiley faces used to describe what your present emotion is. Some
Internet chats include sound effects which range from serious to silly and allow
you to. Other chat rooms allow you to change colour combinations to create a
theme or background that works for you as you are chatting.
Chatting online refers to talking to someone or many persons using the
Internet and sending the typed messages back and forth. You type your message
and send it, other people read it and type their messages and send them. You read
the messages, type your reply and send it back, and so on. Each person’s messages
are identified by the screen name of the person who typed it. A screen name is the
name with which you are known by to this chat group. You may use the same
screen name each time, or choose a different one for each chat session. For security
reasons, do not use your real name. The people you are chatting to may use
different names as well.
You can chat in two ways either using a channel or using a direct connection.
Channel: A channel is where a lot of people are talking together. It is another
name for a chat room. Each channel has a name that should indicate what the
people in the room are talking about.
Direct Connection: A direct connection is a private conversation between
you and another person using the Internet. You join chat groups in different ways,
depending on what sort of ISP you have. If you have a PPP account with your
ISP, you can use the IRC (Internet Relay Chat) to chat or talk.
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 When you first join a chat group, you will see the screen names of people Internet Chats, Internet Relay
Chat (IRC), FTP and Telnet
who are already chatting and a window that is keeping track of their messages.
Everyone in the group will be notified when you join it, so if it is friendly someone
should send you a welcome message.
NOTES
Writing Your Messages
When you are chatting, you use smileys to express your feelings. Common smileys
are listed in the section on E-Mail. People also use simple abbreviations. Some
are easy to understand, for example u for you). Others are acronyms.
Things to Remember When You Join a Chat Group
1. The conversation has already been going for a while, therefore read a full
page of exchanges (messages) before you type any message so that you
understand what people are talking about.
2. Start by reading the messages from one person, then another person, etc.,
until you get used to following all the different threads of the conversation.
3. Scroll up to read older messages if you have to, and scroll down to see new
messages.
4. Keep your messages short and to the point.
5. If you like, use the chat system to create a profile about yourself that other
chatters can read (as you can read theirs). Do not include any personal
information.
6. If you have someone in your chat group being offensive either ignore them,
go to another chat room or set your screen so you do not get their messages.
Things to Remember to Chat Safely
1. Many people lie about the information. This includes personal information
also.
2. Do not reveal information that enables someone to find you, such as name,
address, phone number, place of work, suburb, mailing address, etc.
3. Never give your password to anyone.
4. Be very cautious if someone without a profile wants to chat with you.

3.3 USENET NEWSGROUP

On the Internet, you can also share news, views, ideas and information on any
topic like politics, science, computers, etc. This can be accomplished using a
newsgroup service. A Newsgroup, also known as Usenet, is an online discussion
group on the Internet who share a common interest. Many websites like
www.NewsOne.net, www.google.com, www.Usenet-Replayer.com, etc.
provide the facility of newsgroups.
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Internet Chats, Internet Relay People interested in a specific topic, write articles and post them to the bulletin
Chat (IRC), FTP and Telnet
board of the newsgroup server (a machine that posts the message for everyone to
read) so that others can read, reply and comment on them. You can read and post
newsgroup articles using newsreader software such as Microsoft Outlook Express
NOTES News or Netscape News or using a web browser like Internet Explorer.
A ‘Newsgroup’ is a discussion about a particular subject consisting of notes
written to a central Internet site and redistributed through ‘Usenet’, a worldwide
network of news discussion groups. Usenet uses the Network News Transfer
Protocol (NNTP).
A ‘Usenet Newsgroup’ is a repository usually within the Usenet system, for
messages posted from many users in different locations using Internet. They are
discussion groups and are not devoted to publishing news. Newsgroups are
technically distinct from, but functionally similar to, discussion forums on the World
Wide Web (WWW). Newsreader software is used to read the content of newsgroups.
Before the adoption of the World Wide Web, Usenet newsgroups were
among the most popular Internet services, and have retained their non-commercial
nature. In recent years, this form of open discussion on the Internet has lost
considerable ground to individually-operated browser-accessible forums and big
media social networks, such as Facebook and Twitter.
Communication is facilitated by the Network News Transfer Protocol (NNTP)
which allows connection to Usenet servers and data transfer over the Internet. Similar
to another early (yet still used) protocol SMTP which is used for email messages.
NNTP allows both server-server and client-server communication - this means that
newsgroups can be replicated from server to server which gives the Usenet network
the ability to maintain a level of robust data persistence as a result of built-in data
redundancy. However, most users will access using only the client-server commands
of NNTP and in almost all cases will use a GUI for browsing as opposed to command
line based client-server communication specified in the NNT protocol.
Newsgroups generally come in either of two types, binary or text. There is no
technical difference between the two, but the naming differentiation allows users and
servers with limited facilities to minimize network bandwidth usage. Generally, Usenet
conventions and rules are enacted with the primary intention of minimizing the overall
amount of network traffic and resource usage. Typically, the newsgroup is focused
on a particular topic of interest. A message sent for publication on a newsgroup is
called a ‘post’. Some newsgroups allow posts on a wide variety of themes, regarding
anything a member chooses to discuss as on-topic, while others keep more strictly
to their particular subject, frowning on off-topic posts. The news admin (the
administrator of a news server) decides how long posts are kept on their server
before being expired (deleted). Different servers will have different retention times
for the same newsgroup; some may keep posts for as little as one or two weeks,
others may hold them for many months. Some admins keep posts in local or technical
newsgroups around longer than posts in other newsgroups.
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 Internet Chats, Internet Relay
3.4 INTERNET RELAY CHAT (IRC) Chat (IRC), FTP and Telnet

Internet Relay Chat (IRC) is an application layer protocol that facilitates

communication in the form of text. The chat process works on a client/server NOTES
networking model. IRC clients are computer programs that users can install on
their system or web based applications running either locally in the browser or on
a 3rd party server. These clients communicate with chat servers to transfer messages
to other clients. IRC is mainly designed for group communication in discussion
forums, called channels, but also allows one-on-one communication via private
messages as well as chat and data transfer, including file sharing.
Client software is available for every major operating system that supports
Internet access. As of April 2011, the top 100 IRC networks served more than
half a million users at a time, with hundreds of thousands of channels operating on
a total of roughly 1,500 servers out of roughly 3,200 servers worldwide.
IRC was created by Jarkko Oikarinen in August 1988 to replace a program
called MUT (MultiUser Talk) on a BBS called OuluBox at the University of Oulu
in Finland, where he was working at the Department of Information Processing
Science. Jarkko intended to extend the BBS software he administered, to allow
NEWS in the Usenet style, real time discussions and similar BBS features. Oikarinen
found inspiration in a chat system known as Bitnet Relay, which operated on the
BITNET. In November 1988, IRC had spread across the Internet and in the
middle of 1989, there were some 40 servers worldwide.
IRC is an open protocol that uses TCP and, optionally, TLS. An IRC server
can connect to other IRC servers to expand the IRC network. Users access IRC
networks by connecting a client to a server. There are many client implementations,
such as mIRC, HexChat and irssi, and server implementations, for example the
original IRCd. Most IRC servers do not require users to register an account but a
nick is required before being connected.
IRC was originally a plain text protocol (although later extended), which on
request was assigned port 194/TCP by IANA. However, the de facto standard
has always been to run IRC on 6667/TCP and nearby port numbers (for example
TCP ports 6660–6669, 7000) to avoid having to run the IRCd software with root
privileges.
The protocol specified that characters were 8-bit but did not specify the
character encoding the text was supposed to use. This can cause problems when
users using different clients and/or different platforms want to converse.
All client-to-server IRC protocols in use today are descended from the
protocol implemented in the irc2.4.0 version of the IRC2 server, and documented
in RFC 1459. Since RFC 1459 was published, the new features in the irc2.10
implementation led to the publication of several revised protocol documents (RFC
2810, RFC 2811, RFC 2812 and RFC 2813); however, these protocol changes
have not been widely adopted among other implementations. Self-Instructional
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Internet Chats, Internet Relay Microsoft made an extension for IRC in 1998 via the proprietary IRCX.
Chat (IRC), FTP and Telnet
They later stopped distributing software supporting IRCX, instead developing the
proprietary MSNP.
The standard structure of a network of IRC servers is a tree. Messages are
NOTES
routed along only necessary branches of the tree but network state is sent to every
server and there is generally a high degree of implicit trust between servers.
However, this architecture has a number of problems. A misbehaving or malicious
server can cause major damage to the network and any changes in structure,
whether intentional or a result of conditions on the underlying network, require a
Net-Split and Net-Join. This results in a lot of network traffic and spurious quit/
join messages to users and temporary loss of communication to users on the splitting
servers. Adding a server to a large network means a large background bandwidth
load on the network and a large memory load on the server. Once established,
however, each message to multiple recipients is delivered in a fashion similar to
multicast, meaning each message travels a network link exactly once. This is a
strength in comparison to non-multicasting protocols such as Simple Mail Transfer
Protocol (SMTP) or Extensible Messaging and Presence Protocol (XMPP).
An IRC daemon can also be used on a Local Area Network (LAN). IRC
can thus be used to facilitate communication between people within the local area
network (internal communication).

3.5 FTP

The File Transfer Protocol (FTP) is a standard network protocol used for the
transfer of computer files between a client and server on a computer network.
FTP is built on a client-server model architecture using separate control and
data connections between the client and the server. FTP users may authenticate
themselves with a clear-text sign-in protocol, normally in the form of a username
and password, but can connect anonymously if the server is configured to allow it.
For secure transmission that protects the username and password, and encrypts
the content, FTP is often secured with SSL/TLS (FTPS) or replaced with SSH
File Transfer Protocol (SFTP).
The first FTP client applications were command-line programs developed
before operating systems had graphical user interfaces, and are still shipped with
most Windows, UNIX, and Linux operating systems. Many FTP clients and
automation utilities have since been developed for desktops, servers, mobile
devices, and hardware, and FTP has been incorporated into productivity
applications, such as HTML editors.
Communication and Data Transfer via FTP
FTP may run in active or passive mode, which determines how the data connection
is established. This sense of ‘mode’ is different from that of the MODE command in
Self-Instructional the FTP protocol, and actually corresponds to the PORT/PASV/EPSV/, etc.,
60 Material
commands instead. In both cases, the client creates a TCP control connection from Internet Chats, Internet Relay
Chat (IRC), FTP and Telnet
a random, usually an unprivileged, Port N to the FTP server command Port 21.
 In active mode, the client starts listening for incoming data connections from
the server on Port M. It sends the FTP command Port M to inform the
NOTES
server on which port it is listening. The server then initiates a data channel to
the client from its Port 20, the FTP server data port.
 In situations where the client is behind a firewall and unable to accept
incoming TCP connections, passive mode may be used. In this mode, the
client uses the control connection to send a PASV command to the server
and then receives a server IP address and server port number from the
server, which the client then uses to open a data connection from an arbitrary
client port to the server IP address and server port number received.
Both modes were updated in September 1998 to support IPv6.
The server responds over the control connection with three-digit status codes
in ASCII with an optional text message. For example, ‘200’ or ‘200 OK’ means
that the last command was successful. The numbers represent the code for the
response and the optional text represents a human-readable explanation or request,
for example <Need account for storing file>). An ongoing transfer of file data over
the data connection can be aborted using an interrupt message sent over the control
connection.
The reason why FTP needs two ports (one for sending and one for receiving)
is due to the fact that it was originally designed to operate on Network Control
Program (NCP), which was a simplex protocol that utilized two port addresses,
establishing two connections, for two-way communications. An odd and an even
port were reserved for each application layer application or protocol. The
standardization of TCP and UDP reduced the need for the use of two simplex ports
for each application down to one duplex port, but the FTP protocol was never
altered to only use one port, but continued using two for backwards compatibility.
FTP normally transfers data by having the server connect back to the client,
after the PORT command is sent by the client. This is problematic for both NATs
and firewalls, which do not allow connections from the Internet towards internal
hosts. For NATs, an additional complication is that the representation of the IP
addresses and port number in the PORT command refer to the internal host’s IP
address and port, rather than the public IP address and port of the NAT.

3.6 TELNET

The word ‘Telnet’ is derived from telecommunications and network. It is one of

the oldest protocols in the TCP/IP suite, first developed in the 1960s. Telnet allows
a user on one computer system to directly access and interact with remote
computers anywhere on a network or the Internet. The connection between the
local system and the remote system is referred to as the Telnet session.
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Material 61
Internet Chats, Internet Relay All the users on a network or on the Internet are not allowed to access any
Chat (IRC), FTP and Telnet
remote machine. To have access to a remote computer, you must have the
permission to use it. The computer that wants to access the remote computer is
called the Telnet client and the remote computer that acts as the host is called the
NOTES Telnet server. The TCP/IP protocol is used to transmit information between the
Telnet client and the Telnet server. Telnet is text-based and only the keyboard can
be used for navigation. For this reason, it is popularly used in UNIX-based systems.
Telnet creates a standard and a fictional terminal called the Network Virtual
Terminal (NVT) that is used for communication by all the computers on the network.
The steps that are performed while conducting a Telnet session are as follows:
 The inputs from the user are taken and translated by the Telnet client to
the NVT form.
 This input is sent to a Telnet server running on a remote computer.
 The server translates the inputs from NVT to whatever representation
the computer being accessed requires.
The same steps are repeated when data is sent from the remote computer
back to the user. This system allows clients and servers to communicate even if
they use entirely different hardware and internal data representations.

Check Your Progress

1. What does chatting online?
2. Define the term Usenet Newsgroup.
3. What is Internet Relay Chat (IRC)?
4. What is File Transfer Protocol (FTP)?
5. Explain the term Telnet.

3.7 ANSWERS TO CHECK YOUR PROGRESS

QUESTIONS

1. Chatting online refers to talking to someone or many persons using the Internet
and sending the typed messages back and forth. You type your message and
send it, other people read it and type their messages and send them. You read
the messages, type your reply and send it back, and so on. Each person’s
messages are identified by the screen name of the person who typed it.
2. A ‘Usenet Newsgroup’ is a repository usually within the Usenet system, for
messages posted from many users in different locations using Internet. They
are discussion groups and are not devoted to publishing news. Newsgroups
are technically distinct from, but functionally similar to, discussion forums
on the World Wide Web (WWW). Newsreader software is used to read
the content of newsgroups.
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62 Material
 3. Internet Relay Chat (IRC) is an application layer protocol that facilitates Internet Chats, Internet Relay
Chat (IRC), FTP and Telnet
communication in the form of text. The chat process works on a client/
server networking model. IRC clients are computer programs that users
can install on their system or web based applications running either locally
in the browser or on a 3rd party server. NOTES
4. The File Transfer Protocol (FTP) is a standard network protocol used for
the transfer of computer files between a client and server on a computer
network. FTP is built on a client-server model architecture using separate
control and data connections between the client and the server.
5. The word ‘Telnet’ is derived from telecommunications and network. It is
one of the oldest protocols in the TCP/IP suite, first developed in the 1960s.
Telnet allows a user on one computer system to directly access and interact
with remote computers anywhere on a network or the Internet. The
connection between the local system and the remote system is referred to
as the Telnet session.

3.8 SUMMARY

 Internet chats not only allow you to send and receive instant messages, they
also allow you to share pictures, and files.
 Chatting online refers to talking to someone or many persons using the
Internet and sending the typed messages back and forth. You type your
message and send it, other people read it and type their messages and send
them. You read the messages, type your reply and send it back, and so on.
 Each person’s messages are identified by the screen name of the person
who typed it.
 A screen name is the name with which you are known by to this chat group.
You may use the same screen name each time, or choose a different one for
each chat session. For security reasons, do not use your real name. The
people you are chatting to may use different names as well.
 You can chat in two ways either using a channel or using a direct connection.
 A channel is where a lot of people are talking together. It is another name
for a chat room. Each channel has a name that should indicate what the
people in the room are talking about.
 A direct connection is a private conversation between you and another
person using the Internet. You join chat groups in different ways, depending
on what sort of ISP you have. If you have a PPP account with your ISP, you
can use the IRC (Internet Relay Chat) to chat or talk.
 On the Internet, you can also share news, views, ideas and information on
any topic like politics, science, computers, etc. This can be accomplished
using a newsgroup service.
Self-Instructional
Material 63
Internet Chats, Internet Relay  A ‘Newsgroup’ is a discussion about a particular subject consisting of notes
Chat (IRC), FTP and Telnet
written to a central Internet site and redistributed through ‘Usenet’, a
worldwide network of news discussion groups. Usenet uses the Network
News Transfer Protocol (NNTP).
NOTES
 A ‘Usenet Newsgroup’ is a repository usually within the Usenet system, for
messages posted from many users in different locations using Internet. They
are discussion groups and are not devoted to publishing news.
 Newsgroups are technically distinct from, but functionally similar to,
discussion forums on the World Wide Web (WWW). Newsreader software
is used to read the content of newsgroups.
 Communication is facilitated by the Network News Transfer Protocol
(NNTP) which allows connection to Usenet servers and data transfer over
the Internet.
 NNTP allows both server-server and client-server communication - this
means that newsgroups can be replicated from server to server which gives
the Usenet network the ability to maintain a level of robust data persistence
as a result of built-in data redundancy.
 Newsgroups generally come in either of two types, binary or text. There is
no technical difference between the two, but the naming differentiation allows
users and servers with limited facilities to minimize network bandwidth usage.
 Internet Relay Chat (IRC) is an application layer protocol that facilitates
communication in the form of text. The chat process works on a client/
server networking model.
 IRC clients are computer programs that users can install on their system or
web based applications running either locally in the browser or on a 3rd
party server. These clients communicate with chat servers to transfer
messages to other clients.
 IRC is an open protocol that uses TCP and, optionally, TLS. An IRC server
can connect to other IRC servers to expand the IRC network. Users access
IRC networks by connecting a client to a server.
 The standard structure of a network of IRC servers is a tree. Messages are
routed along only necessary branches of the tree but network state is sent
to every server and there is generally a high degree of implicit trust between
servers.
 The File Transfer Protocol (FTP) is a standard network protocol used for
the transfer of computer files between a client and server on a computer
network.
 FTP is built on a client-server model architecture using separate control
and data connections between the client and the server.

Self-Instructional
64 Material
  FTP users may authenticate themselves with a clear-text sign-in protocol, Internet Chats, Internet Relay
Chat (IRC), FTP and Telnet
normally in the form of a username and password, but can connect
anonymously if the server is configured to allow it.
 For secure transmission that protects the username and password, and
NOTES
encrypts the content, FTP is often secured with SSL/TLS (FTPS) or
replaced with SSH File Transfer Protocol (SFTP).
 The word ‘Telnet’ is derived from telecommunications and network. It is
one of the oldest protocols in the TCP/IP suite, first developed in the 1960s.
 Telnet allows a user on one computer system to directly access and interact
with remote computers anywhere on a network or the Internet. The
connection between the local system and the remote system is referred to
as the Telnet session.
 Telnet creates a standard and a fictional terminal called the Network Virtual
Terminal (NVT) that is used for communication by all the computers on the
network.

3.9 KEY WORDS

 Channel: A channel is where a lot of people are talking together. It is another

name for a chat room. Each channel has a name that should indicate what
the people in the room are talking about.
 Direct connection: A direct connection is a private conversation between
you and another person using the Internet.
 Usenet Newsgroup: A ‘Usenet Newsgroup’ is a repository usually within
the Usenet system, for messages posted from many users in different locations
using Internet, they are discussion groups and are not devoted to publishing
news.
 Internet Relay Chat (IRC): Internet Relay Chat (IRC) is an application
layer protocol that facilitates communication in the form of text, the chat
process works on a client/server networking model.
 File Transfer Protocol (FTP): The File Transfer Protocol (FTP) is a
standard network protocol used for the transfer of computer files between
a client and server on a computer network. FTP is built on a client-server
model architecture using separate control and data connections between
the client and the server.
 Telnet: The word ‘Telnet’ is derived from telecommunications and network,
it is one of the oldest protocols in the TCP/IP suite, and allows a user on
one computer system to directly access and interact with remote computers
anywhere on a network or the Internet.

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Material 65
Internet Chats, Internet Relay
Chat (IRC), FTP and Telnet 3.10 SELF ASSESSMENT QUESTIONS AND
EXERCISES

NOTES Short-Answer Questions

1. What is online chatting?
2. How is messaging done in online chatting?
3. Define the term Usenet Newsgroup.
4. Explain about Internet Relay Chat (IRC)
5. What is FTP?
6. Define the term Telnet.
Long-Answer Questions
1. Briefly discuss the concept of online chatting and messaging. What
precautions must be taken during online chatting?
2. Discuss about the Usenet Newsgroup giving its feature and significance.
3. Explain the importance of Internet Relay Chat (IRC). What is the standard
structure of a network of IRC servers?
4. Explain the communication and data transfer process via FTP.
5. Write the steps that are performed while conducting a Telnet session.
6. Write short notes on the following:
(a) FTP
(b) Telnet

3.11 FURTHER READINGS

Krishnamoorty, R. and Prabhu R. Krishnamoorty. 2009. Internet and Java

Programming. New Delhi: New Age International (P) Ltd.
Balagurusamy, E. 2007. Programming with Java, Third Edition. New Delhi:
Tata McGraw-Hill.
Das, Rashmi Kant. 2009. Core Java for Beginners, Revised Edition. New Delhi:
Vikas Publishing House Pvt. Ltd.
Keogh, Jim. 2002. The Complete Reference J2SE, Fifth Edition. New York:
Tata McGraw-Hill.
Naughton, Patrick and Herbert Schidt. 1999. Java 2: The Complete Reference,
Third Edition. New Delhi: Tata McGraw-Hill.

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 Basic Concepts of OOP
BLOCK - II
FUNDAMENTALS OF OBJECT-ORIENTED
PROGRAMMING
NOTES

UNIT 4 BASIC CONCEPTS OF OOP

Structure
4.0 Introduction
4.1 Objectives
4.2 Overview of Java
4.3 Java Evolution and Features
4.4 Object Oriented Concepts
4.4.1 Benefits of OOP
4.4.2 Applications of OOP
4.5 How Java Differs from C++
4.6 Java Run-Time Environment
4.7 Answers to Check Your Progress Questions
4.8 Summary
4.9 Key Words
4.10 Self Assessment Questions and Exercises
4.11 Further Readings

4.0 INTRODUCTION

Object Oriented Programming (OOP) is a paradigm that provides many concepts,

such as inheritance, data binding, polymorphism, etc. There are four major principles
that make any language ‘Object Oriented’. The object oriented programming is a
programming style that is associated with the concept of Class, Objects and various
other concepts revolving around these two, like Inheritance, Polymorphism, Data
Abstraction, Encapsulation etc. These are also termed as four pillars of OOP.
Encapsulation is the mechanism of hiding of data implementation by restricting
access to public methods. Instance variables are kept private and access or methods
are made public to achieve this. Abstract means a concept or a notion which is not
associated with any particular instance. Using abstract Class/Interface we express
the intent of the class rather than the actual implementation. Inheritance concept is
used to express a relationship between two objects. Using inheritance, in derived
classes we can reuse the code of existing super classes. In Java, concept of
inheritance is referred as ‘is-a’ based on class inheritance (using extends) or interface
implementation (using implements). Polymorphism means one name for many forms.
It is further of two types — static and dynamic.

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Basic Concepts of OOP In this unit, you will study about the basic concepts of OOP, benefits,
applications, Java evolution and features, how Java differs from C and C++, Java
and the Internet, Java support system and Java environment.

NOTES
4.1 OBJECTIVES

After going through this unit, you will be able to:

 Explain the history and features of Java
 Describe the significance of bytecode
 Compare Java and C++
 Explain the various keywords of Java
 Distinguish between valid and invalid Java identifiers
 Understand the basic concepts of object oriented programming
 Learn about the benefits of object oriented programming

4.2 OVERVIEW OF JAVA

If you already know C, you only have to make a little more effort to become a
Java expert. However, if you have learned C++, you have to unlearn a little before
you proceed to learn Java.
Java, which is an object oriented programming language is based on the
concept of an object. If you have some familiarity with an object oriented language,
such as Smalltalk or C++, much of Java will be familiar to you. Java is derived
from C++, but is slightly simplified with libraries and convenient for the Internet. It
is the programming language for the Internet environment. The Internet implies
heterogeneous systems, different network features, different windows libraries
and different operating systems. Java guarantees identical program behaviour on
different platforms.
Java is an interpreted language. Java compiler complies the Java source
code to obtain an object code termed as bytecode in Java terminology. The Java
interpreter will interpret and run by the byte code at runtime.
Java is architectural neutral language. Architectural neutrality means that the
bytecode that is the output of the Java compiler will run on any processor and
operating system. You can compile a Java program to obtain the bytecode. This
bytecode or object code will run on any processor and operating system, provided
a suitable interpreter is available.
Java is portable as well. This means that Java provides the same Application
Programmer’s Interface (API) functions or library calls on each system. Java API
functions are the same for a programmer on Window 95, Windows NT or on
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Solaris 2.x. To port a program from one of these platforms to another, what the Basic Concepts of OOP

programmer generally does is to recompile the program. However, due to the

architectural neutrality of Java, you do not even have to do that.
Why Java is Important to the Internet? NOTES
Java came to the forefront of programming with the help of the Internet.
Consequently, Java had a deep effect on the Internet. In addition to simplifying Web
programming in general, Java innovated a new type of networked program called
the applet. A Java applet is a small program embedded in a Web page which runs
when that page is browsed using a Web browser.
Java’s Magic: The Bytecode
You have just learned that the output of a Java compiler is not an executable code.
Rather, it is a bytecode. In Java bytecode is a highly optimized set of instructions
planned to be executed by the Java runtime system, which is referred to as the
Java Virtual Machine (JVM). A Java program executed by the JVM helps solve
problems associated with Web based programs. Since the JVM is in control, it
can hold the program and check it from generating side effects outside the system.
Java Buzzwords
As mentioned earlier, portability and security is the innovation of Java. Some
additional factors too played significant roles in moulding the final form of Java.
The list of buzzwords summed up by the Java team is as follows:
 Simplicity: Programmers find it easy to write applications as it avoids the
use of the concepts of C/C++, such as pointers, operator overloading,
multiple inheritance, etc. String manipulations can be implemented very easily
without any explicit concatenation procedure.
 Portability: Java is famous for its unique feature—platform independence
(architecture neutral). This means that a Java program compiled on one
machine could be ported to any other machine/operating system and executed
without any modifications. Thus, the class file, which is the result of
compilation resides on a DOS platform, can run on a UNIX platform unlike
the .exe file of C/C++. This is an important feature for which Java is preferred
for the Internet applications.
 Robust and Object Oriented: Java is a highly object oriented language
where reusability is of utmost importance. Java programs are very reliable
on different platforms with the special features of memory allocation and
de-allocation, and exception handling. Memory management, especially de-
allocation, is taken care of by the Java environment, which is not the case in
C/C++, where programmers have to deal with it explicitly with extra code.
Exception handling is a mechanism that helps the execution of a code, even
if an error occurs at runtime, by handling the exception.

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Basic Concepts of OOP Robustness is also achieved because Java is a strongly typed language.
It signifies that you must declare the variable type before you use it. This is
different from languages, such as PERL, JavaScript, etc., which are loosely
typed.
NOTES  Multithreaded: Java with its multithreaded approach can run many
programs concurrently, thereby saving processor time. Synchronization of
code is an added feature of Java to run non-erroneous interactive
applications.
 Distributed and Dynamic: Java is also popular for its distributed
environment, as it supports the Transmission Control Protocol/Internet
Protocol (TCP/IP). With Java, you can access a Uniform Resource Locator
(URL) or a file on a remote server in some other country with the same
ease, as you can access a file on your local system.
Java can also validate the code at runtime, which is more important for
applets. Therefore, it is feasible to dynamically connect the code in a secure and
practical manner.

4.3 JAVA EVOLUTION AND FEATURES

In 1991, a group of engineers at Sun Microsystems Laboratory developed the Java

language. The Sun Microsystems engineers, Patrick Naughton and James Gosling
wanted to design a programming language for the development of software that
could be used in different consumer electronic devices, such as VCRs, toasters and
cable television switch boxes. The team of Sun Microsystems engineers designed a
project, which they named as Green Project.
The Green Project engineers designed a portable language that was small in
nature, as its memory requirement was less and it can also be used to generate an
intermediate code for virtual machines, such as Java Virtual Machine. The
intermediate code generated by the Green Project required an interpreter to convert
the programming language instructions into a machine code. This process of
generating and interpreting the intermediate code required less memory space and
thereby, provided compatibility to a variety of consumer electronic devices. The
newly developed language was named Oak and was based on C++ and followed
the object oriented programming approach. The Oak programming language was
later renamed as Java and was introduced with this new name in 1995. In 1993,
the first graphical Web browser Mosaic was released in the market. During this
time the users across the world starting exploring the Internet. The users were
using the Internet on their machines, which run on variety of OS (Operating Systems)
and hardware configuration.
Due to the increasing popularity of the Web, the Sun engineers decided to
use Java for the Internet by utilizing its feature of platform independence.

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 Patrick Naughton and Jonathan Payne built the HotJava Web browser Basic Concepts of OOP

written in the Java language. This Web browser was made capable of interpreting
the intermediate code for Java.
Features of Java NOTES
Java inherits most of its features from the earlier object oriented languages like
C++. Various features of Java are:
 Compiled and interpreted.
 Platform independent and portable.
 Object oriented programming approach.
 Robust and secure.
 Simple and distributed.
 Small and familiar.
 Multithreaded and interactive.
 High performance.
 Dynamic and extensible.
Compiled and Interpreted
Java is a compiled and interpreted language. Java compiler translates the program
source code into a compiled format known as bytecode instructions. The bytecode
instructions can be executed by using Java Virtual Machine (JVM), on any system
irrespective of the hardware configuration and operating system of the system in
use. JVM is an abstract computing machine that is used for interpreting compiled
bytecode instructions. Java interpreter converts the bytecode instructions into the
machine code that can easily be understood by the machine.
Platform Independent and Portable
A Java program has a unique feature of portability. The Java programs can be
easily transferred from one computer to another and can be executed anywhere
and anytime. Java provides portability as the Java compiler generates the bytecode
instructions that you can implement on any machine irrespective of the operating
system or the processor.
Object Oriented Approach
Java is an object oriented language that supports various Object Oriented
Programming (OOP) features, such as polymorphism, data abstraction and
inheritance. Java enables you to store the program code and data in the form of
objects and classes. Java contains various sets of classes that are organized in
packages which you can use while executing a Java program.

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Basic Concepts of OOP Robust and Secure
Java also supports the feature of exception handling which detects the errors and
exceptions and reduces the possibility of runtime errors. Java ensures that the
NOTES downloaded applet is virus free. Applet is a small Java program that executes in a
Web browser, but can be executed in other applications or devices that support
the Applet programming model. Java also supports the feature of garbage collection,
which solves the memory management problem by deleting unused objects from
the memory. Java is a secured language as it performs various checks on the
programming code during runtime and compile time and ensures that the code
should be reliable and bug free.
Simple and Distributed
The syntax for the Java language is similar to that of the C++ and C. The end user,
who is familiar with C and C++, requires less effort in learning Java because, Java
and C or C++ have similar syntax. Java is a simpler language than the existing
languages and does not implement some of the redundant and complex concepts
of C and C++. For example, Java does not support the concept of pointers, as
pointers increase the complexity of programming. Java has a simple programming
approach, as Java does not support the concept of multiple inheritance and operator
overloading. However, Java supports multiple inheritance through interfaces which
provides a structure of methods and variables to be used for defining classes. Java
allows you to remotely access the Java applications from the Web. Java has the
capability to handle various protocols, such as Transmission Control Protocol
(TCP) and Internet Protocol (IP). These protocols enable you to access the
information and application in the distributed environment of the Internet. You can
also create distributed applications in Java that share resources, such as data and
program from other systems connected to another network.
Small and Familiar
OOPs concept of inheritance allows the programmers and developers to reuse
the predefined classes and objects in the programming code. Reusability of code
in the programs makes programming simple and easier. The use of same
programming code for other functions of an application develops familiarity in
programs.
Multithreaded and Interactive
Java supports the process of multithreading that allows you to simultaneously
perform multiple tasks. Multithreading allows you to start multiple tasks that executes
on different threads. To perform multiple tasks, the Java runtime environment
supports multi-process synchronization.
Multi tasking in Java allows the programmers to create applications that
can simultaneously use audio-visual effects. Use of multimedia in Java makes the
Java applications even more interesting.
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High Performance Basic Concepts of OOP

Java enables the developer to create high performance applications as the programs
are first converted into bytecode and that bytecode is easily translated into machine
language. Java programs require less memory and executes fast that also increase NOTES
its performance.
Dynamic and Extensible
Java is more dynamic than C++ or C language because it allows dynamic linking
of classes to libraries and predefined methods and objects. You can use programs
written in other programming languages, such as C and C++ in Java, by dynamically
linking them to the Java runtime environment. Java runtime environment makes
inter-connections between the modules of a program at runtime. You can also add
new methods and temporary variables in the existing libraries.
Java Environment
The Java environment comprises a set of tools and classes that are used to run the
Java program. These tools are:
 Java development kit and
 Java standard library
Java Development Kit
Java Development Kit contains various tools used by the Java Runtime Environment
(JRE) that can be used to compile and interpret Java programs. The Java tools
include Java compiler, Java interpreter, Java disassembler and Java debugger. JRE
is a software that is used to execute the Java program. The Java Development Kit
(JDK) contains following tools to run and execute the Java programs:
 appletviewer allows you to run Java applets.
 javac is a Java compiler that translates the Java source code into Javaclass
files or the bytecode files that can be interpreted by the java interpreter.
 java is a Java interpreter that executes various applications by interpreting
the bytecodes files.
 javah is used for including the C header files in a Java program.
 javap acts as a disassembler and is used to convert bytecode files into a
program source code.
 javadoc creates documentation of the Java source code files in the HTML
format from the comments available in the java source code.
 jdb is a java debugger that locates errors in a Java program.
Figure 4.1 shows the basic configuration of the Java tools that is used to process a
Java program.

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Basic Concepts of OOP javadoc
Java source HTML
code documents

javac
NOTES
Java compiler

Java interpreter Java debugger

Output

Fig. 4.1 Implementation of the JDK Tools

Java Standard Library

Java standard library is one of the most attractive features of Java that contain
various classes to support all the major functions of Java. Java standard library
includes the following classes:
 Language support classes which support basic features in Java, such as
strings, arrays, threads and exception handling.
 Utility classes that are used for various functions, such as random number
generator function, date and time function and container classes function.
 Input or output classes that are used to read data from various input devices
like keyboard and joysticks and write data on various output devices, such
as printer and monitor.
 Networking classes which allow communication between different
computers over a network.
 Abstract Window Toolkit (AWT) that is used for creating platform
independent GUI applications.
 Applet that allows you to create applets which can be downloaded and run
on a client browser.
Java Virtual Machine
Java uses both compiler and interpreter. The source code written in Java is compiled
to generate bytecode and then this bytecode is interpreted to machine instructions

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for a specific machine. The bytecode generated by the compiler is not machine Basic Concepts of OOP

specific as shown in Figure 4.2. It is generated for a virtual machine known as

JVM (Java Virtual Machine). It exists only inside the computer memory. This
virtual machine is designed in such a way that it can be implemented on any existing
processor and itself acts as a virtual processor chip. It hides the underlying operating NOTES
system details from Java applications.
Compile Interpreter
Source r Bytecode Machine
Code
JVM

Fig. 4.2 Execution of a Java Program

4.4 OBJECT ORIENTED CONCEPTS

To understand the concept of object oriented programming, it is necessary to

know the fundamental terms and concepts of this approach. These include objects,
classes, data abstraction, encapsulation, inheritance, polymorphism and message
passing.
Objects
Objects are small, self contained and modular units with a well defined boundary.
An object consists of a state and behaviour. The state of an object is one of the
possible conditions that an object can exist in and is represented by its characteristics
or attributes or data. The behaviour of an object determines how an object acts or
behaves and is represented by the operations that it can perform. In OOP, the attributes
of an object are represented by the variables and the operations are represented by
the functions.
For example, an object Biscuit may consist of data product code P001,
product name Britania Biscuits, price 20 and quantity in hand 50. These data
values specify the attributes or features of the object. Similarly, consider another
object Maggi with product code P002, product name Maggi Noodles, price 10
and quantity in hand 20. In addition, the data in the object can be used by the
functions, such as check_qty() and display_product(). These functions
specify the actions that can be performed on data. Figure 4.3 shows how class
and its objects are represented.

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Basic Concepts of OOP
Class: Product

Data:
p_code
NOTES p_name
p_price
qty_in_hand

Functions:
display_product()
check_qty()

Objcet: Biscuits Objcet: Maggi

Data: Data:
P001 P002
Britania biscuits Maggi Noodles
20 10
50 20

Fig. 4.3 Class and its Objects

Objects are the defined modules that are the basic runtime entities in object
oriented systems. They are the building blocks of object oriented programming.
Although, two or more objects can have same attributes, still they are separate
and independent objects with their own identity. In other words, all the objects in
a system take a separate space in the memory, independent of each other. The
main objective of breaking down complex software projects into objects is that
changes made to one part of a software should not adversely affect the other
parts.
Classes
A class is defined as a user defined data type which contains the entire set of
similar data and the functions that the objects possess. In other words, a class in
OOP represents a group of similar objects. As stated earlier, in the real world
millions of objects exist and each of them has its own identity. However, each of
them can be categorized under different groups depending on the common
properties they possess and the functions they perform. For example, cars, scooters,
motorbikes, buses, etc. all can be grouped under the category ‘vehicles’. Similarly,
dogs, cats, horses etc. can be grouped under the category ‘animals’. Thus, vehicles
and animals can be considered as the classes.
A class serves as a blueprint or template for its objects. That is, once a class
has been defined, any number of objects belonging to that class can be created.
The objects of a class are also known as the instances or variables of that class
and the process of creating objects from a class is known as instantiation. A class
does not represent an object, rather it represents the data and functions that an
object will have.

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 For example, a class Product consists of data, such as p_code, p_name, Basic Concepts of OOP

p_price and qty_in_hand which specify the attributes or features of the

objects of the Product class. In addition, it consists of functions, such as
display_product() and check_qty() that specify the actions that can
be performed on data. NOTES
The data belonging to a particular class is known as its data members and
the functions of the class are known as the member functions and both collectively
are known as the members of the class.
Note: In Java, the data members are referred as instance variables and member functions are
referred to as methods.
Abstraction
Abstraction is a mechanism to hide irrelevant details and represent only the essential
features so that one can focus on important things at a time. It allows the management
of complex systems by concentrating on the essential features only. For example,
while driving a car, a driver only knows the essential features to drive a car, such
as how to use the clutch, brake, accelerator, gears, steering, etc. and is least
bothered about the internal details of the car like the motor, engine, wiring etc.
Abstraction can be of two types— data abstraction and control abstraction.
Data abstraction (also known as data hiding) means hiding the details about the
data and control abstraction means hiding the implementation details. In object
oriented approach, one can abstract both data and functions. However, generally
the classes in OOP are defined in such a way that the data is hidden from the
outside world and the functions form the public interface. That is, the functions of
the class can be directly accessed by other functions outside the class and the
hidden data can be accessed indirectly with the help of these functions.
Since the internal details of the class are hidden from the outside world, the
data abstraction ensures security of the data by preventing it from accidental changes
or manipulations by other parts of the program.
Note: Classes in the object oriented programming are also known as Abstract Data Types
(ADT) as they use the concept of abstraction.

Encapsulation
Encapsulation is the technique of binding or keeping the data and functions (that
operate on them) together in a single unit called a class. Encapsulation is the way
to implement data abstraction. A well encapsulated object acts as a ‘black box’
for other parts of the program. That is, it provides services to the external functions
or other objects that interact with it. However, these external functions or the
objects do not need to know its internal details. For example, in Figure 1.3 the
data p_code, p_name, p_price and qty_in_hand and the functions
display_product() and check_qty are encapsulated in a class Product.

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Basic Concepts of OOP Inheritance
Inheritance can be defined as the process where an object of a class acquires
characteristics from the object of another class. As stated earlier, all the objects of
NOTES a similar kind are grouped together to form a class. However, sometimes a situation
arises when different objects cannot be combined together under a single group
as they share only few common characteristics. In this situation, the classes are
defined in such a way that the common features are combined to form a generalized
class and the specific features are combined to form a specialized class. The
specialized class is defined in such a way that in addition to the individual
characteristics and functions, it also inherits all the properties and the functions of
its generalized class.
The main advantage of inheritance is reusability. The existing classes can be
simply re-used in new software instead of writing a new code. Moreover, new
features can be added without altering or modifying the features of the existing
class.
Polymorphism
Polymorphism (a Greek word meaning ‘having multiple forms’) is the ability of an
entity, such as a function or a message to be processed in more than one form. It
can also be defined as the property of an object belonging to a same or different
class to respond to the same message or function in a different way. For example,
if a message change_gear is passed to all the vehicles then the automobiles will
respond to the message appropriately but the pulled vehicles will not respond.
The concept of polymorphism plays an important role in OOP as it allows an
entity to be represented in various forms.

Message Passing
Message passing is the process of interacting between the different objects in a
program. As discussed earlier, a program following the object oriented paradigm
comprises of a set of objects each, with a set of data and functions. When the
program is executed, these objects interact or communicate with each other by
sending and receiving messages. The messages are exchanged by calling the member
functions of the classes.
Any object of a class that wants to communicate with the object of another
class requests the object to invoke the required member function of its class. This
function call is different from the normal function call as in this case the sending
object is sending a request for the execution of the function. However, the receiving
object may or may not accept the request depending on whether the function
forms the public interface or it is hidden from the outside world. Thus, this form of
communication is called message sending and is not an ordinary function call.

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 For example, consider two classes Product and Order. The object of the Basic Concepts of OOP

Product class can communicate with the object of the Order class by sending a
request for placing order Figure 4.4 illustrates the process of message passing.
Object: orderl NOTES
orderl_place_order(qty_in_hand); place_order(int q)
Message passing {
.
.
.
}
object_name
Function or
message Information
(optional)

Fig. 4.4 Message Passing

Dynamic Binding
Dynamic binding is the process of linking a function call to the actual code of the
function at runtime. That is, in dynamic binding, the actual code to be executed is
not known to the compiler until runtime. The concept of dynamic binding is
implemented with the help of inheritance and runtime polymorphism.
Consider an example in which three different classes, square, rectangle and
circle are derived from the base class geometrical_shapes. The function
area() of the base class is implemented in different ways in all its derived
classes. At runtime, the desired function will be called depending on the object
being referenced.

4.4.1 Benefits of OOP

The object oriented programming paradigm came into use owing to its ability to
overcome certain limitations of structured and unstructured programming paradigms.
The new and advanced features of OOP, such as encapsulation, abstraction,
inheritance and polymorphism help in developing high quality software which has
various advantages. Some of the advantages of OOP are as follows.
 In OOP, writing programs with the help of objects is similar to working with
real world objects. That is, the real world objects can be conveniently
represented in a program which reduces the compexity of the program and
also makes the program structure clear.
 In object oriented programs, each object is an independent and separate
entity which makes modifications, locates and fixes problems in a program
an easy task. In addition, any changes made inside the class do not affect
the other parts of a program. Thus, object oriented programs are easy to
write and maintain.

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Basic Concepts of OOP  In object oriented programming, data integrity and data security is high as it
focuses on the data and its protection from manipulation by different parts
of the program. As a result, object oriented programs are less prone to
errors and more reliable and secure.
NOTES
 Object oriented programs are easy to extend as new features in a program
can be added easily by introducing some new objects without modifying
the existing ones.
 Object oriented programming allows the reusability of codes. That is, the
objects created in one program can be reused in other programs. In addition,
new classes can be created with the help of existing ones using inheritance.
It leads to faster software development and high quality programs.
 Object oriented programs are easier to adapt and scale, that is, large systems
can be created by assembling reusable subsystems.
4.4.2 Applications of OOP
Since 1960, object oriented paradigm has touched many major application areas
of software development. Some of the application areas where OOP has been
used to develop software are as follows:
 Simulation and Modelling: Simulation is the technique of representing
the real world entities with the help of a computer program. Simula-67 and
Smalltalk are two object oriented languages are designed for making
simulations.
 User Interface Design: Another popular application of OOP has been in
the area of designing graphical user interfaces, such as Windows. C++ is
mainly used for developing user interfaces.
 Developing Computer Games: OOP is also used for developing
computer games, such as Diablo, Startcraft, Warcraft III and many more.
These games offer virtual reality environments in which a number of objects
interact with each other in complex ways to give the desired result.
 Scripting: In recent years, OOP has also been used for developing HTML,
XHTML and XML documents for the Internet. Python, Ruby and Java are
the scripting languages based on object oriented principles which are used
for scripting.
 Object Databases: These days, OOP concepts have also been introduced
in database systems to develop a new database management system named
object database. These databases store the data directly in the form of
objects. However, they are not as popular as the traditional relational
database management systems.
Some other areas of applications include office automation systems, Decision
Support Systems (DSS), Artificial Intelligence (AI) and expert systems, neural
network, and parallel programming and Computer Aided Design (CAD) systems.
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Check Your Progress

1. What is Java?
2. What are the types of Java programs? NOTES
3. What is the function of the Java interpreter?
4. Define abstraction.
5. What is inheritance?
6. What is primary advantage of reusability?
7. What is dynamic binding?

4.5 HOW JAVA DIFFERS FROM C++

Both C++ and Java are object-oriented languages but are very different form
each other. Some of the features of C++ language were deliberately removed and
some new features were added to make Java a more flexible and reliable language.
Some of the features of Java that differentiate it from C++ are as follows:
 Java does not support the multiple inheritance of classes directly.
 The concept of multithreading is supported by Java.
 The destructor function in Java is replaced by the finalize method.
 The keyword typdef is not supported by Java.
 Java does not support pointers and instead it uses implicit object references.
 The virtual keyword is not supported in Java.
 Java does not support the concept of global variables.
 Java supports exception handling in a different way than C++. It provides
the finally clause for cleanup.
 The non-primitive data types are allocated memory by using the new
operator.
 Java adds many features that are necessary for object-oriented programming.

4.6 JAVA RUN-TIME ENVIRONMENT

As discussed earlier, Java uses both the compiler and interpreter. The source
code written in Java is compiled to generate the bytecode and which is then
interpreted to machine instructions for a specific machine. The bytecode generated
by the compiler is not machine-specific. It is generated for the virtual machine that
exists only inside the computer memory known as Java Virtual Machine (JVM).
This virtual machine is designed in such a way that it can be implemented on the

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Basic Concepts of OOP top of any existing processor and itself acts as a virtual processor chip
(Figure 4.5). It hides the underlying operating system details from Java applications.
Compiler Interpreter Machine
Source
NOTES Code Bytecode Code
JVM
Fig. 4.5 Execution of a Java Program

Check Your Progress

8. Compare between Java and C++.
9. Define JVM.

4.7 ANSWERS TO CHECK YOUR PROGRESS

QUESTIONS

1. Java is an object oriented programming language that is based on the concept

of an object.
2. Java programs are of two types—applications and applets.
a. A Java application is a standalone program that can be invoked from
the command line.
b. A Java applet is a small program embedded in a Web page, and it will
be run when that page is browsed using a Web browser.
3. Java interpreter will interpret and run the bytecode at runtime.
4. Abstraction is a mechanism to hide irrelevant details and represent only the
essential features so that one can focus on important things at a time.
5. Inheritance can be defined as the process whereby an object of a class
acquires characteristics from the object of another class.
6. The main advantage of inheritance is reusability where the existing classes
can be simply re-used in new software instead of writing a new code and
new features can be added without altering or modifying the features of the
existing class.
7. Dynamic binding is the process of linking a function call to the actual code
of the function at runtime.
8. The features of Java that differentiate it from C++ are as follows:
 Java does not support the multiple inheritance of classes directly.
 The concept of multithreading is supported by Java.
 The destructor function in Java is replaced by the finalize method.

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  The keyword typdef is not supported by Java. Basic Concepts of OOP

 Java does not support pointers and instead it uses implicit object
references.
 The virtual keyword is not supported in Java. NOTES
 Java does not support the concept of global variables.
 Java supports exception handling in a different way than C++. It provides
the finally clause for cleanup.
 The non-primitive data types are allocated memory by using the new
operator.
 Java adds many features that are necessary for object-oriented
programming.
9. The source code written in Java is compiled to generate the bytecode and
which is then interpreted to machine instructions for a specific machine. The
bytecode generated by the compiler is not machine-specific. It is generated
for the virtual machine that exists only inside the computer memory known
as Java Virtual Machine (JVM).

4.8 SUMMARY
 Java is an object oriented programming language based on the concept of
an object.
 Java is derived from C++, but is slightly simplified with libraries convenient
for the Internet. It is the programming language for the Internet environment.
 The Internet implies heterogeneous systems, different network features,
different windows libraries and different operating systems. Java guarantees
identical program behavior on different platforms.
 Java is famous for its unique feature—platform independence (architecture
neutral). This means that a Java program compiled on one machine could
be ported to any other machine/operating system and executed without any
modifications.
 Java is a highly object oriented language where reusability is of utmost
importance. Java programs are very reliable on different platforms with the
special features of memory allocation and de-allocation and exception
handling.
 Java with its multithreaded approach can run many programs concurrently,
thereby saving processor time. Synchronization of code is an added feature
of Java to run non-erroneous interactive applications.
 In 1991, a group of engineers at Sun Microsystems Laboratory developed
the Java language. The Green Project engineers designed a portable language

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Basic Concepts of OOP that was small in nature, as its memory requirement was less and it can also
be used to generate an intermediate code for virtual machines, such as Java
Virtual Machine.
 The newly developed language was named Oak and was based on C++
NOTES and followed the object oriented programming approach. The Oak
programming language was later renamed as Java and was introduced with
this new name in 1995.
 The syntax for the Java language is similar to that of the C++ and C. The
end user, who is familiar with C and C++, requires less effort in learning
Java because Java and C or C++ have similar syntax.
 The Java environment comprises a set of tools and classes that are used to
run the Java program.
 Java Development Kit contains various tools used by the Java Runtime
Environment (JRE) that can be used to compile and interpret Java programs.
 Java standard library is one of the most attractive features of Java that
contains various classes to support all the major functions of Java.
 Java uses both compiler and interpreter. The source code written in Java is
compiled to generate bytecode and then this bytecode is interpreted to
machine instructions for a specific machine.
 Objects are small, self-contained and modular units with a well defined
boundary. An object consists of a state and behavior.
 A class is defined as a user defined data type which contains the entire set
of similar data and the functions that the objects possess. In other words, a
class in OOP represents a group of similar objects.
 A class serves as a blueprint or template for its objects. That is, once a
class has been defined, any number of objects belonging to that class can
be created. The objects of a class are also known as the instances or variables
of that class and the process of creating objects from a class is known as
instantiation.
 Abstraction is a mechanism to hide irrelevant details and represent only the
essential features so that one can focus on important things at a time. It
allows the management of complex systems by concentrating on the essential
features only.
 Encapsulation is the technique of binding or keeping the data and functions
(that operate on them) together in a single unit called a class. Encapsulation
is the way to implement data abstraction.
 Inheritance can be defined as the process where an object of a class acquires
characteristics from the object of another class.
 Polymorphism is the ability of an entity, such as a function or a message to
be processed in more than one form. It can also be defined as the property
of an object belonging to a same or different class to respond to the same
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  Message passing is the process of interacting between the different objects Basic Concepts of OOP

in a program.
 Dynamic binding is the process of linking a function call to the actual code
of the function at runtime. That is, in dynamic binding, the actual code to be
executed is not known to the compiler until runtime. NOTES
 Java is the latest all-purpose programming language. Its programs are
collection of whitespace, identifiers, literals, comments, operators, separators
and keywords.

4.9 KEY WORDS

 Polymorphism: It is the ability of an entity, such as a function or a message

to be processed in more than one form.
 Message passing: It is the process of interacting between different objects
in a program.
 Dynamic binding: It is the process of linking a function call to the actual
code of the function at runtime.
 Multithreaded: Java with its multithreaded approach can run many
programs concurrently, thereby saving processor time. Synchronization of
code is an added feature of Java to run non-erroneous interactive
applications.
 Abstraction: Abstraction is a mechanism to hide irrelevant details and
represent only the essential features so that one can focus on important
things at a time. It allows the management of complex systems by
concentrating on the essential features only.

4.10 SELF ASSESSMENT QUESTIONS AND

EXERCISES

Short-Answer Questions
1. List some of the important features of Java programming language.
2. List the components of Java Development Kit.
3. What is message passing? How is it used in object oriented programming?
4. List the advantages of object oriented programming.
5. What is Java run-time environment?
Long-Answer Questions
1. Write notes on the following:
a. Abstraction
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Basic Concepts of OOP b. Inheritance
c. Polymorphism
2. Explain the defining features of the Java programming language.
3. Outline the benefits of OOPS concept.
NOTES 4. Discuss the evolution of Java.
5. Differentiate between Java and C++.

4.11 FURTHER READINGS

Krishnamoorty, R. and Prabhu R. Krishnamoorty. 2009. Internet and Java

Programming. New Delhi: New Age International (P) Ltd.
Balagurusamy, E. 2007. Programming with Java, Third Edition. New Delhi:
Tata McGraw-Hill.
Das, Rashmi Kant. 2009. Core Java for Beginners, Revised Edition. New Delhi:
Vikas Publishing House Pvt. Ltd.
Keogh, Jim. 2002. The Complete Reference J2SE, Fifth Edition. New York:
Tata McGraw-Hill.
Naughton, Patrick and Herbert Schidt. 1999. Java 2: The Complete Reference,
Third Edition. New Delhi: Tata McGraw-Hill.

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 Overview of Java

UNIT 5 OVERVIEW OF JAVA Language

LANGUAGE
NOTES
Structure
5.0 Introduction
5.1 Objectives
5.2 Basic Features of Java Programming Language
5.2.1 Features
5.2.2 Java and C++
5.2.3 Java’s Importance in the Internet
5.3 Java Compiler, Java Virtual Machine Concepts and JDK
(Java Development Kit)
5.4 Character Set and Tokens
5.4.1 Java Keywords
5.4.2 Identifiers
5.4.3 Constants
5.5 Structure of a Java Program
5.6 Data Types
5.6.1 Primitives Data Types
5.7 Variables
5.8 Java Program
5.9 Running Java Applications and Command Line Arguments
5.10 Type Casting
5.11 Answers to Check Your Progress Questions
5.12 Summary
5.13 Key Words
5.14 Self Assessment Questions and Exercises
5.15 Further Readings

5.0 INTRODUCTION

Java, initially named ‘Oak’ was developed by a team headed by James Gosling at
Sun Microsystems of USA in 1991. The primary reason behind the development of
Java was the need of a platform independent and portable software to be embedded
in the consumer’s electronic devices like remote controls, microwave ovens, etc.
Another reason that led to the growth of Java is the Internet and the World Wide
Web as these media need portable and platform independent programs. Gosling
and other team members developed web applets using the new language that could
run on all types of computers. During 1993, the first web browser, namely ‘HotJava’,
was developed to locate and run applet programs. This development made Java
language popular for the Internet. By the year 1996, Java developed into a general-
purpose, object-oriented programming language which was used for Internet
programming. Soon, Java became popular and many web browsers like Internet
Explorer, Netscape Navigator, etc., incorporated the ability to run Java applets. Self-Instructional
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Overview of Java Language Java technology is both a programming language and a platform. Java is a
high level, robust, secured and Object Oriented Programming (OOP) language.
Any hardware or software environment in which a program runs, is known as a
platform. Since Java has its own runtime environment, the Java Runtime
NOTES Environment (JRE) and Application Programming Interface (API), it is called
platform.
In this unit, you will study about the overview of Java language, simple Java
program, comments, Java program structure, tokens, Java statements, implementing
a Java program, JVM, command line arguments, constants, variables, data types
and type casting.

5.1 OBJECTIVES

After going through this unit, you will be able to:

 Explain the significant properties of Java language
 Analyse the Java program structure
 Write simple Java program
 Define the importance of comments and tokens in Java
 Use the Java statements in Java program
 Discuss the importance of JVM and command line arguments
 Use constants, variables and data types in the Java program
 Understand what type casting is

5.2 BASIC FEATURES OF JAVA PROGRAMMING

LANGUAGE

Java is a third generation programming language which implements most of the

concepts of OOPs. This section presents the basic features of Java as well as the
characteristics that differ it from C++. It also describes the significance of Java to
the Internet.
5.2.1 Features

Java has become a popular language for Internet applications because of various
features which are as follows:
 Easy to Use: Java inherits the syntax of C/C++ and many of the OOPs
features of C++; thus a person who has understood the concepts of object-
oriented language can learn Java quite easily. Moreover, Java omits the
complex and unreliable code of C and C++ like operator overloading,
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 pointers, preprocessor header files, etc. Java provides small and convenient Overview of Java
Language
ways to accomplish a given task.
 Interpreted: Unlike other languages, Java uses a two-stage system as it
uses both compiler and interpreter for its program execution. The compiler
converts the program code to a bytecode, which in turn is converted to a NOTES
machine code on any machine using the interpreter. The machine code so
generated can be executed irrespective of the system on which it is being
executed.
 Architecture-Neutral (Platform-Independent): This feature makes Java
language very special. Java programs can run on any platform, i.e., they can
run on different CPUs and on different operating system architectures. The
bytecode produced by Java compiler can be run on any machine that has a
Java runtime environment.
 Object-Oriented Language: Java is an object-oriented language as
everything in Java is an object. The objects and classes contain the program
code and data. The Java object model is easily extensible and classes can
be used anywhere in the program in form of packages.
 Robust: Java is a robust language mainly because of two reasons, i.e., it is
a strictly typed language that checks the code at the compile time and it
uses an effective technique of memory management. In C++, the
programmer has to manually deallocate the dynamic memory used by the
objects but Java automatically deallocates free memory that is no longer
referenced by the objects (with the help of garbage collector).
 Distributed: Since Java is platform independent, it is suitable for developing
applications for the networks. Java can handle TCP/IP protocols and hence
applications developed in Java can access remote objects on Internet like
any object on a local system.
 Multithreaded: Java supports multithreaded programming which allows
us to write a program that can perform more than one task simultaneously.
The user is not required to wait for a particular program or to finish a task
before starting the next task. For instance, a user can listen to an audio clip
while downloading the applet. This feature helps to improve the performance
of graphical applications.
 High Performance: The Java program is converted to a bytecode which
is then converted to a machine code using the interpreter. Since bytecode is
highly optimized, it enables the JVM to execute programs at a high speed.
 Dynamic: Java is dynamic in nature, i.e., Java programs can link to new
class libraries, objects, methods, etc., at the run-time. Java language also
provides the facility to include the functions of other languages like C and
C++. They are referred to as native methods. These methods are also
linked dynamically at run-time.

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Overview of Java Language 5.2.2 Java and C++
Both C++ and Java are object-oriented languages; however, they are quite different
from each other. Some of the features of C++ language were deliberately removed
NOTES and some new features were added to make Java more flexible and reliable.
Thus, there are various features of Java that differ it from C++. They are as follows:
 Java does not support multiple inheritance of classes directly.
 The concept of multithreading is supported by Java.
 The destructor function in Java is replaced by the finalize method.
 The keywords typdef is not supported by Java.
 Java does not support pointers, instead it uses implicit object references.
 The virtual keyword is not supported in Java.
 Java does not support the concept of global variables.
 Java supports exception handling in a different technique than C++. It
provides the final clause for cleanup.
 The non-primitive data types are allocated memory by using the new
operator.
 Java adds many features that are necessary for object-oriented
programming.
5.2.3 Java’s Importance in the Internet
In recent years, Java has become a popular language for the programs that are
required to run on different systems. Java’s new innovation named ‘applet’ has
completely transformed Internet programming. Applets are tiny programs that are
designed in such a way that they can be transmitted over the Internet. They can be
downloaded on demand and executed automatically by a Java compatible web
browser. They are used to handle user input, data supplied by the server and
simple functions that execute locally on the client machine.
Applet is a dynamic, self-executing program and can be modified according
to user inputs. The dynamic programs when downloaded and executed can cause
serious damage to the computer as it may contain viruses like Trojan horse and
other malicious programs. These harmful programs may search the contents on a
local file system of the client computer and may gather private information like
credit card numbers, passwords, etc. Earlier, viruses were scanned before executing
the downloaded program, but Java has resolved the issue by confining Java
programs to a Java execution environment only.

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 Overview of Java
5.3 JAVA COMPILER, JAVA VIRTUAL MACHINE Language

CONCEPTS AND JDK (JAVA DEVELOPMENT

KIT)
NOTES
In most programming languages, the program is converted to machine code either
by using the compiler or interpreter. The machine code so generated is machine
dependent, i.e., it may not run on the machine other than the one on which it is
generated. Unlike other programming languages, the Java compiler does not convert
source code to machine code; rather it converts source code to a special
intermediate code known as the bytecode. The bytecode so generated are in the
form of class files that can be interpreted. The command used for compilation in
Java is javac which converts the corresponding Java file into a class file. The
bytecode is machine independent which implies that it can be run on any machine
with the help of a Java virtual machine (JVM). Figure 5.1 illustrates the compilation
of a Java program.
Compiler
Source Code Bytecode

.java file .class file

Fig. 5.1 Compilation of a Java Program

Java Virtual Machine Concepts

Java uses both compiler and interpreter. The source code written in Java is compiled
to generate a bytecode and this bytecode is then interpreted to machine instructions
for a specific machine. The bytecode generated by the compiler is not machine
specific. It is generated for the virtual machine that exists only inside the computer
memory known as the Java Virtual Machine (JVM). This virtual machine is
designed in such a way that it can be implemented on the top of any existing
processor and functions as a virtual processor chip. It hides the underlying operating
system details from Java applications. Figure 5.2 illustrates the execution of a Java
program.
Compiler Interpreter
Source Code Bytecode Machine Code

JVM

Fig. 5.2 Execution of a Java Program

JDK (Java Development Kit)

JDK consists of various tools that are used to develop and execute Java programs.
The tools included in JDK are listed in Table 5.1.

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Overview of Java Language Table 5.1 Tools in Java Development Kit

Tool Function
javac Java compiler that converts source code to Java bytecode
java Java interpreter that interprets class files generated by java compiler and
NOTES converts it to machine code
javadoc Document generator which automatically generates documentation form
source code
javah Generates C headers and a stub generator used for writing native methods
javap The class file disassembler which enables to convert bytecode files to a
program description
jdb Java debugger which helps in tracking errors in the program
appletviewer Used for running and debugging Java applets without a web browser

Check Your Progress

1. What is Java?
2. What is the function of the Java interpreter?
3. How is Java platform independent?
4. Distinguish between Java and C++.
5. Define JVM concept.

5.4 CHARACTER SET AND TOKENS

A character set can be defined as a set of characters that either individually or in

combination, represents information. Unlike other programming languages like C
and C++, Java uses a standard known as unicode to define characters. Unicode
is a 16 bit character code set which defines all of the characters available in all
human languages like English, Hindi, French, German, Chinese, Japanese, etc.
This makes Java a worldwide programming language. However, the characters of
many languages can be represented using the standard 8 bit character set (ASCII
characters) which include letters, digits and punctuation marks.
A token is defined as the smallest unit of a program. When a program is
compiled, the compiler scans the source code and parses it into tokens to find the
syntax errors. Java tokens are broadly classified into keywords, identifiers,
constants, operators and punctuators.
5.4.1 Java Keywords
Keywords are the predefined words that have special significance in any language.
Every keyword is reserved for a specific purpose and hence cannot be used as
user-defined names (identifiers). There are various keywords in Java, which are
listed in Table 5.2.

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 Table 5.2 Java Keywords Overview of Java
Language
Keywords
abstract const final interface short transient
assert continue finally long static try NOTES
boolean default for native strictfp void
break do goto new super volatile
byte double if package switch while
case else instanceof private synchronized
catch enum implements protected this
char extends import public throw
class float int return throws
Notes: The keywords const and goto are reserved words but they are not used.

5.4.2 Identifiers
Identifiers are the names given to uniquely identify various programming elements
like variables, arrays, methods, classes, objects, packages, interface, and so
on. While defining identifiers in Java, programmers must keep in mind the following
rules:
 An identifier must be unique in a program.
 Alphabets, digits, underscore and dollar sign characters can be used in an
identifier.
 An identifier must not start with a digit.
 An identifier in upper case is different from that in lower case.
 An identifier must not contain other characters, such as ‘*’, ‘;’ and white
space characters (tabs, space and newline).
Some valid and invalid identifiers in Java are as follows:
Pol78_ddm //valid
hh$gl //valid
_78hhvt4 //valid
902gt1 //invalid as it starts with a digit
Tyy;ui8 //invalid as it contains the ‘;’ character
for //invalid as it is a Java keyword
Fg026 neo //invalid as it contains spaces

5.4.3 Constants
Constants, also known as literals, are the values that a program cannot alter
during its execution. For instance, 391, “Byron”, 51.072 and ‘p’ are all
constants. Based on the type of value (data), Java constants are broadly classified
into four categories, namely, numeric constants, character constants, string constants
and boolean constants.

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Overview of Java Language Numeric Constants
Numeric constants refer to the numbers consisting of a sequence of digits (with
or without decimal point) that can be either positive or negative. By default, numeric
NOTES constants are positive. Numeric constants can be further classified as integer
constants and floating-point constants which are listed in Table 5.3.
Table 5.3 Type of Numeric Constants

Type Description Example

Integer Constants Integer constants refer to integer-valued 54, -646, 01612,
numbers. Integer constants can be 0x38A
represented by three different number
systems namely, decimal (base 10), octal
(base 8) and hexadecimal numbers (base
16). The octal constants are preceded by a 0
(zero) and hexadecimal constants are
preceded by a 0x or 0X.
Floating Point Constants Floating-point constants refer to the real 64.23f, -74.32f,
numbers, that is, the numbers with a 537E-9f, 15e-3f
decimal point. Floating-point constants are
also written in the floating-point notation in
which the constant is divided into a
mantissa and an exponent. Floating point
constants default to double precision, so we
should append an F or f to the constant in
order to specify a float constant.

Note: Use of special characters like comma ‘,’, semicolon ‘;’and question mark ‘?’ are not
permitted in numeric constants.

Character Constants
Character constants refer to a single character enclosed in single quotes (‘’).
Character constants include ‘f’, ‘M’, ‘8’, ‘&’, etc. All character constants are
internally stored as integer value.
Character constants can represent either printable characters or non-printable
characters. Printable character constants include ‘a’, ‘5’, ‘#’, ‘;’, etc. However,
there are a few character constants that cannot be included in a program directly
through a keyboard, such as backspace, new line, and so on. These character
constants are known as non-printable constants and are included in a program
using the escape sequences. An escape sequence refers to a character preceded
by the backslash character (\). Some of the escape sequences used in Java are
listed in Table 5.4.

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 Table 5.4 Escape Sequences Overview of Java
Language
Escape Sequences Character Constants
\b Backspace
\f Form feed NOTES
\n Newline (Linefeed)
\r Carriage return
\t Tab
\’ Single quote
\” Double quote
\\ Backslash

String Constants
String constants refer to a sequence of any number of characters enclosed in
double quotes (“”). The characters can be alphabets, digits, special characters
and blank spaces. String constants include “hello java”, “2009”, “!...?”,
“6+9”, “Y”, etc.
Boolean Constants
Boolean constants can represent only two values, true and false. In Java,
there is no numerical representation for these values, i.e., true is not equal to 1
and false is not equal to 0.
Operators
Operators are symbols which perform operations, (such as addition, subtraction,
multiplication, etc.), on various data items to produce a result. These data items on
which operators act are known as operands. For instance, in a*b, a and b are
operands and * is an operator.
Punctuators
Punctuators, also known as separators, are the symbols that define the structure
of a program by dividing and arranging a set of codes. The various punctuators
defined are braces ‘{ }’, brackets ‘[ ]’, colon ‘:’, comma ‘,’, period ‘.’, semicolon
‘;’ and parentheses ‘( )’.

5.5 STRUCTURE OF A JAVA PROGRAM

The Java program structure is divided into various sections, namely, documentation
section, package statement, import statements, interface statements, class definitions
and main method class as displayed in Figure 5.3.

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Overview of Java Language
Documentation Section

Package Statement
NOTES
Import Statements

Interface Statements

Class Definitions

Main Method Class

Fig. 5.3 Java Program Structure

The various sections of a Java program are described as follows:

 Documentation Section: Comments are vital elements of a program that
are used to increase its readability and describe its functionality. They may
also include information like program name and the author of the program,
etc.
 Package Statement: It is the first statement in Java program that tells the
compiler that all the classes defined in the file belong to this package. For
instance, consider the following statement:
package employee;

Here, employee is the name of the package. It is not necessary that our
classes are part of the package, so this statement is optional.
 Import Statements: It allows us to access a class, which belongs to some
other package. For instance, consider the following statement:
import employee.EName;

Here, employee is the name of the package and EName is the class
which we want to access. There can be a number of import statements in a
program.
 Interface Statements: An interface is a way for implementing multiple
inheritance in Java. It is just like a class but contains only method declarations.
 Class Definitions: Class is the most important element of a program. A
program may consist of any number of class definitions.
 Main Method Class: It is an essential part of a Java program as it contains
the main method which is the starting point of a program. Inside the main
method class, the objects of several classes can be created, accessed and
manipulated. Once all the instructions in the main method are executed, the
control is transferred out of the class, thus terminating the entire program.
Note: The concept of package, interface and multiple Inheritance are discussed in
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 Overview of Java
5.6 DATA TYPES Language

A data type determines the type and the operations that can be performed on the
data. Java provides various data types and each data type is represented differently NOTES
within the computer’s memory. The type of data selected by a programmer depends
on the particular application. The various data types provided by Java are
categorized into primitive data types and non-primitive data types as displayed in
Figure 5.4.

Data Types

Primitive Non-primitive
Data types Data types

Integer Floating-point Character Boolean Classes Interface Arrays

Fig. 5.4 Data Types

5.6.1 Primitives Data Types

Primitive data types, also known as built-in data types are the fundamental data
types provided by a programming language. In Java, primitive data types include
integer, floating point, character and boolean.
Integer Type
The integer data type is used to store integers like 4, 42, 5233, -32, -745.
Java supports four types of integers, namely, byte, short, int and long.
The default value of these integer types is 0. There is no concept of unsigned
integer in Java. The various integer data types with their size and range are listed in
Table 5.5.
Table 5.5 Size and Range of Integer Types

Type Size(bytes) Range

byte One -128 to 127
short Two -32,768 to 32,767
int Four -2,147,483,648 to 2,147,483,647
long Eight -9,223,372,036,854,775,808 to 9,223,372,036,854,775,807

Note: It is recommended to use smaller data types whenever possible. This is because
larger the data type we choose, more time the program will take for execution.

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Overview of Java Language Floating Point Type
A floating point data type is used to store real numbers, such as 3.28,
64.755765, -8.01, -24.53. Java supports two floating point data types,
NOTES namely, float and double.
 float: The float type represents a single-precision number. Single
precision occupies lesser space than double precision but becomes inaccurate
when the values are large. For instance, it can be used to represent the
value of the marks obtained by students. The default value of float data
type is 0.0f.
 double: The double type specifies a double-precision number. It is
the best choice when we need to store large-valued numbers. For instance,
it can be used when we want to use mathematical functions like sin(),
cos(), sqrt(). The default value of double data type is 0.0d.
The various floating point data types with their size and range are listed in Table
5.6.
Table 5.6 Size and Range of Floating Point Types

Type Size(bytes) Range

float Four 3.4e-038 to 3.4e+038
double Eight 1.7e-308 to 1.7e+308

Character Type
The character data type is used to store single character enclosed in single quotes.
It is represented by using the char keyword. It occupies 16 bits of memory. The
range of the character data type is 0 to 65,536. The default value of char
data type is a null character.
Boolean Type
The boolean data type can hold only boolean values, i.e., either true or false.
The keyword boolean is used to denote the boolean data type. The default
value of boolean data type is false.
Non-Primitive Data Types
Non-primitive data types (user-defined data types) also known as reference
types are derived from the primitive data types. In Java, these include classes,
interface and arrays.

5.7 VARIABLES

A variable is an identifier that represents a memory location that is used to store

data value. Data stored at a particular location can be accessed using the variable
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name. The value of a variable can be changed anytime during the program execution. Overview of Java
Language
The variable name we choose must be meaningful so as to understand what it
represents in the program.
Declaring Variables NOTES
Variables must be declared in a program before they are used. The declaration of
a variable informs the compiler, the specific data type to which a variable is
associated and allocates sufficient memory for it.
The syntax for declaring a variable is as follows:
data_type variable_name;

For instance, a variable a of type int can be declared using the following statement:
int a;

At the time of the variable declaration, more than one variable of the same data
type can be declared in a single statement as in the case of the following statement:
int x, y, z;

Initializing Variables
Declaration of variables allocates memory for variables but it does not store any
data at the time of declaration. To store data in the variables, they need to be
initialized. For instance, consider the following statements:
int i;
i=10;

Here, a variable i of the integer type is declared and the value 10 is assigned to
it. We can combine both the statements into a single statement as follows:
int i=10;
Besides initializing the variable with the constant values, variables can also be
initialized at run-time using expressions. Initialization of variables at run-time is
known as dynamic initialization.
Program 1: A program to demonstrate initialization of a variable.
public class dynamic_initializaton
{
public static void main(String[] args)
{
int x=40,y=40,z=10; //initialization with constant
values
int result=(x*y)+z; //dynamic initialization
System.out.println(“The value of z is:”+result);
}
}

Output of the program:

The value of z is:1610

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Overview of Java Language Receiving Input Through Keyboard
Variables can also be given values interactively through the keyboard using the
readLine() method.
NOTES Program 2: A program to demonstrate reading data from the keyboard.
//importing package for using DataInputStream class
import java.io.*;
public class ReadingData
{
public static void main(String[] args)
{
DataInputStream in=new DataInputStream(System.in);
int num1=0;
float num2=0;
try
{
System.out.println(“Enter integer value”);
num1=Integer.parseInt(in.readLine());
System.out.println(“Enter float value”);

num2=Float.valueOf(in.readLine()).floatValue();
}
catch(Exception e)
{
}
System.out.println(“The integer value is “+num1);
System.out.println(“The float value is “+num2);
}
}
Output of the program:
Enter integer value
4
Enter float value
6.7
The integer value is 4
The float value is 6.7
The method readLine() of class DataInputStream is used to read
string from the keyboard which is then converted to the corresponding data type,
int and float. To handle the error which may occur while reading data from
the keyboard, we have provided try and catch statements.

Check Your Progress

6. State the difference between integer constants and floating point constants.
7. What is the structure of the Java program?
8. Discuss the characteristics of import statements in the Java program.
9. Classify various types of data types.
10. How do you initialize variable in a Java program?
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 Overview of Java
5.8 JAVA PROGRAM Language

Let us start learning Java with a simple Java program that prints a string on the
screen. NOTES
Program 3: A Java program.
class Sample
{
public static void main (String args[])
{
System.out.println(“Welcome to Java Programming”);
System.out.println(“Its easy and simple.”);
}
}

Though this program is the simplest one, it includes the basic features that every
Java program has. Let us now look at the features one by one.
Class Definition
The first statement class Sample declares a class where class is a keyword and
Sample is the identifier that indicates the name of the class. The opening and closing
curly braces ‘{ }’ enclose the definition of a class.
The Main Statement
The statement public static void main (String args[])
indicates the main method. This method is the point where the execution of Java
program begins. Since it is the startup point of any Java program, it is the most
essential part of any Java program.
This statement has keywords, namely, public, static and void.
The descriptions of these keywords are as follows:
 Public: It is access specifier which specifies that the main method is
accessible to all other classes.
 Static: The main method is declared static which specifies that this
method belongs to the entire class. The interpreter use this method before
the creation of objects.
 Void: The void keyword specifies that the main method does not
return a value. The pair of parentheses contains the declaration of the
parameters of the methods. In the above statement, the String args[
] declares a parameter args, that contains an array of objects of the class
type String.

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Overview of Java Language The Output Statement
The statements System.out.println(“Welcome to Java
Programming.”); and System.out.println(“Its easy and
NOTES simple.”); are used to display information on the standard output device,
i.e., the println()which is a method of the out object, a static member
of the class System. These statements will display the following strings on the
monitor:
Welcome to Java Programming.
Its easy and simple.

The statements will be printed in separate lines as the method println()

appends a newline character at the end of the string. However, if we use the
print() method instead of the println(), the newline character is
not appended at the end of the string. Also, like C++, every statement in Java
must end with a semicolon.

5.9 RUNNING JAVA APPLICATIONS AND

COMMAND LINE ARGUMENTS

A program can be created using any text editor. Nowadays, there are several text
editors available for writing programs like Notepad, Jcreator, etc. After creating
the file, save the file with the name <filename>.Java. The name of the file
must be same as that of the class name containing the main() method.
For instance, once the file is created, it can be compiled to generate the
bytecode using Java compiler javac as follows:
javac Sample.java
If the source code is error free then the compiler creates a file containing the
bytecode and the file will be named as <filename>.class. Here, the
name of file will be Sample.class.
Even though after compilation the source code is converted into its equivalent
bytecode, it cannot be executed. To execute this bytecode, it needs to be converted
to a machine code using the interpreter. The command for converting the bytecode
to the machine code and run it is as follows:
java Sample

After giving this command, the interpreter searches for the main() method in
the source code and starts executing the instructions written in this method displaying
the corresponding output.
Command Line Arguments
Like C++, Java enables to pass arguments to the main() method also. These
arguments are passed by typing them after the program name on the command
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line. Hence, these arguments are known as command line arguments. They Overview of Java
Language
help in providing data to the program.
The argument named as args of String type is passed to the main
method. It is this argument which will receive any data passed to the program
NOTES
through command line.
Program 4: A program to demonstrate the use of command line arguments.
class CommandLineArg
{
public static void main(String args[])
{
System.out.println(“The arguments entered are: “);
int a;
for (a=0;a<args.length;a++)
{
System.out.print(“args[“ + a + “]: “);
System.out.println(args[a]);
}
int b=args.length; // returns the number of arguments
System.out.println(“The number of arguments is: “+b);
}
}

The command entered on the command prompt is as follows:

java CommandLineArg Hello! How are you?

Output of the program:

The arguments entered are:
args[0]: Hello!
args[1]: How
args[2]: are
args[3]: you?
The number of arguments is: 4

5.10 TYPE CASTING

While programming we might come across some situations where a value of one
data type needs to be stored into a variable of another data type. If both the data
types are compatible and the data type of the target variable is large enough to
store the value of the source variable, Java automatically converts the source type
into target type. This is known as automatic type conversion. For instance, the
value of int data type can be assigned to a variable of long data type since
long is larger than int. This type of conversion in which data of smaller type is
assigned to a larger type is called widening conversion. Self-Instructional
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Overview of Java Language However, if the target type is smaller than the source type, conversion cannot
be performed automatically. For instance, the value of int data type cannot be
assigned to a variable of byte type. For such conversion, Java provides a
mechanism known as type casting. Type casting refers to the type conversion
NOTES that is performed explicitly.
The syntax for type casting is as follows:
data_type variable1 = (data_type) variable2;
where,
data_type is the data type
variable1 is the target variable
variable2 is the source variable
For instance, consider the following statements:
int x = 20;
byte y = (byte) x;

In these statements, type casting is performed to convert int data type to byte
data type.
The following points should be kept in mind while type casting:
 All the integer data types can be cast to any other data type except
boolean.
 Casting into smaller data type may lead to loss of data.
 Casting a floating point value to an integer type may result in truncation of
the fractional part.
Program 5: A program to demonstrate type casting.
class ExampleTypecast
{
public static void main(String[] args)
{
byte b = 20;
short s = 26;
int i = 123456789;
float f = 3.98f;
System.out.println(“The existing variables and
their values are:”);
System.out.println(“b=”+b);
System.out.println(“s=”+s);
System.out.println(“i=”+i);
System.out.println(“f=”+f);

System.out.println(“The existing variables and

their values after conversion are:”);
System.out.println(“ “);
// type conversion
int i1=(int)b; // conversion from byte to int
short s1=(short)b; // conversion from byte to
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104 Material
 short s2=(short)i; // conversion from int to short Overview of Java
int i2 =(int)f; // conversion from float to int Language

System.out.println(“(int)b: “+i1);
System.out.println(“(short)b: “+s1);
System.out.println(“(short)i: “+s2); NOTES
System.out.println(“(int)f: “+i2);
}
}

Output of the program:

The existing variables and their values are:
b=20
s=26
i=123456789
f=3.98
The existing variables and their values after conversion are:
(int)b: 20
(short)b: 20
(short)i: -13035
(int)f: 3

Check Your Progress

11. Write a program to print a string on the screen.
12. Define widening conversion.
13. Write a syntax for type casting in a Java program.

5.11 ANSWERS TO CHECK YOUR PROGRESS

QUESTIONS

1. Java is a third generation programming language which implements most of

the concepts of OOPs.
2. The compiler converts the program code to a bytecode, which in turn is
converted to a machine code on any machine using the interpreter.
3. Java programs can run on any platform, i.e., they can run on different CPUs
and on different operating system architectures. The bytecode produced
by Java compiler can be run on any machine that has a Java runtime
environment.
4. There are various features of Java that differ it from C++. They are as
follows:
 Java does not support multiple inheritance of classes directly.
Self-Instructional
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Overview of Java Language  The concept of multithreading is supported by Java.
 The destructor function in Java is replaced by the finalize method.
 The keywords typdef is not supported by Java.
NOTES  Java does not support pointers, instead it uses implicit object references.
 The virtual keyword is not supported in Java.
 Java does not support the concept of global variables.
 Java supports exception handling in a different technique than C++. It
provides the final clause for cleanup.
 The non-primitive data types are allocated memory by using the new
operator.
 Java adds many features that are necessary for object-oriented
programming.
5. Java uses both compiler and interpreter. The source code written in Java is
compiled to generate a bytecode and this bytecode is then interpreted to
machine instructions for a specific machine. The bytecode generated by the
compiler is not machine specific. It is generated for the virtual machine that
exists only inside the computer memory known as the Java Virtual Machine
(JVM). This virtual machine is designed in such a way that it can be
implemented on the top of any existing processor and functions as a virtual
processor chip. It hides the underlying operating system details from Java
applications.
Type Description Example
6. Integer Constants Integer constants refer to integer-valued 54, -646, 01612,
numbers. Integer constants can be 0x38A
represented by three different number
systems namely, decimal (base 10), octal
(base 8) and hexadecimal numbers (base
16). The octal constants are preceded by a 0
(zero) and hexadecimal constants are
preceded by a 0x or 0X.
Floating Point Constants Floating-point constants refer to the real 64.23f, -74.32f,
numbers, that is, the numbers with a 537E-9f, 15e-3f
decimal point. Floating-point constants are
also written in the floating-point notation in
which the constant is divided into a
mantissa and an exponent. Floating point
constants default to double precision, so we
should append an F or f to the constant in
order to specify a float constant.

7. The Java program structure is divided into various sections, namely,

documentation section, package statement, import statements, interface
statements, class definitions and main method class.

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 8. Import statements: It allows us to access a class, which belongs to some Overview of Java
Language
other package. For instance, consider the following statement:
import employee.EName;

Here, employee is the name of the package and EName is the class NOTES
which we want to access. There can be a number of import statements in a
program.

9. Data Types

Primitive Non-primitive
Data types Data types

Integer Floating-point Character Boolean Classes Interface Arrays

10. Declaration of variables allocates memory for variables but it does not store
any data at the time of declaration. To store data in the variables, they need
to be initialized. For instance, consider the following statements:
int i;
i=10;

Here, a variable i of the integer type is declared and the value 10 is

assigned to it. We can combine both the statements into a single statement
as follows:
int i=10;
Besides initializing the variable with the constant values, variables can also
be initialized at run-time using expressions. Initialization of variables at run-
time is known as dynamic initialization.

11. Java program that prints a string on the screen.

A Java program.
class Sample
{
public static void main (String args[])
{
System.out.println(“Welcome to Java Programming”);
System.out.println(“Its easy and simple.”);
}
} Self-Instructional
Material 107
Overview of Java Language 12. For instance, the value of int data type can be assigned to a variable of
long data type since long is larger than int. This type of conversion in
which data of smaller type is assigned to a larger type is called widening
conversion.
NOTES
13. The syntax for type casting is as follows:
data_type variable1 = (data_type) variable2;
where,
data_type is the data type
variable1 is the target variable
variable2 is the source variable

5.12 SUMMARY

 Java uses two-stage system as it uses both compiler and interpreter for its
program execution.
 Applets are tiny programs that are designed in such a way that they can be
transmitted over the Internet.
 Java compiler does not convert source code to machine code, it converts
source code to a special intermediate code known as bytecode. The
command used for compilation in Java is javac which converts the
corresponding Java file into class file.
 Bytecode is generated for the virtual machine that exists only inside the
computer memory known as Java Virtual Machine (JVM).
 JDK consists of various tools that are used to develop and execute Java
programs. Some of the tools included in JDK are javac, java, javadoc,
javap, etc.
 The access specifier public specifies that the main method is accessible
to all other classes.
 The void keyword specifies that the main method does not return a
value.
 A character set can be defined as a set of characters that either individually
or in combination, represents information. Unlike C and C++, Java uses a
standard known as Unicode to define characters.
 Unicode is a 16 bit character code set which defines all of the characters
available in all human languages.
 A token is defined as the smallest unit of a program. Java tokens are broadly
classified into keywords, identifiers, constants, operators and punctuators.
 Keywords are the predefined words that have special significance in any
language. Every keyword is reserved for a specific purpose and hence
Self-Instructional cannot be used as user-defined names (identifiers).
108 Material
  The Java program structure is divided into various sections, namely, Overview of Java
Language
documentation section, package statement, import statements, interface
statements, class definitions and main method class.
 A data type determines the type and the operations that can be performed
NOTES
on the data. The various data types provided by Java are categorized into
primitive data types and non-primitive data types. Primitive data types also
known as built-in data types are the fundamental data types provided by a
programming language. In Java, primitive data types include integer, floating
point, character and boolean.
 Java supports four types of integer, namely, byte, short, int and
long. It supports two floating point data types, namely, float and
double.
 A variable is an identifier that represents a memory location that is used to
store data value. The value of a variable can be changed anytime during the
program execution.

5.13 KEY WORDS

 Character set: A set of characters that either individually or in combination,

represents information.
 Unicode: A16 bit character code set which defines all of the characters
available in all human languages.
 Token: The smallest unit of a program.
 Identifiers: Names given to uniquely identify various programming elements
including variables, arrays, methods, classes, objects, packages, interface,
etc.
 Constants: The values that a program cannot alter during its execution.
 Numeric constants: The numbers consisting of a sequence of digits (with
or without decimal point) that can be either positive or negative.
 Character constants: A single character enclosed in single quotes (‘’).
Character constants include ‘f’, ‘M’, ‘8’, ‘&’, etc.
 String constants: A sequence of any number of characters enclosed in
double quotes (“”).
 Boolean constants: Constants that can represent only two values, true
and false.
 Punctuators: The symbols that define the structure of a program by dividing
and arranging a set of codes.
 Dynamic initialization: Initialization of variables at run-time.

Self-Instructional
Material 109
Overview of Java Language
5.14 SELF ASSESSMENT QUESTIONS AND
EXERCISES

NOTES Short-Answer Questions

1. Mention some of the differences between Java and C++.
2. What is the role of Java compiler in the execution of the program?
3. Describe a Java program structure.
4. What are the various primitive data types in Java?
5. What is type casting? When do we need it in programming?
6. What are the different ways of initializing a variable? Explain with an example.
7. What are command line arguments? Explain with an example.
8. State the difference between the execution of while and do-while
loop. Support your answer with suitable examples.
9. Describe the purpose of JDK. Mention some tools of JDK and their purpose.
10. Define an array. Why are they needed?
Long-Answer Questions
1. Explain Java features in detail.
2. Explain how Java has become a popular language for the Internet.
3. Discuss Java runtime environment in detail.
4. Define token. Explain the various types of tokens supported by Java.
5. Write a program to display ‘Java is a popular language for Internet’ in Java.
6. Write a program to read two integer numbers from the keyboard and display
their sum on the screen.

5.15 FURTHER READING

Krishnamoorty, R. and Prabhu R. Krishnamoorty. 2009. Internet and Java

Programming. New Delhi: New Age International (P) Ltd.
Balagurusamy, E. 2007. Programming with Java, Third Edition. New Delhi:
Tata McGraw-Hill.
Das, Rashmi Kant. 2009. Core Java for Beginners, Revised Edition. New Delhi:
Vikas Publishing House Pvt. Ltd.
Keogh, Jim. 2002. The Complete Reference J2SE, Fifth Edition. New York:
Tata McGraw-Hill.
Naughton, Patrick and Herbert Schidt. 1999. Java 2: The Complete Reference,
Third Edition. New Delhi: Tata McGraw-Hill.
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110 Material
 Operators and Expressions,

UNIT 6 OPERATORS AND Decision-Making and

Branching

EXPRESSIONS, DECISION-
NOTES
MAKING AND BRANCHING
Structure
6.0 Introduction
6.1 Objectives
6.2 Operators and Expressions
6.3 Java Program
6.4 Type Conversion
6.5 Control Statements
6.5.1 Selection Statements
6.5.2 Iteration Statements
6.5.3 Jump Statements
6.6 Labeled Loops
6.7 Answers to Check Your Progress Questions
6.8 Summary
6.9 Key Words
6.10 Self Assessment Questions and Exercises
6.11 Further Readings

6.0 INTRODUCTION

Expressions are constructed from operands and operators. The operators of an

expression indicate which operations to apply to the operands. The order of evaluation
of operators in an expression is determined by the precedence and associativity of
the operators. An operator is a special symbol which indicates a certain process is
carried out. Operators in programming languages are taken from mathematics.
Because the programmers work with data, hence the operators are used for the
processing of data. An operand is one of the inputs (arguments) of an operator.
In Java, the control statements are broadly classified into three categories,
namely, conditional statements, iteration statements and jump statements. All these
control statements are commonly used with the logical tests or test conditions to
alter the flow of control conditionally or unconditionally. Decision-making structures
have one or more conditions to be evaluated or tested by the program, along with
a statement or statements that are to be executed if the condition is determined to
be true, and optionally, other statements to be executed if the condition is determined
to be false.
In this unit, you will study about the operators and expressions, arithmetic
operators, arithmetic expressions, evaluation of expression, precedence of arithmetic
operators, type conversions, operator precedence and associativity, decision-
making and branching, looping and labeled loops. Self-Instructional
Material 111
Operators and Expressions,
Decision-Making and 6.1 OBJECTIVES
Branching

After going through this unit, you will be able to:

NOTES  Discuss the significance of operators and expressions in Java language
 Explain the different types of Java operators
 Define the importance of arithmetic operators in Java
 Elaborate on arithmetic expressions, evaluation of expression and
precedence of arithmetic operators in Java
 Use the arithmetic operators in Java programs
 Discuss the importance of type conversions, and operator precedence and
associativity
 Understand the importance of decision-making and branching
 Elaborate on looping and labeled loops

6.2 OPERATORS AND EXPRESSIONS

Operators are the symbols which perform operations on various data items known
as operands. For instance, in a + b, a and b are operands and + is an operator.
Note that to perform an operation, operators and operands are combined together
forming an expression. For instance, to perform an addition operation on operands
a and b, the addition (+) operator is combined with the operands a and b forming
an expression.
Depending on the function performed, the Java operators can be classified
into various categories. These include arithmetic operators, increment and
decrement operators, relational operators, logical operators, conditional operators,
assignment operators, bitwise operators and special operators.
Arithmetic Operators
Arithmetic operators perform the basic arithmetic operations on operands. They
can work on any built-in data type of Java except on boolean type.
Java provides various arithmetic operators including +(addition or unary
plus), -(subtraction or unary minus), *(multiplication), /(division) and %(modulus).
For instance, some of the expressions which involve arithmetic operators are x +
y, x – y, x * y, x / y and x % y. When the unary minus operator is used
with a single operand, the operand is multiplied by -1.
Expressions formed by using arithmetic operators can be of the following
types:
 Integer Expression: The arithmetic expression where both the operands
are integers is called an integer expression.
Self-Instructional
112 Material
  Real Expression: The arithmetic expression where both the operands Operators and Expressions,
Decision-Making and
are real is called real expression. Branching
 Mixed Mode Expression: The expression is mixed mode if one
operand is real and the other is an integer. In this case, the integer operand
NOTES
is converted to real and the result is also of type real.
Note: Unlike C and C++, the modulus operator can be applied to the floating point data
type also in Java.

Increment and Decrement Operators

Java provides two special unary arithmetic operators, namely the increment operator
(represented by ++) and the decrement operator (represented by —). The operator
++ increases the value of operand by 1 and the operator — decreases the value
of operand by 1.
The increment and decrement operators can be used in the following forms:
 Prefix Form: In this form, the increment or the decrement operator precedes
its operand. The prefix increment operator is represented as ++operand
and the prefix decrement operator is represented as —operand. The
prefix increment or the prefix decrement operator increments or decrements
the value of an operand respectively before its value is used in an expression.
To understand prefix operators, consider the following illustration.
Program 1: Evaluate the following statements:
x=10;
y=++x;
z=—x;
In this illustration, the statement y=++x first increments the value of x by 1
and then assigns the incremented value to y. Similarly, the decrement operator
is used to decrement the value of x by 1 and then assign the decremented value
to z. Thus, the value of y and z are 11 and 10, respectively.
 Postfix Form: In this form, the increment or the decrement operator succeeds
its operand. The postfix increment operator is represented as operand++,
and the postfix decrement operator is represented as operand—. The postfix
increment or the decrement operator increments or decrements the value of
an operand, respectively, after using it in the expression.
To understand postfix operators, consider the following illustration.
Program 2: Evaluate the following statements:
x=10;
y=x++;
z=x –;
In this illustration, the statement y=x++ first assigns the value of x to y and then
increments the value of x by 1. Similarly, the statement z=x— assigns the value of
x to z and then decrements the value of x by 1. Thus, the value of y and z are 10
and 11, respectively. Self-Instructional
Material 113
Operators and Expressions, Relational Operators
Decision-Making and
Branching Relational operators are used for comparing two values or expressions. The various
relational operators provided by Java include less than ‘<’, less than or equal to
‘<=’, greater than ‘>’, greater than or equal to ‘>=’, equal to ‘==’ and not equal to
NOTES ‘!=’ operator. They return values of boolean type, i.e., either true or false. For
instance, consider two variables a and b having values 20 and 30 respectively. In
this case, the expression a<b returns true whereas the expression a>b returns
false.
The operators == and != are also known as equality operators as they
are used for checking the equality of operands.
Note: All relational operators can work on integer, floating-point and character data
types.

Logical Operators
Logical operators combine expressions and then return true or false. The
various logical operators provided by Java are as follows:
 AND (&&) Operator: It returns true only if all the expressions evaluate
to true, otherwise it returns false.
 OR (||) Operator: It returns true if any one or all the expressions
evaluate to true and returns false only if all the expressions evaluate
to false.
 Negation (!) Operator: It returns true if the expression on which it is
operating is false and vice versa.
For instance, consider two expressions Exp1 and Exp2. Table 6.1 displays the
result after the logical operators are applied on these expressions.
Table 6.1 Truth Table

Exp1 Exp2 Exp1 && Exp2 Exp1 OR Exp2 !Exp1

true true true true false
true false false true false
false true false true true
false false false false true

Conditional Operators
The conditional operator selects a value based on a specified condition. Note that
the conditional operator is a ternary operator, i.e., this operator involves three
operands.
The syntax of the conditional operator is as follows:
expression1 ? expression2: expression3

If expression1 is true, then expression2 is evaluated, otherwise

expression3 is evaluated.
To understand the working of a conditional operator, consider the following illustration:
Self-Instructional
114 Material
Program 3: Evaluate the following statement: Operators and Expressions,
Decision-Making and
(x==5) ? 8 : 9; Branching

In this illustration, if the value of x is equal to 5, then the expression returns 8,

otherwise the expression returns 9. NOTES
Assignment Operators
Assignment operator assigns the value of an expression to a variable. Assignment
operators are of two types, namely, the simple assignment operator and compound
assignment operators.
Simple Assignment Operator
The simple assignment operator assigns the value on its right hand side to the
variable on its left hand side. Note that the left hand side of an assignment expression
should be a variable. It cannot be a constant or an expression. However, the right
hand side of an assignment expression can be a variable, constant or an expression.
To understand the simple assignment operator, consider the following illustration.
Program 4: Evaluate the following statement:
x=8;

In this example, the value 8 is assigned to the variable x.

With the help of the assignment operator, several variables can be assigned a
common value. This is accomplished by using multiple assignments in a single
statement. For instance, in the statement x=y=z=5, the value 5 is assigned to the
three variable x, y and z.
Compound Assignment Operators
Java provides compound assignment operators (also known as Java shorthands).
These are in the following form:
v op=exp;

Here, v is a variable, op is the binary operator and exp is an expression. This

form is equivalent to the statement v=v op(exp);
where we need to access v only once.
For instance, the expression x=x+6 can be written as x+=6. In this expression,
x is incremented by 6 and then the result is assigned to x. The various compound
assignment operators used in Java are ‘+=’, ‘-=’, ‘*=’, ‘/=’ and ‘%=’.
Other Operators
In addition to the operators discussed, Java supports some other operators which
include bitwise operators and special operators.
Bitwise Operators
The bitwise operators are used to manipulate the data values at bit level. This
operator can be applied to all the primitive data types, such as long, int, Self-Instructional
Material 115
Operators and Expressions, short, char and byte. Various bitwise operators include bitwise AND (&),
Decision-Making and
Branching bitwise OR (!), bitwise exclusive OR (^), one’s complement (~), shift left
(<<), shift right (>>), shift right with zero fill (>>>).

NOTES Special Operators

Java provides two special operators, namely instanceof and dot operator
(.).
Instanceof Operator
The instanceof operator is an operator which is used to check whether the
object belongs to a particular class or not. For instance, consider the following
statement:
novel instanceof book

This statement returns true if the object novel belongs to the class book,
otherwise, it returns false.
Dot Operator
The instance variables and the methods of a class are accessed through objects
with the help of dot operator. Dot operator links the name of the object with the
name of the variable or method which needs to be accessed. For instance, consider
the following statements:
obj.name; // accessing instance variable of the class
obj.marks(); // accessing method of the class

Operators Precedence and Associativity

An expression consisting of more than one operator leads to a confusion as to
which operator is to be evaluated first. For instance, consider the following
expression:
a + b * c - d

In this expression, the compiler needs to know which operator is evaluated first.
For this, it is important to determine the precedence and associativity of operators.
 Precedence: The order or priority in which various operators in an
expression are evaluated is known as precedence. Every operator in Java
has a precedence associated with it. The operators with a higher precedence
are evaluated before the operators with a lower precedence. For instance,
multiplication is performed before addition as the multiplication operator
has higher precedence than the addition operator.
 Associativity: The order or priority in which operators of the same
precedence are evaluated is known as associativity. For instance, the
addition and subtraction operators have the same precedence. However,
addition or subtraction may be performed on the expression depending
Self-Instructional upon the order of their occurrence.
116 Material
 The associativity of an operator can be either from left to right or from right Operators and Expressions,
Decision-Making and
to left. The operators with left to right associativity are evaluated from the left hand Branching
side while the operators with right to left associativity are evaluated from the right
hand side.
NOTES
The precedence and the associativity of Java operators are listed in Table
6.2. Note that the precedence of operators decreases from top to bottom, i.e.,
the priority is highest at the top.
Table 6.2 Precedence and Associativity of Java Operators
Operators Description Associativity
. Direct member selector Left to right
() Function Call Left to right
[] Array subscript Left to right

- Unary minus Right to left

++ Increment Right to left
-- Decrement Right to left
! Logical negation Right to left
~ Ones complement Right to left
(type) Casting Right to left

* Multiplication Left to right

/ Division Left to right
% Modulus Left to right

+ Addition Left to right

- Subtraction Left to right

<< Left shift Left to right

>> Right shift Left to right
>>> Right shift with zero fill Left to right

< Less than Left to right

<= Less than or equal to Left to right
> Greater than Left to right
>= Greater than or equal to Left to right
instanceof Type comparison Left to right

== Equal to Left to right

=! Not equal to Left to right
& Bitwise AND Left to right
^ Bitwise XOR Left to right
| Bitwise OR Left to right
&& Logical AND Left to right
|| Logical OR Left to right
?: Conditional operator Right to left
= Assignment Operator Right to left
Op= Shorthand assignment

Note: The operators in the same row have same precedence.

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Material 117
Operators and Expressions,
Decision-Making and 6.3 JAVA PROGRAM
Branching

Let us start learning Java with a simple Java program that prints a string on the
NOTES screen.
Program 5: A Java program.
class Sample
{
public static void main (String args[])
{
System.out.println(“Welcome to Java Programming”);
System.out.println(“Its easy and simple.”);
}
}

Though this program is the simplest one, it includes the basic features that every
Java program has. Let us now look at the features one by one.
Class definition
The first statement class Sample declares a class where class is a keyword and
Sample is the identifier that indicates the name of the class. The opening and
closing curly braces ‘{ }’ enclose the definition of a class.
The main statement
The statement public static void main (String args[])
indicates the main method. This method is the point where the execution of Java
program begins. Since it is the startup point of any Java program, it is the most
essential part of any Java program.
This statement has keywords, namely, public, static and void.
The descriptions of these keywords are as follows:
 Public: It is access specifier which specifies that the main method is
accessible to all other classes.
 Static: The main method is declared static which specifies that this
method belongs to the entire class. The interpreter use this method before
the creation of objects.
 Void: The void keyword specifies that the main method does not
return a value. The pair of parentheses contains the declaration of the
parameters of the methods. In the above statement, the String args[
] declares a parameter args, that contains an array of objects of the class
type String.

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118 Material
The Output Statement Operators and Expressions,
Decision-Making and
Branching
The statements System.out.println(“Welcome to Java
Programming.”); and System.out.println(“Its easy and
simple.”); are used to display information on the standard output device, NOTES
i.e., the println()which is a method of the out object, a static member
of the class System. These statements will display the following strings on the
monitor:
Welcome to Java Programming.
Its easy and simple.

The statements will be printed in separate lines as the method println()

appends a newline character at the end of the string. However, if we use the
print() method instead of the println(), the newline character is not
appended at the end of the string. Also, like C++, every statement in Java must
end with a semicolon.

6.4 TYPE CONVERSION

Converting one type of data into another type must follow the rules of casting. If
a conversion results in the loss of precision, as in an int value converted to a
short, then the compiler will issue an error message unless an explicit cast is
made.
The process of converting a value to a wider or higher precision integer or
floating point type is called ‘numeric promotion’. The Java Virtual Machine (JVM)
specification states the following rules for promotion in an expression of two
operands, as in x+i:
 If either operand is of type double, the other is converted to double.
 Otherwise, if either operand is of type float, the other is converted to
float.
 Otherwise, if either operand is of type long, the other is converted to
long.
 Otherwise, both operands are converted to type int.

Check Your Progress

1. Explain the terms operators and expressions.
2. What are relational operators?
3. Define conditional operators.
4. Explain about the order of precedence of operators.
5. Define about the associativity of operators.

Self-Instructional
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Operators and Expressions,
Decision-Making and 6.5 CONTROL STATEMENTS
Branching

A statement is an instruction given to the computer to perform a specific action. In

NOTES Java, a statement can either be a single statement or a compound statement. A
single statement specifies a single action and is always terminated by a semicolon
‘;’. A compound statement, also known as a block, is a set of statements that
are always enclosed within curly braces ‘{}’.
The control statements are used to control the flow of execution of the
program. This execution order depends on the supplied data values and the
conditional logic.
By default, statements are executed in the same order in which they appear
in the program and each statement is executed only once. However, the serial
execution of statements makes a program inflexible and unsuitable for most practical
applications. To make a program more flexible, control statements are used to
alter the flow of control of the program.
6.5.1 Selection Statements
Conditional statements, also known as selection statements, are used to make
decisions based on a given condition. If the condition evaluates to true, a set of
statements is executed, otherwise another set of statement is executed.
The if Statement
The if statement selects and executes the statement(s) based on a given condition.
The syntax of the if statement is as follows:
For a Single Statement
if(condition)
statement1;
nextstatement;

For a Set of Statements

if(condition)
{
statement1;
statement2;
}
nextstatement;

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120 Material
Here, if the condition evaluates to true, then a given set of statement(s) is Operators and Expressions,
Decision-Making and
executed. However, if the condition evaluates to false, then the given set of Branching
statements is skipped and the program control passes to the statement following
the if statement. Figure 6.1 illustrates the flow of control in if statement.
NOTES

Yes Is
condition
true?

statement1
No

nextstatement

Fig. 6.1 Flow of Control in if Statement

The if-else Statement

The if-else statement causes one of the two possible statement(s) to execute
depending upon the result of condition.
The syntax of the if-else statements is as follows:
if(condition) //if part
{
statement1;
}
else //else part
statement2;
nextstatement;

Here, the if-else statement comprises two parts, namely, if and else. If
the condition is true, the statements within if is executed. However, if the
condition is false, the statements within else is executed as displayed in
Figure 6.2.

Self-Instructional
Material 121
Operators and Expressions,
Decision-Making and
Branching

Yes Is No
condition
NOTES true?

statement2
statement1

nextstatement

Fig. 6.2 Flow of Control in if-else Statement

Program 6: A program to demonstrate the use of if-else statement.

class ConditionalStatement
{
public static void main (String args[])
{
int i=5;
if (i > 0)
System.out.println(“i is a positive number”);
else
System.out.println(“i is a negative number”);
}
}

Output of the program:

i is a positive number

Nested if-else Statement

A nested if-else statement contains one or more if-else statements. In
other words, an if-else statement within another if-else statement is
called a nested if-else statement. The if-else statement can be nested
in three different ways which are as follows:
 The if-else statement can be nested within the if part.
The syntax is as follows:
if(condition1)
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122 Material
 { Operators and Expressions,
Decision-Making and
statement1; Branching
if(condition2)
statement2;
NOTES
else
statement3;
}
else
statement4;
nextstatement;

 The if-else statement can be nested within the else part.

The syntax is as follows:
if (condition1)
statement1;
else
{
statement2;
if (condition2)
statement3;
else
statement4;
}
nextstatement;

 The if-else statement can be nested within both the if and the else
parts.
The syntax is as follows:
if(condition1)
{
statement1;
if(condition2)
statement2;
else
statement3;
}
else
{
statement4;
if(condition3)
statement5;
Self-Instructional
Material 123
Operators and Expressions, else
Decision-Making and
Branching statement6;
}
nextstatement;
NOTES
The if-else-if Ladder
The if-else-if ladder, also known as the if-else-if staircase, has
an if-else statement within the outermost else statement. The inner else
statement can further have other if-else statements.
The syntax of the if-else-if ladders is displayed in Figure 6.3.

Fig. 6.3 Syntax of the if-else-if Ladder

Program 7: A program to demonstrate the if-else-if statement.

import java.io.*;
public class Grade
{
public static void main(String[] args)
{
int marks=0;
DataInputStream cin=new DataInputStream(System.in);
try
{
System.out.print(“Enter the marks: “);
//reading integer from keyboard
marks=Integer.parseInt(cin.readLine());
if(marks>90)
System.out.println(“Grade is A”);
else
if(marks>75)
System.out.println(“Grade is B”);
else
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124 Material
 if(marks>60) Operators and Expressions,
Decision-Making and
System.out.println(“Grade is C”); Branching
else
System.out.println(“Grade is D”);
NOTES
}
catch(Exception e)
{}
}
}

Output of the program:

Enter the marks: 78
Grade is B
Conditional Operator as an Alternative
The conditional operator ‘? :’ selects one of the two values or expressions
based on a given condition. Due to this decision-making nature of the conditional
operator, it is sometimes used as an alternative to the if-else statements.
Note that the conditional operator selects one of the two values or expressions
and not the statements as in the case of an if-else statement. In addition, it
cannot select more than one value at a time, whereas the if-else statement
can select and execute more than one statement at a time. For instance, consider
the following statement:
max=(x>y ? x : y)

This statement assigns maximum of x and y to max.

The switch Statement
The switch statement selects a set of statements from the available sets of
statements. The switch statement evaluates the value of an expression and
compares it with the list of integer, character, short or byte constants. It should be
noted that the case constants must be compatible with the expression type. When
a match is found, all the statements associated with that constant are executed as
displayed in Figure 6.4.
The syntax of the switch statement is as follows:
switch(expression)
{
case <constant1>: statement1;
[break;]
case <constant2>: statement2;
[break;]
case <constant3>: statement3;
[break;]
Self-Instructional
Material 125
Operators and Expressions, [default: statement4;]
Decision-Making and
Branching }
nextstatement;

NOTES
expression

Yes Is
statement1 constant1=
expression?

No

Yes Is
statement2 constant2=
expression?

No

Yes
Is
statement3 constant3=
expression?

No
nextstatement

Fig. 6.4 Flow of Control in switch Statement

The Java keywords case and default provide a list of alternatives. It

should be noted that it is not necessary for every case label to specify a unique
set of statements. The same set of statements can be shared by multiple case
labels.
The keyword default specifies the set of statements to be executed in
case no match is found. It should be noted that there can be multiple case labels
but there can be only one default label. However, default is an optional
statement.
The break statements in the switch block are optional. However, it is
used in the switch block to prevent a fall through. Fall through is a situation
that causes the execution of the remaining cases even after a match has been
found. In order to prevent this, break statements are used at the end of statements
specified by each case and default. This causes the control to immediately
break out of the switch block and execute the next statement.

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126 Material
 Similar to if and if-else statements, switch statements can also Operators and Expressions,
Decision-Making and
be nested within one another. A nested switch statement contains one or more Branching
switch statements within its case label or default label (if any).
Note: Switch statement cannot be used for testing floating-point values or string values.
NOTES
Program 8: A program to demonstrate the use of switch statement
class SwitchStatement
{
public static void main(String args[])
{
int x=2;
switch(x)
{
case 1: System.out.println(“Day is Monday”);
break;
case 2: System.out.println(“Day is Tuesday”);
break;
case 3: System.out.println(“Day is Wednesday”);
break;
case 4: System.out.println(“Day is Thursday”);
break;
case 5: System.out.println(“Day is Friday”);
break;
case 6: System.out.println(“Day is Saturday”);
break;
case 7: System.out.println(“Day is Sunday”);
break;
default: System.out.println(“Invalid option!”);
}
}
}

Output of the program:

Day is Tuesday

In this illustration, since the value of x is 2, therefore the message Day is

Tuesday is displayed. In case the value of x is 8, the output Invalid
option! is displayed.
6.5.2 Iteration Statements
The statements that cause a set of statements to be executed repeatedly either for
a specific number of times or until some condition is satisfied are known as iteration
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Material 127
Operators and Expressions, statements. This implies that as long as the condition evaluates to true, the set
Decision-Making and
Branching of statement(s) is executed. The various iteration statements used in Java are for
loop, while loop and do-while loop.

NOTES The for Loop

The for loop (see Figure 6.5) is one of the most widely used loops in Java. The
for loop is a deterministic loop, i.e., the number of times the body of the loop is
executed is known in advance.
The syntax of the for loop is as follows:
for(initialize; condition; update)
{
//body of the for loop
}

initialize

No
Is
condition
true?

Yes

statement

update

nextstatement

Fig. 6.5 Flow of Control in for Loop

The initialize expression in for loop can initialize one or more control variables.
A for loop can also update more than one variable in its update expression.
Note that initialize, condition and update are optional expressions
and are always specified in parentheses. All the three expressions are separated

Self-Instructional
128 Material
by semicolons. We can also create an infinite loop by excluding all the three Operators and Expressions,
Decision-Making and
expressions as follows: Branching
for( ; ; )
{
. NOTES
.
}

Program 9: A program to display a countdown using for loop.

class UpdateStatement
{
public static void main(String args[])
{
for (int i=10;i>=1;i—)
{
System.out.print(“ “+i);
}
System.out.print(“This is an example of for loop”);
}
}

Output of the program:

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
This is an illustration of for loop

for Loop using Comma Operator

for loop allows multiple variables to control the loop using comma operator.
This implies that two or more variables can be used in the initialize and
the update part of the loop. For instance, consider the following statement:
for (i=1,j=50;i<10;i++,j—)

This statement initializes two variables, namely i and j and updates them. It
should be noted that for loop cannot have more than one condition separated
by a comma.
The while Loop
The while loop (see Figure 6.6) is used to perform looping operations when
the number of iterations is not known in advance. Thus, unlike for loop, the
while loop is non-deterministic in nature.
The syntax of the while loop is as follows:
while(condition)
{
// body of the while loop
}
Self-Instructional
Material 129
Operators and Expressions,
Decision-Making and
Branching

No
Is
NOTES condition
true?

Yes

statement

nextstatement

Fig. 6.6 Flow of Control in while Loop

The following are certain important features of the while loop:

 Unlike for loops where explicit initialize and update expressions
are specified, while loops do not specify any explicit initialize
and update expressions. This implies that the control variable must be
declared and initialized before the while loop and needs to be updated
within the body of the while loop.
 The while loop executes as long as the condition evaluates to true.
If the condition evaluates to false, then the body of the while
loop does not execute.
Program 10: A program to determine the sum of first n consecutive positive
integers.
import java.io.*;
public class Sum
{
public static void main(String[] args)
{
int n;
int sum=0;
DataInputStream cin=new DataInputStream (System.in);
try
{
System.out.print(“Enter n: “);
//reading input from the user
n=Integer.parseInt(cin.readLine());
//loop to calculate the sum
while(n>0)
{
sum=sum+n;
Self-Instructional
n=n-1;
130 Material
 } Operators and Expressions,
Decision-Making and
System.out.print(“The sum is “ + sum); Branching
}
catch(Exception e)
{} NOTES
}
}
Output of the program:
Enter n: 7
The sum is 28

The do-while Loop

In a while loop, the condition is evaluated at the beginning of the loop and if the
condition evaluates to false, the body of the loop is not executed even once.
However, if the body of the loop is to be executed at least once, no matter whether
the initial state of the condition is true or false, the do-while loop is
used. This loop places the condition to be evaluated at the end of the loop (see
Figure 6.7).
The syntax of the do-while loop is
do
{
//body of do-while loop
}
while(condition);

statement

Yes
Is
condition
true?

No

nextstatement

Fig. 6.7 Flow of Control in do-while Loop

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Material 131
Operators and Expressions, Program 11: A program to calculate the sum of an Arithmetic Progression (AP).
Decision-Making and
Branching class APSeries
{
public static void main(String args[])
NOTES {
int first_term=1;
int number_of_terms=5;
int term=0;
int i=1;
int common_difference=2;
int sum=0;
System.out.print(“The terms are: “);
do
{
term =first_term+(i-1)*common_difference;
sum+=term;
System.out.print(“ “+term);
++i;
}
while(i<=number_of_terms);
System.out.println();
System.out.println(“The sum of A.P is: “ +sum);
}
}
Output of the program:
The terms are: 1 3 5 7 9
The sum of A.P is: 25
Nested Loops
Nested loops are the loops present within the body of another loop. All the three
loops (for, while and do-while) can be nested.
Program 12: A program to demonstrate the nested for loop.
class NestedLoop
{
public static void main(String args[])
{
int a,b;
for(a=0;a<5;a++) //outer loop
{
for(b=a;b<5;b++) //inner loop
{
System.out.print(“*”);
}
System.out.println();
}
}
}
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132 Material
Output of the program: Operators and Expressions,
Decision-Making and
***** Branching
****
***
**
NOTES
*

6.5.3 Jump Statements

Jump statements are used to alter the flow of control unconditionally. Thus, jump
statements transfer the program control unconditionally. The jump statements
defined in Java include break, continue and return.
The break Statement
The break statement is extensively used in loops and switch statements. It
immediately terminates the loop or the switch statement, bypassing the remaining
statements. The control then passes to the statement that immediately follows the
loop or the switch statement. A break statement can be used in any of the
three Java loops. In case of nested loops, the break will exit the only the single
loop, i.e., the loop in which it is placed.
The continue Statement
The continue statement is used to ‘continue’ the loop with its next iteration.
In other words, it skips any remaining statements in the current iteration and
immediately passes the control to the next iteration. It does not terminate the loop
(as in the case of break statements); rather it only terminates the current iteration
of the loop. Like a break statement, a continue statement can be used in
any of the three loops.
The return Statement
The return statement is used to transfer the control out of the method explicitly.
It transfers the control back to the caller and terminates the method in which it is
present. When the return statement is encountered in the main() method, it
transfers the control back to the Java run-time system and terminates the program
execution.
Program 13: A program to add the factors of a number using break and
continue statements.
class Jump
{
public static void main(String args[])
{
int factor=0, number=10, sum=0;
System.out.println(“Number=” +number);
while(true)
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Material 133
Operators and Expressions, {
Decision-Making and
Branching
factor++;
if(factor>number)
break;
NOTES if(number%factor!=0)
continue;
sum=sum+factor;
}
System.out.println(“Sum of factors=” +sum);
if(sum>0)
return;
System.out.println(“This statement is not
executed”);
}
}
Output of the program:
Number=10
Sum of factors=18

6.6 LABELED LOOPS

Break and continue statements allow the programmer to break out of the
loop. However, they do not allow you to simply jump to another part of the program
or out of the nested loop or switch statement. Java allows the programmer to
jump from one block of statement to another with the help of labels. A label is an
identifier which must follow the rules for naming identifiers in Java. It can be placed
before the block of statements or loop followed by a colon (:). For instance,
consider the following statement:
LabelName: for( ; ; )
{
.
.
}
The break statement passes the control out of the innermost loop or the innermost
switch statement and the continue statement continues with the next iteration
of the innermost loop only. However, with the help of labels, break statement
can be used to cause the control to jump out of the outer loop or switch
statement. For instance, consider the following statements.
outerloop: for(i=0;i<5;i++)
{
innerloop: for(j=1;j<5;j++)
{
System.out.println(“*”);
if(i=j)
break outerloop;
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134 Material
 . Operators and Expressions,
Decision-Making and
. Branching
}
}
In this case, the break statement placed inside the innerloop will force the NOTES
control to jump out of both the inner and outer loops. Similarly, with the help of
labels, the continue statement can be used to continue with the next iteration
of the outer loop.
Program 14: A program to demonstrate the use of continue statement in a
labeled loop.
class LabelExample
{
public static void main(String args[])
{
outerloop: for(int i=0;i<3;i++)
{
for(int j=0;j<5;j++)
{
if(j>i)
continue outerloop;
System.out.println(“ i
“+i+” j “+j);
}
}
System.out.println(“Loop Ends”);
}
}
Output of the program:
i 0 j 0
i 1 j 0
i 1 j 1
i 2 j 0
i 2 j 1
i 2 j 2
Loop Ends
In this program, if we substitute continue statement with the break statement,
the following output will be generated.
i 0 j 0
Loop Ends

Check Your Progress

6. What are control statements?
7. Explain conditional operator as an alternative.
8. Define iteration statements.
9. What is a label? Self-Instructional
Material 135
Operators and Expressions,
Decision-Making and 6.7 ANSWERS TO CHECK YOUR PROGRESS
Branching
QUESTIONS

NOTES 1. Operators are the symbols which perform operations on various data items
known as operands. For instance, in a + b, a and b are operands and +
is an operator. Note that to perform an operation, operators and operands
are combined together forming an expression. For instance, to perform an
addition operation on operands a and b, the addition (+) operator is
combined with the operands a and b forming an expression.
Depending on the function performed, the Java operators can be classified
into various categories. These include arithmetic operators, increment and
decrement operators, relational operators, logical operators, conditional
operators, assignment operators, bitwise operators and special operators.

2. Relational operators are used for comparing two values or expressions. The
various relational operators provided by Java include less than ‘<’, less than
or equal to ‘<=’, greater than ‘>’, greater than or equal to ‘>=’, equal to
‘==’ and not equal to ‘!=’ operator. They return values of boolean type, i.e.,
either true or false. For instance, consider two variables a and b having
values 20 and 30 respectively. In this case, the expression a<b returns true
whereas the expression a>b returns false.
3. The conditional operator selects a value based on a specified condition.
Note that the conditional operator is a ternary operator, i.e., this operator
involves three operands.
The syntax of the conditional operator is as follows:
expression1 ? expression2: expression3

4. The order or priority in which various operators in an expression are evaluated

is known as precedence. Every operator in Java has a precedence
associated with it. The operators with a higher precedence are evaluated
before the operators with a lower precedence. For instance, multiplication
is performed before addition as the multiplication operator has higher
precedence than the addition operator.
5. The order or priority in which operators of the same precedence are
evaluated is known as associativity. For instance, the addition and
subtraction operators have the same precedence. However, addition or
subtraction may be performed on the expression depending upon the order
of their occurrence.
6. A statement is an instruction given to the computer to perform a specific
action. In Java, a statement can either be a single statement or a compound
statement. A single statement specifies a single action and is always

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 terminated by a semicolon ‘;’. A compound statement, also known as a Operators and Expressions,
Decision-Making and
block, is a set of state ments that are always enclosed within curly braces Branching
‘{}’.
7. The conditional operator ‘? :’ selects one of the two values or expressions
NOTES
based on a given condition. Due to this decision-making nature of the
conditional operator, it is sometimes used as an alternative to the if-
else statements. Note that the conditional operator selects one of the
two values or expressions and not the statements as in the case of an if-
else statement. In addition, it cannot select more than one value at a
time, whereas the if-else statement can select and execute more than
one statement at a time.
8. The statements that cause a set of statements to be executed repeatedly
either for a specific number of times or until some condition is satisfied are
known as iteration statements. This implies that as long as the condition
evaluates to true, the set of statement(s) is executed. The various iteration
statements used in Java are for loop, while loop and do-while loop.
9. A label is an identifier which must follow the rules for naming identifiers in
Java. It can be placed before the block of statements or loop followed by a
colon (:).

6.8 SUMMARY

 Java operators can be classified into various categories. These include

arithmetic operators, increment and decrement operators, relational
operators, logical operators, conditional operator, assignment operators,
bitwise operators and special operators.
 Control statements are used to alter the flow of control of the program. In
Java, the control statements are broadly classified into three categories,
namely, conditional statements, iteration statements and jump statements.
 The for loop is one of the most widely used loops in Java. The for loop
is a deterministic loop, that is, the number of times the body of the loop is
executed is known in advance. The while loop is used to perform looping
operations when the number of iterations is not known in advance. In a
while loop, the condition is evaluated at the beginning of the loop and if
the condition evaluates to false, the body of the loop is not executed
even once. The do-while loop is used if the body of the loop is to be
executed at least once, no matter whether the initial state of the condition is
true or false.
 Nested loops are the loops present within the body of another loop.

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Operators and Expressions,  Jump statements are used to alter the flow of control unconditionally; that
Decision-Making and
Branching is, jump statements transfer the program control unconditionally. The jump
statements defined in Java are break, continue and return.
 Labels are used to jump from one block of statement to another.
NOTES

6.9 KEY WORDS

 Statement: An instruction given to the computer to perform a specific action.

 Single statement: A statement that specifies a single action and is always
terminated by a semicolon ‘;’.
 Compound statement: A set of statements that are always enclosed within
curly braces ‘{}’.
 Conditional statements: Statements that are used to make decisions based
on a given condition.
 Iteration statements: Statements that cause a set of statements to be
executed repeatedly either for a specific number of times or until some
condition is satisfied.
 Nested loops: Loops present within the body of another loop.
 Jump statements: Loops used to alter the flow of control unconditionally.
 Precedence: The order or priority in which various operators in an
expression are evaluated.
 Associativity: The order or priority in which operators of the same
precedence are evaluated.

6.10 SELF ASSESSMENT QUESTIONS AND

EXERCISES

Short-Answer Questions
1. State the difference between the execution of while and do-while
loop. Support your answer with suitable example.
2. Define the significance of the type conversion.
3. What are the use of arithmetic operators in Java programs?
4. Differentiate between the simple assignment operator and compound
operator.
5. Compare between instanceof and dot operator.

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Long-Answer Questions Operators and Expressions,
Decision-Making and
Branching
1. Discuss the operator precedence and associativity in Java programs.
2. Elaborate the importance of decision-making and branching statements.
3. What is the difference between precedence and associativity? Evaluate the NOTES
following expressions.
(a) 20*3+(-10/2)
(b) 15-16/4+6
(c) 10*(15+8)/2
4. Write a program to read two integer numbers from the keyboard and display
their sum on the screen.
5. What are control statements? Explain the different types of control statements
with examples?
6. Consider the following code segment
if(x%2>=0)
{
if(x%2==0)
System.out.println(“x is an even number”);
if(x%2>0)
System.out.println(“x is an odd number”);
}
Rewrite the code using:
(a) if-else statement (b) conditional operator
7. Write a program to find and print the multiples of 9 between 100 and 200
using for loop.
8. Explain the use of break and default in switch statements.
9. Write a program to print the following output
1
1 2
1 2 3
1 2 3 4
1 2 3 4 5
10. Write a program to check whether the number is palindrome or not. (Hint:
Palindrome numbers are those which read the same from left to right and
from right to left.)
11. Write a program to calculate the sum of this series.
1 + x + x2 + x3+…+xn
12. Write a program to multiply two given matrices and print the resultant matrix.

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Operators and Expressions,
Decision-Making and 6.11 FURTHER READINGS
Branching

Krishnamoorty, R. and Prabhu R. Krishnamoorty. 2009. Internet and Java

NOTES Programming. New Delhi: New Age International (P) Ltd.
Balagurusamy, E. 2007. Programming with Java, Third Edition. New Delhi:
Tata McGraw-Hill.
Das, Rashmi Kant. 2009. Core Java for Beginners, Revised Edition. New Delhi:
Vikas Publishing House Pvt. Ltd.
Keogh, Jim. 2002. The Complete Reference J2SE, Fifth Edition. New York:
Tata McGraw-Hill.
Naughton, Patrick and Herbert Schidt. 1999. Java 2: The Complete Reference,
Third Edition. New Delhi: Tata McGraw-Hill.

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 Classes in Java
BLOCK - III
CLASSES, OBJECTS AND METHODS

NOTES
UNIT 7 CLASSES IN JAVA
Structure
7.0 Introduction
7.1 Objectives
7.2 Defining a Class
7.2.1 Defining Methods
7.2.2 Creating Objects
7.3 Accessing Members of a Class
7.4 Constructors
7.5 Method Overloading
7.6 Static Members
7.7 Nested Classes
7.8 Inheritance
7.8.1 Super Keyword
7.8.2 Multilevel Hierarchy
7.8.3 Method Overriding
7.8.4 Dynamic Method Dispatch
7.8.5 Abstract Classes
7.9 Final Variables
7.9.1 Final Variables
7.9.2 Final Methods
7.9.3 Final Classes
7.10 Abstract Methods and Classes
7.11 Answers to Check Your Progress Questions
7.12 Summary
7.13 Key Words
7.14 Self Assessment Questions and Exercises
7.15 Further Readings

7.0 INTRODUCTION

In this unit you will be familiarized with classes and objects. The key objective of
Object Oriented Programming (OOP) is to represent the various real world objects
as program elements. In Java, this objective is accomplished with the help of a
class that binds the data and the methods to manipulate that data together under a
single entity. All the OOP concepts, such as data abstraction, encapsulation,
inheritance and polymorphism are implemented with the help of classes. A class
serves as a template that provides a layout common to all of its instances known
as objects. That is, a class is only a logical abstraction that specifies what data and
methods its objects will have whereas the objects are the physical entities through
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Classes in Java which those data and methods can be used in a program. Thus, objects are
considered as the building blocks of object oriented programming. This unit
discusses the concept of classes and objects in detail. Constructors are the special
methods that are used to initialize objects at the time of their creation. The Java
NOTES programming language allows you to define a class within another class. Such a
class is called a nested class. A nested class is a member of its enclosing class.
Non-static nested classes (inner classes) have access to other members of the
enclosing class, even if they are declared private. Static nested classes do not
have access to other members of the enclosing class.
In this unit, you will study about the classes in Java, defining a class, methods,
creating objects, accessing class members, constructors, methods overloading,
static members, nesting of methods, inheritance, overriding methods, final variables,
classes and methods.

7.1 OBJECTIVES

After going through this unit, you will be able to:

 Explain classes and objects that form the basis of object oriented
programming
 Understand the process of accessing the members of a class
 Learn about the concept of argument passing
 Comprehend the uses of constructors
 Know about method overloading
 Discuss about final variables
 Explain the significance of nested classes and inheritance

7.2 DEFINING A CLASS

A class is a user defined data type that can be used to create instances of its type
called objects. Like any other user defined data type, it also needs to be declared
and defined in the program. A class definition specifies a new data type that can be
treated as a built-in data type.
The syntax for defining a class is,
class class_name
{
//variables declaration
//methods declaration
}
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The variables declared in the class are known as instance variables. The variables Classes in Java

and methods declared within the curly braces are collectively known as members
of the class.
A class can also be empty. That is, the class definition given below is also valid. NOTES
class class_name
{
}

Here, since the body of the class is empty, it does not contain any variables and
methods so it cannot perform any useful action. However, this class can be
successfully compiled and we can also create objects using it.
Note: In Java, there is no semicolon after closing brace in class definition.
For example, a simple class definition without any method is shown below:
class Cuboid
{
int length;
int width; //variables declaration
int height;
}
In this example, a class named Cuboid with three instance variables of type
int, namely, length, width and height is created.

7.2.1 Defining Methods

As you would have already studied, a class consists of instance variables and
methods. A class that consists of only variables (and without methods which manipulate
them) cannot perform any useful operation. Therefore, to access the instance
variables of a class and manipulate them, you must add methods in the class.
The syntax for defining a method is,
return_type method_name(parameter_list)
{
body of the method
}

where,
return_type is the type of data that is returned by the method.
method_name specifies the name of the method. This can be any name other
than the keywords in Java.
parameter_list consists of a series of pairs of data type and identifiers
separated by commas.
Note: The parameter_list can be empty and if a method does not return any value, its
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Classes in Java For example, consider the following method definition is shown below:
int volume()
{
body of the method
NOTES
}

Here, the method volume() does not accept any parameter and returns a value
of type int.
For example, a class definition with method is shown below:
class Cuboid
{
int length;
int width; //variables declaration
int height;
int volume() //method definition
{
return(length*width*height);
}
Note: Methods must be declared immediately after the declaration of the instance variables
inside the body of the class.

7.2.2 Creating Objects

Once a class is defined, it can be used to create variables of its type known as
objects. The relationship between an object and a class is the same as that of any
variable and its data type. To create an object, we need to declare it first.
The syntax for declaring an object is:
class_name object_name;

where,
class_name is the name of the class.
object_name is the name of the object of class_name type.
For example, the statement to declare an object of Cuboid type is:
Cuboid cobj;
This statement declares a variable cobj as a reference to an object of Cuboid
type. After the execution of this statement, cobj contains the null value, which
indicates that it does not point to an actual object. Once the object is declared, we
need to create it by allocating the required memory space to it. In Java, this is done
with the help of the new operator.
The syntax for creating an object is:
object_name=new class_name;
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For example, the statement to create an object of Cuboid type is: Classes in Java

cobj=new Cuboid();
This statement creates an actual object by dynamically allocating memory space to
it and returns a reference to cobj. NOTES
The two given statements can be combined into one statement as follows:
Cuboid cobj=new Cuboid ();
Note: Since an object is an instance of a class, the process of creating an object of a class is
known as instantiation.

7.3 ACCESSING MEMBERS OF A CLASS

Each object of a class has its own set of variables. These variables should be assigned
values before being used in the program. The instance variables and methods added
in the program cannot be accessed directly outside the class using their names. To
access the variables and methods outside the class, the dot (.) operator is used as
follows:
object_name.variable_name
object_name.method_name(parameter_list)
where,
object_name is the name of the object.
variable_name is the name of the instance variable that is to be accessed.
method_name is the name of the method which is to be called.
parameter_list is the series of pairs of data types and their respective
identifiers.
For example, the instance variable length of Cuboid class can be accessed as
follows:
cobj.length;

Similarly, the method volume()of Cuboid class can be accessed as follows:

cobj.volume();

Program 1: A program to demonstrate the accessing of members of a class.

class Cuboid
{
int length;
int width;
int height;
int volume() //method definition
{
return(length*width*height);
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Classes in Java }
}
class ClassDemo
{
NOTES
public static void main(String args[])
{
Cuboid cobj=new Cuboid(); //object creation
cobj.length=60;
cobj.width=20; //accessing variables
cobj.height=40;
int vol=cobj.volume(); //calling method
System.out.println(“The volume of the cuboid is: “
+vol);
}
}

Output of the program:

The volume of the cuboid is: 48000

In this example, the instance variables length, width and height of the object
cobj are assigned values outside the class using the dot operator. Alternatively, the
instance variables can be assigned values by using a parameterized method.

7.4 CONSTRUCTORS

A constructor is a special method which is used to initialize objects at the time of

their creation. The name of the constructor is the same as the name of the class in
which it resides. Unlike other methods in Java, a constructor does not have any
return type (not even void). This is because the implicit return type of constructor
is the instance of the class to which it belongs.
The syntax to define a constructor is:
class class_name
{
//Variable declaration
class_name(parameter_list) //constructor definition
{
//body of the constructor
}
}

It should be noted that if you do not explicitly define any constructor, then the Java
compiler automatically provides a default constructor that initializes all the instance
variables to 0.
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Program 2: A program to demonstrate the concept of a constructor. Classes in Java

class Cuboid
{
int length;
NOTES
int width;
int height;
Cuboid() //constructor definition without parameters
{
length=20;
width=10;
height=15;
}
int volume()
{
return (length*width*height);
}
}
class Constructor
{
public static void main(String args[])
{
Cuboid c1=new Cuboid();
Cuboid c2=new Cuboid();
int a=c1.volume();
int b=c2.volume();
System.out.println(“The volume of first cuboid is “ +a);
System.out.println(“The volume of second cuboid is “ +b);
}
}

Output of the program:

The volume of first cuboid is 3000
The volume of second cuboid is 3000

In this example, the constructor initializes both the objects c1 and c2 of Cuboid
type with the same values, as a result of which the volume of both the cuboids is the
same. Clearly, a non-parameterized constructor provides the same values to all the
objects of a class.
Parameterized Constructors
When different objects of a class need to be initialized with different values, a
parameterized constructor can be defined. A parameterized constructor is a
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Classes in Java constructor that accepts one or more parameters at the time of creation of objects
and initializes the instance variables of the objects with these parameters. It makes
the program more flexible because by using it we can assign different values to the
instance variables of the objects of a class.
NOTES
7.5 METHOD OVERLOADING

In some cases, when a similar action is to be performed on various types of data,

different methods having different names needs to be defined for all types of data.
This makes the program very complex as the programmer must keep track of the
names of all the methods. To prevent such situations, Java allows the methods to
be overloaded.
Method overloading allows multiple methods to have the same name with
different parameters and definitions. The application of method overloading is
found in those programs where objects in a class are needed to perform similar
operations but using different input parameters. When a method is called, the Java
compiler compares the method name and then the type and number of arguments
associated with it, to determine which of the method is to be called and executed.
This process is known as polymorphism.
In order to create overloaded methods in your program, you have to create
different method definitions in the class, all with the same name but having different
parameters. The different methods are identified on the basis of the number of
parameters, the data type of the parameters or the order of the data type of the
parameters passed to the method.
To understand the concept of method overloading, consider these method
declarations.
void sum(int);
void sum(int,int);

In these statements, the methods are different as the number of arguments passed
are different. Now, consider these statements.
void addition(int);
void addition(char);

In these statements, the two methods are different as the data type of arguments
passed is different. Now, consider these statements.
void area(int,float);
void area(float,int);

In these statements, the two methods are different as the order of the data type of
the arguments passed is different.

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Program 3: A program to demonstrate the concept of method overloading. Classes in Java

class Shapes
{
void perimeter(int a)//method with int type parameter
NOTES
{
System.out.println(“The perimeter of the square is “+(4*a));
}
void perimeter(double a)//method with double type parameter
{
System.out.println(“The circumference of the circle is
“+(2*a*(22/7)));
}
void perimeter(int a, int b) //method with two parameters
{
System.out.println(“The perimeter of the rectangle is
“+2*(a+b));
}
}
class MethodOverloading
{
public static void main(String args[])
{
Shapes s=new Shapes();
s.perimeter(5.5);
s.perimeter(10);
s.perimeter(15,10);
}
}

Output of the program:

The circumference of the circle is 33.0
The perimeter of the square is 40
The perimeter of the rectangle is 50

7.6 STATIC MEMBERS

So far, we have seen that members of a class can be initialized or accessed by its
objects only. However, it is possible to define members of a class without reference
to a specific object. This is done by declaring the instance variables and methods of
a class as static. Unlike non-static members, the static members are associated
with the class as a whole, rather than with individual objects. Therefore, outside
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Classes in Java class, its static members are called by using class names rather than by objects.
Since the static variables and methods contain the properties of a class and not of
the individual objects, they are also known as class variables and class methods
respectively.
NOTES The syntax to declare static variable is:
static return_type variable_name;

The syntax to access static variable is:

class_name.variable_name

The syntax to declare static method is:

static return_type method_name(parameter_list);

The syntax to access static method is:

class_name.method_name

If a class member is declared as static, only one copy of that data member is
created, regardless of the number of objects. All the objects of a class share this
single copy of the static data member.
Program 4: A program to demonstrate the use of static members of a class.
class StaticMembers
{
static int i=10; //static variable
static void add(int x, int y) //static method
{
System.out.println(“Sum of two numbers is: “+(x+y));

}
}
class StaticExample
{
public static void main(String args[])
{
StaticMembers.add(30,40); //calli n g st ati c
method
int i= StaticMembers.i; //accessing static
//variable
System.out.println(“Value of i is: “+i);
}
}

Output of the program:

Sum of two numbers is: 70
Value of i is: 10
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 Classes in Java
Here, variable i and method add() are declared as static. Therefore, outside
the class they are accessed using the name of the class in which they are defined.
Note: The methods declared as static can access only static data and call static
methods.
NOTES
Final Keyword
A variable which has a constant value or a method that cannot be overridden in a
subclass or a child class is specified by a final keyword. The syntax for a
final keyword is shown as follows:
final public int a = 10;
final public void classMethod( );

This keyword is used to reference the current object inside a class definition
by passing the need for an instance variable.
Static Keyword
Sometimes you need a common variable or method for all the objects derived
from a class. The static keyword specifies that a variable or a method is the
same for all objects of a particular class.
Each time you create an object from a class, space is allocated for the
variables. If a variable is declared static, space is allocated only once, i.e., the
first time when you create the object. This space is shared by all subsequent objects.
Static method is one whose mention is the same for all objects. Static
method has access to static variables only. The syntax for declaring a static
variable or method is as follow:
static int a;
static void classMethod( );

Check Your Progress

1. Define a class in object oriented programming.
2. What are instance variables?
3. Name the two ways by which an argument can be passed to the method.
4. Define a constructor.
5. What is a parameterized constructor?
6. What is the difference between static and non-static member of a class?

7.7 NESTED CLASSES

The Java programming language allows you to define a class within another class.
Such a class is called a nested class as shown below:
class OuterClass {
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Classes in Java ...
class NestedClass {
...
}
NOTES
}

Nested classes are divided into two categories: static and non-static. Nested classes
that are declared static are simply called static nested classes. Non-
static nested classes are called inner classes.
class OuterClass {
...
static class StaticNestedClass {
...
}
class InnerClass {
...
}
}

A nested class is a member of its enclosing class. Non-static nested classes (inner
classes) have access to other members of the enclosing class, even if they are
declared private. Static nested classes do not have access to other members of
the enclosing class. As a member of the OuterClass, a nested class can be
declared private, public, protected or package private.
The following are some of the reasons of using nested classes:
 Logical Grouping of Classes: If a class is useful to only one other class,
then it is logical to embed it in that class and keep the two together. Nesting
such ‘helper classes’ makes the package more streamlined.
 Increased Encapsulation: Consider two top level classes, A and B, where
B needs access to members of A that would otherwise be declared
private. By hiding class B within class A, A’s members can be declared
private and B can access them. In addition, B itself can be hidden from the
outside world.
 More Readable, Maintainable Code: Nesting small classes within top
level classes places the code closer to where it is used.
Static Nested Classes
A static nested class is associated with its outer class as with class methods
and variables. A static nested class cannot refer directly to instance variables
or methods defined in its enclosing class like static class methods it can use
them only through an object reference. A static nested class interacts with the
instance members of its outer class (and other classes) just like any other top level
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class. In effect, a static nested class is behaviorally a top level class that has Classes in Java

been nested in another top level class for packaging convenience.

Static nested classes are accessed using the enclosing class name:
OuterClass.StaticNestedClass
NOTES
For example, to create an object for the static nested class, use this syntax:
OuterClass.StaticNestedClass nestedObject = new
OuterClass.StaticNestedClass ();

Non-Static / Inner Classes

An inner class is associated with an instance of its enclosing class and has direct
access to that object’s methods and fields. An inner class cannot define any static
members itself because it is associated with an instance. Objects that are instances
of an inner class exist within an instance of the outer class. Consider the following
classes:
class OuterClass {
...
class InnerClass {
...
}
}

An instance of InnerClass can exist only within an instance of OuterClass

and has direct access to the methods and fields of its enclosing instance. Figure
7.1 illustrates this idea.

Instance of
OuterClass

Instance of
InnerClass

Fig.7.1 An Instance of InnerClass Exists Within an Instance of OuterClass

To instantiate an inner class, you must first instantiate the outer class. Then, create
the inner object within the outer object with this syntax:
OuterClass.InnerClass innerObject = outerObject.new
InnerClass();

The following are the categories of inner classes:

 Member Class: They are declared outside a function, hence considered
as a ‘member’ and not declared ‘static’.

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Classes in Java  Local Class: These are classes that are declared in the body of a function.
They can only be referred in the rest of the function. They can use local
variables and parameters of the function, but only ones that are declared
‘final’. This is because the local class instance must maintain a separate
NOTES copy of the variable, so as not to have the ambiguity of two modifiable
variables with the same name in the same scope, the variable is forced to be
non-modifiable.
 Anonymous Class: These are local classes that are automatically declared
and instantiated in the middle of an expression. They can only directly extend
one class or implement one interface. They can specify arguments to the
constructor of the superclass, but cannot otherwise have a constructor.
Program 5: A Java program shows how to define and use an inner class:
class Outer
{
int outer_x = 10;
void test( )
{
Inner inner = new Inner( );
inner.display( );
}
class Inner
{
void display( )
{
System.out.println(“Display : outer_x =” + outer_x);
}
}
}
class InnerClass
{
public static void main(String args [ ])
{
Outer outer = new Outer( );
outer.test( );
}
}

Output of the program:

Display : outer_x = 10

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 Classes in Java
7.8 INHERITANCE

Inheritance is an Object Oriented Program (OOP) term in which the non-private

features and attributes of a given superclass are made available to its subclass NOTES
(es).
How is Inheritance Useful?
Through Inheritance code duplication can be avoided by reusing the code (attributes
and methods) of one class in another class. You can derive new classes from
already existing classes.
Program 6: A Java program shows the usage of inheritance:
class SuperBazar
{
int sales;
public SuperBazar( ) { } / / default constructor
public SuperBazar(int bill)
{
sales = bill;
}
public void tax( )
{
double tax_to_pay = sales * 8.33 /100;
System.outprintln(“Customer sales amount is Rs. “
+ sales);
System.outprintln(“Tax to pay is Rs. “ + tax_to_pay);
System.outprintln(“Total Bill amount is Rs. “ +
(sales + tax_to_pay));

}
}

public class SalesTax extends SuperBazar

{
public SalesTax(int amount)
{
sales = amount;
}
public static void main(String args[ ])
{
SalesTax apgst = new SalesTax(5000);
apgst.tax( );
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Classes in Java }
}

Output of the program:

Customer Sales amount is Rs. 5000
NOTES
Tax to pay is Rs. 416.5
Total Bill amount is Rs. 5416.5

7.8.1 Super Keyword

Super is a Java keyword used to reference non-static methods or variables of
the parent class that may be hidden by the current class. This keyword is a method
(i.e., Super()).
Program 7: A Java program using super Keyword:
class Number1
{
int num = 10;
public void display( )
{
System.out.println(“From Number 1 : num = “ +
num);
}
}
public class Number2 extends Number1
{
Super (num);
int num = 20;
public void show( )
{
System.out.println(“From Number 2 without super
num = “ + num);
System.out.println(“From Number 2 with super num =
“ + num);
}
public static void main(String args[ ])
{
Number1 number1 = new Number1( );
Number2 number2 = new Number2( );
number1.display( ); / / superclass object calling
its own class method
number2.display( ); / /subclass object calling
superclass method
number2.display( ); / / subclass object calling its
own class method
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 } Classes in Java
}

Output of the program:

From Number 1 : num = 10
NOTES
From Number 2 without super num = 20
From Number 2 with super num = 10

In this program, both superclass and subclass contain the variables by the
same name num . Super keyword when used in a subclass hides the variable
num of subclass and access the variable num of superclass
Note: Super( ) should be the first statement, if used in a subclass method. Otherwise
compiler indicates an error.

7.8.2 Multilevel Hierarchy

You have been using simple class hierarchies that consist of only a superclass and
a subclass. However, you can build hierarchies that contain many layers of
inheritance. To see how a multilevel hierarchy can be useful, consider the following
program.
Program 8: A Java program shows the use of multilevel hierarchy.
class Worker
{
int salary;
float overtime;
double total;

Worker( ) { }

publicWorker(int x, float y)
{
salary = x;
overtime = y;
}
public double totalSalary( )
{
return total = salary + overtime;
}
public double netSalary( )
{
return totalSalary( ) – totalSalary( ) * 30 / 100;
}
}
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Material 157
Classes in Java public class Supervisor extends Worker
int supervisory_allowance;
public Supervisor(int x, float y, int z)
{
NOTES
salary=x;
overtime=y;
supervisory_allowance = z;
}
public static void main (String args[ ] )
{
Worker shopfloor =new worker (2500,376.5f);
Worker frontoffice=new worker(2200,85.00f);
Supervisor gmoffice=new supervisor(5700,459.25f.1876);
Supervisor planningdept=newsupervisor(6780.145.85f,2567);
double d;
d=shopfloor.totalSalary( );
System.out.println(“Total Salary of shopfloor worker is
Rs.” +d);
System.out println(“Total Salary of frontoffice worker
is Rs”+ frontoffice.totalSalary( ));
d=gmoffice.total Salary( );
System.out println (“Total Salary of GM office supervisor
is Rs” + d);
System.out.println(“Total Salary of Planning department
supervisor is Rs.” + planning dept.totalSalary( ));
System. out. println(“Supervisory allowance of gmoffice
is Rs.” +gmoffice. supervisory _ allowance );
System.out.println (“Supervisory allowance of planningdept
is Rs.” + planningdept.supervisory_allowance);
}

Output of the program:

Total Salary of shopfloor worker is Rs. 2876.5
Total Salary of frontoffice worker is Rs. 2285.0
Total Salary of GM office supervisor is Rs. 6159.25
Total Salary of Planning department supervisor is Rs.
6925.85009765625
Supervisor allowance of gmoffice is Rs. 1876
Supervisor allowance of planningdept is Rs. 2567

7.8.3 Method Overriding

When a superclass and subclass have the same method signature (including return
type) for a method, then the method in the subclass is said to override the method
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of superclass. This involves changing the method body in the subclass. Sometimes Classes in Java

it is useful to override a parent method in a derived class.

For example:
class Area1
NOTES
{
public int area(int x)
{
return x * x;
}
}
class Area2 extends Area1
{
public int area(int x)
{
return x + x;
}
}

In this example, method area (int x) is same in both the subclass and
superclass, however they serve two different functions (in one addition and in the
other multiplication). The method area is said to be overridden in subclass. When an
object of the subclass calls the area method, the method of subclass is called hiding
the superclass method.
How is the Method of Overriding Useful in OOPs?
Overriding is useful to avoid new method names when the methods perform closely
related functions under different conditions. With overriding you can provide
different functionalities for the same methods. This leads to polymorphism and
increases the program readability in big programs.
Program 9: A Java program for overriding
class area
{
public void area(int r)
{
System.out.println(“ Area of circle: “ + Math.round
( Math.PI * r *r));
}
public void area(int l, int b)
{

System.out.println(“ Area of rectangle: “ + 2 * (l +

b));
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Classes in Java }
}
public class Perimeter extends Area
{
NOTES
public void area(int r)
{
System.out.println(“ Perimeter of circle: “ +
Math.round ( 2 * Math.PI * r ));
}
public static void main(String args[ ] )
{
Area a = newArea( );
Periemter p = new Perimeter ( );
a.area (22);
p.area (22);
p.area (22, 33);
}
}

Output of the program:

Area of circle: 1521
Perimeter of circle: 138
Area of rectangle: 110

7.8.4 Dynamic Method Dispatch

Dynamic method dispatch is the mechanism by which a call to an overridden
method is determined at runtime instead at the time of compiling the program. This
is how Java implements runtime polymorphism.
Program 10: A Java program uses dynamic method dispatch.
class Animal
{
public void speak( )
{
System.out.println(“ See how different animals cry
with Polymorphism”);
}
}
class Cat extends Animal
{
public void speak( )
{

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 System.out.println(“The Cat speaks: meow meow”); Classes in Java
}
}
class Dog extends Cat
NOTES
{
public void speak( )
{
System.out.println(“The Dog speaks: bow bow”);
}
}

class Cow extends Dogl

{
public void speak( )
{
System.out.println(“The Cow speaks: amba amba”);
}
}
public class AnimalCry
{
public static void main(Sting args[ ] )
{
Animal animal; / / creating a superclass reference variable,
animal
/ / and observe that new is not used here in creating / /
a reference variable
Cat cat = new Cat( ); / / Cat object created animal = cat;
/ / Cat object is assigned to animal
animal.speak( ); / / Now animal calls the method speak of
cat
Dog dog = new Dog( ); / / Dog object created animal = dog;
/ / Dog object is assigned to animal
animal.speak( ); / / Now animal calls the method speak
of dog
Cow cow = new Cow( ); / / Cow object created
animal = cow; / / Cow object is assigned to animal
animal.speak( ); / / Now animal calls the method speak
of cow
System.out.println(“ From main : Cries are over”);
}
}

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Classes in Java Output of the program:
See how different animals cry with Polymorphism
The Cat speaks : meow meow
The Dog speaks : bow bow
NOTES The Cow speaks : amba amba
From main : Cries are over

7.8.5 Abstract Classes

Abstract classes are classes that are partially implemented. Abstract method is a
method that is declared, but not implemented. The general form is:
abstract type name(parameter-list);

For example:
abstract class AbstractClass
{
abstract void method1( );
abstract int method2 (int x, int y);
}

Here, abstract is a keyword. You cannot make constructor function

abstract, static methods abstract and make private methods
abstract.
Abstract classes are used as base classes for deriving subclasses. In
the child class, all the abstract methods of the base class will be overridden.

7.9 FINAL VARIABLES

Java provides a keyword final that can be applied to variables, methods and
classes. The meaning of the final keyword when applied to variables is different
from its meaning when it is applied to methods and classes.
7.9.1 Final Variables
The value of a variable can be prevented from being modified by declaring a
variable as final.
The syntax for declaring a final variable is:
final data_type variable_name=constant_value;
An attempt to alter the value of a final variable will generate a compile-time error.
A final variable does not occupy memory for each instance of the class. Hence,
final variable is a constant.
Example 11: A program to demonstrate the use of a final variable
class Person
{
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162 Material
 final int salary=30000; // final variable Classes in Java
}
class FinalVariable
{
NOTES
public static void main(String args[])
{
Person obj=new Person();
obj.salary=3000+2000; // error
}
}

In this example, a compile-time error will be generated as the final variable salary
cannot be modified.
7.9.2 Final Methods
As stated earlier, whenever a method is defined in the subclass with the same
name and same signature as in the superclass, it is by default overridden in the
subclass. However, a method can be prevented from being overridden by the
subclass by declaring the method as final.
The syntax for declaring a final method is
final data_type method_name()
{
:
}

Program 12: A program to demonstrate the use of final method

class Person
{
String name=”John”;
int age=25;
final void result() // final method
{
System.out.println(“The name and the age of the
person is: “+name+” and “+age);
}
}
class Employee extends Person
{
int salary=30000;
void result() //error
{
System.out.println(“The salary of the employee is:
“+ salary);
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Classes in Java }
}
class FinalMethod
{
NOTES
public static void main(String args[])
{
Employee obj=new Employee();
obj.result();
}
}

This program will generate a compile-time error as the method result() is

declared final and it cannot be overridden in the subclass.
7.9.3 Final Classes
A class which cannot be further inherited or cannot have any subclass is known as
final class. To make a class final, the class declaration is preceded by the final
keyword. If a class is declared as final, all of its methods are automatically
declared as final.
The syntax for declaring a final class is
final class class_name
{
:
}

Program 13: A program to demonstrate the implementation of final class

final class Person // final class
{
String name=”John”;
int age=25;
void result()
{
System.out.println(“The name and the age of the
person are: “+name+” and “+age+”respectively”);
}
}
class Employee extends Person //error
{
int salary=30000;
void display()

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 { Classes in Java
System.out.println(“The salary of the employee is:
“+salary);
}
} NOTES
class FinalClass
{
public static void main(String args[])
{
Employee obj=new Employee();
obj.result();
obj.display();
}
}

This program will generate a compile-time error, since, the class Person is a final
class and cannot be further inherited.

7.10 ABSTRACT METHODS AND CLASSES

A method can be prevented from being overridden in the subclass by using the
final keyword. However, sometimes, there might be a situation, when the
method in the superclass always needs to be redefined in the subclass and for this
overriding becomes necessary. This kind of situation can arise when the superclass
is not able to provide meaningful implementation for its methods. In such a case,
the superclass provides a generalized structure of the method and leaves the
implementation part to its subclass. To deal with such a situation, Java allows you
to specify that a method must always be overridden in the subclass by using the
keyword abstract in the method declaration.
The syntax for declaring an abstract method is:
abstract data_type method_name();
If a class has one or more abstract methods, the class must also be declared
as abstract by using the keyword abstract.
The syntax for declaring an abstract class is:
abstract class class_name
{
abstract data_type method_name();
}

The class which inherits the abstract class must provide implementation for all the
methods or it should declare itself as abstract.

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Classes in Java These are certain points that should be kept in mind while using an abstract
class, which are as follows:
 An abstract class cannot be instantiated.
NOTES  Abstract methods of an abstract class must always be implemented
in the subclass.
 Abstract methods must end with semicolon (;) because they do not
have any functionality.
 There can be both defined and undefined methods in an abstract class.
 Constructors or static methods cannot be declared as abstract.

Check Your Progress

7. Why an inner class cannot define any static member itself?
8. What is the use of super keyword?
9. Which keyword prevents a method in a superclass from being overridden
by its subclass?
10. Does the abstract method contain only undefined methods?

7.11 ANSWERS TO CHECK YOUR PROGRESS

QUESTIONS
1. A class is a user defined data type that can be used to create instances of its
type called objects.
2. The variables declared in a class are known as instance variables.
3. The two ways by which an argument can be passed to the method are call
by value and call by reference.
4. A constructor is a special method which is used to initialize objects at the
time of their creation.
5. A parameterized constructor is a constructor that accepts one or more
parameters at the time of creation of objects and initializes the instance
variables of the objects with these parameters.
6. The difference between the members of a class is that unlike non-static
members, the static members are associated with the class as a whole,
rather than with individual objects.
7. An inner class cannot define any static members itself because it is associated
with an instance. Objects that are instances of an inner class exist within an
instance of the outer class.

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 8. Super is a Java keyword used to reference non-static methods or variables Classes in Java

of the parent class that may be hidden by the current class.

9. The keyword final prevents a superclass from being overridden by its
subclass.
NOTES
10. No, the abstract method cannot contain various methods other than the
undefined methods.

7.12 SUMMARY

 The key objective of object oriented programming is to represent the various

real world objects as program elements.
 A class is a user defined data type that can be used to create instances of its
type called objects.
 Methods are added to the class to access the instance variables of the class
and manipulate them.
 Objects are variables of class type inside which they are created.
 The instance variables and methods added in the program cannot be
accessed directly outside the class using their names. To access the variables
and methods outside the class the dot (.) operator is used.
 The argument(s) that appear in the method call statement are known as
actual arguments and those which appear in the method definition are known
as formal arguments.
 A constructor is a special method which is used to initialize objects at the
time of their creation.
 A parameterized constructor is a constructor that accepts one or more
parameters at the time of creation of objects and initializes the instance
variables of the objects with these parameters.
 Method overloading allows multiple methods to have the same name with
different parameters and definitions.
 The static members of a class are defined without reference to a specific
object. The static members are associated with the class as a whole,
rather than with individual objects.
 Nested classes are divided into two categories: static and non-static. Nested
classes that are declared static are simply called static nested
classes. Non-static nested classes are called inner classes.
 If a class is useful to only one other class, then it is logical to embed it in that
class and keep the two together. Nesting such ‘helper classes’ makes the
package more streamlined.

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Material 167
Classes in Java  A static nested class cannot refer directly to instance variables or methods
defined in its enclosing class like static class methods it can use them
only through an object reference.
 An instance of InnerClass can exist only within an instance of
NOTES
OuterClass and has direct access to the methods and fields of its
enclosing instance.
 Inheritance is an object oriented program (OOP) term in which the non-
private features and attributes of a given superclass are made available to
its subclass (es).
 When a superclass and subclass have the same method signature (including
return type) for a method, then the method in the subclass is said to override
the method of superclass. This involves changing the method body in the
subclass.
 Overriding is useful to avoid new method names when the methods perform
closely related functions under different conditions. With overriding you
can provide different functionalities for the same methods. This leads to
polymorphism and increases the program readability in big programs.
 Dynamic method dispatch is the mechanism by which a call to an overridden
method is determined at runtime instead at the time of compiling the program.
This is how Java implements runtime polymorphism.
 Java provides a keyword final that can be applied to variables, methods
and classes. Variables declared as final cannot be modified.
 A method can be prevented from being overridden by the subclass by
declaring the method as final.
 A class which cannot be further inherited or cannot have any subclass is
known as final class.
 The class which inherits the abstract class must provide implementation for
all the methods or it should declare itself as abstract.

7.13 KEY WORDS

 Class: It is a user defined data type that can be used to create instances of
its type called objects.
 Instantiation: The process of creating an object of a class.
 Actual arguments: The argument(s) that appear in the method call
statement.
 Constructor: A special method which is used to initialize objects at the
time of their creation.

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 Classes in Java
7.14 SELF ASSESSMENT QUESTIONS AND
EXERCISES

Short-Answer Questions NOTES

1. How is a class related to objects?

2. What is the difference between the two possible ways of passing arguments
to a method?
3. State the difference between a method and a constructor.
4. Write a short note on the significance of method overloading.
5. What is the difference between method overloading and method overriding?
6. What is the use of nested classes?
7. How the method overriding is useful in OOPs?
8. How does inheritance facilitate code reusability?
Long-Answer Questions
1. Define a class Student having instance variables: roll_number,
marks1, marks2 and marks3 and method: calculate() to
calculate the overall percentage of marks and return the percentage of marks.
2. Write a program to display first ten terms of Fibonacci series.
0 1 1 2 3 5 8……….
3. Can the objects of a class be initialized at runtime using constructors? Explain
with an example.
4. Explain how you will identify the instance and class variables in a given
class.
5. How is a static method invoked? Explain with an example.
6. Define a class Teacher having instance variables: Teacher_id,
Basic, DA and HRA and method: calculate() to calculate the salary.
(Hint: Salary is the sum of Basic, DA and HRA).
7. Explain multilevel hierarchy of inheritance with the help of example code.
8. Write a program to show how super keyword can be used to call
superclass’ constructor within a subclass’ constructor.
9. Write a program to create a Drug class. A class Tablet is derived from
it, which in turn is inherited by class Pain Reliever. Explain the type
of inheritance implemented.

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Classes in Java
7.15 FURTHER READINGS

Krishnamoorty, R. and Prabhu R. Krishnamoorty. 2009. Internet and Java

NOTES Programming. New Delhi: New Age International (P) Ltd.
Balagurusamy, E. 2007. Programming with Java, Third Edition. New Delhi:
Tata McGraw-Hill.
Das, Rashmi Kant. 2009. Core Java for Beginners, Revised Edition. New Delhi:
Vikas Publishing House Pvt. Ltd.
Keogh, Jim. 2002. The Complete Reference J2SE, Fifth Edition. New York:
Tata McGraw-Hill.
Naughton, Patrick and Herbert Schidt. 1999. Java 2: The Complete Reference,
Third Edition. New Delhi: Tata McGraw-Hill.

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 Arrays, Strings

UNIT 8 ARRAYS, STRINGS and Vectors

AND VECTORS
NOTES
Structure
8.0 Introduction
8.1 Objectives
8.2 Arrays
8.2.1 Single-Dimensional Arrays
8.2.2 Two-Dimensional Arrays
8.3 Strings
8.3.1 String Class
8.3.2 StringBuffer Class
8.4 Vectors
8.5 Wrapper Classes
8.6 Enumerated Types
8.7 Interfaces: Multiple Inheritance
8.8 Answers to Check Your Progress Questions
8.9 Summary
8.10 Key Words
8.11 Self Assessment Questions and Exercises
8.12 Further Readings

8.0 INTRODUCTION

Handling real world data requires a mechanism that deals with a collection of data
items. In Java, different data types like arrays, strings and vectors are offered to
handle such collections. These data types are capable of grouping related data
items together into a single unit. Arrays can hold a few or thousand data items of
similar data types under a single name, strings are used to represent a collection of
characters and vectors provide a way to keep items of any data type in any number,
together as a single entity.
Fundamentally, an array is a block of container that can hold data of one
single type. The array is a fundamental construct in Java that allows you to store
and access a large number of values conveniently. Vector is like the dynamic array
which can grow or shrink its size. Unlike array, we can store n-number of elements
in it as there is no size limit. In Java, the strings are used for storing text.
In this unit, you will study about the basic concepts of arrays, one dimensional
arrays, creating of array, two dimensional arrays, strings, vectors, wrapper classes,
enumerated types and interfaces for multiple inheritance.

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Arrays, Strings
and Vectors 8.1 OBJECTIVES

After going through this unit, you will be able to:

NOTES  Declare, initialize and manipulate single- and multi-dimensional arrays
 Explain the use of String and StringBuffer classes for handling strings
in Java
 Understand the significance of vectors
 Explain the concept of wrapper classes

8.2 ARRAYS

Java uses variables of different primitive data types to store data. However, these
variables are incapable of holding more than one value at a time. For example, a
single variable cannot be used for storing the marks of all the students in a class.
For such purposes, Java provides a different kind of data type known as arrays.
An arrays is defined as a fixed-size sequence of the same type of data
elements. These data elements can be of any primitive or non-primitive data type.
The elements of an array are stored in contiguous memory locations and each
individual element can be accessed using one or more indices or subscripts. A
subscript or an index is a positive integer value, which indicates the position of an
element in an array. Arrays are used when a programmer wants to store multiple
data items of the same type into a single list and also wants to access and manipulate
individual elements of the list. Arrays can be either single-dimensional or multi-
dimensional depending upon the number of subscripts used.
8.2.1 Single-Dimensional Arrays
A single-dimensional array is the simplest form of an array that requires only one
subscript to access an array element. Like an ordinary variable, an array must be
declared before it is used in the program.
The syntax for declaring a single-dimensional array is
data_type array_name[];

or
data_type[]array_name;

where,
data_type is any data type
array_name is the name of the array
For example, an array marks[] of type int can be declared using either of
the two statements.
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172 Material
 int marks[]; Arrays, Strings
and Vectors
or
int[] marks;

After an array is declared, we need to create it by allocating space to it in the NOTES

memory. Arrays are created using the new operator.
The syntax for creating an array is
array_name=new data_type[size];
where,
size is the size of the array
For example, an array marks[]of type int and size five can be created using
this statement.
marks=new int[5];

The given steps of declaration and creation of an array can be combined into a
single statement as shown.
data_type array_name=new data_type[size];

Similarly, the statement to declare and create an array marks[]of type int
and size five is
int marks[]=new int[5];

Note: All the elements created using the new operator in the array will be
automatically initialized to zero.
Initialization of Single-Dimensional Array
Once an array is declared and memory is allocated to it, the next step is to initialize
each array element with a valid and appropriate value. An array can be initialized
at the time of its declaration.
The syntax for initializing an array at the time of its declaration is
data_type array_name[]={value_1,value_2,......,value_n};

The values are assigned to the array elements in the order in which they are listed.
That is, value_1, value_2 and value_n are assigned to the first, second
and nth element of the array, respectively.
If an array is declared and initialized simultaneously, then specifying its size is optional.
For example, the statement int marks[]={51,62,43,74,55} is also
valid. The size of an array marks can be obtained by using marks.length()
method.
Note: If you try to store or access values outside the range of array (index with
negative value or value greater than the length of the array), run-time error is
generated.

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Arrays, Strings Accessing Single-Dimensional Array Elements
and Vectors
Once an array is declared and initialized, the values stored in the array can be
accessed any time. Each individual array element can be accessed using the name
NOTES of the array and the subscript value. Every element in an array is associated with a
unique subscript value, starting from 0 to size-1 (where, size refers to the
maximum number of elements that can be stored in the array).
The syntax for accessing the values stored in a single-dimensional array is
array_name[subscript]

For example, the elements of the array marks can be referred to as marks[0],
marks[1], marks[2], marks[3] and marks[4], respectively. Note
that index of an array starts with 0.
Note: The memory location, where the first element of an array is stored, is known
as the base address, which is generally referred to by the name of the array.
Single-dimensional arrays are always allocated contiguous blocks of memory. This
implies that every element in an array is always stored in a sequential manner next
to each other. The memory representation of the array marks is shown in Figure
8.1. As each element is of type int (that is, 4 bytes long), the array marks
occupies twenty contiguous bytes in the memory and these bytes are reserved in
the memory at the compile-time.
marks marks[0] marks[1] marks[2] marks[3] marks[4]

51 62 43 74 55

2001 2005 2009 2013 2017

Fig. 8.1 Memory Representation of an Array Marks

Manipulation of Single-Dimensional Array Elements

An array can be manipulated with the help of various operations. These operations
include finding the sum, average, maximum or minimum, sorting and searching of
the array elements, etc.
Program 1: A program to sort the array elements
class SortingArray
{
public static void main(String args[])
{
int a[]={67, 34, 12, 98, 26}; //array
initialization at the time of declaration
int n=a.length; //returns the length of the
array
System.out.print(“The list of numbers:”);

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174 Material
 for(int i=0;i<n;i++) Arrays, Strings
and Vectors
{
System.out.print(“ “+a[i]);
}
NOTES
//sorting elements of an array
for(int i=0;i<n;i++)
{
for(int j=i+1;j<n;j++)
{
if(a[i]>a[j])
{
int temp=a[i];
a[i]=a[j];
a[j]=temp;
}
}
}
System.out.print(“\n”);
System.out.print(“The sorted list of given
numbers:”);
for(int i=0;i<n;i++) //displaying sorted array
{
System.out.print(“ “ +a[i]);
}
}
}

Output of the program:

The list of numbers: 67 34 12 98 26
The sorted list of given numbers: 12 26 34 67 98

8.2.2 Two-Dimensional Array

A two-dimensional array is the simplest form of a multi-dimensional array that
requires two subscript values to access an array element. Two-dimensional arrays
are useful when the data being processed are to be arranged in the form of rows
and columns (matrix form).
The syntax for declaring a two-dimensional array is
data_type array_name[][];

or
data_type[][] array_name;

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Material 175
Arrays, Strings The syntax for creating a two dimensional array is
and Vectors
array_name[][]=new data_type[row_size][column_size];

The given steps of declaration and creation can be combined into one using a
NOTES single statement as shown.
data_type array_name[][]=newdata_type[row_size]
[column_size];
For example, an array a[][] of type int having three rows and two columns
can be declared and created using this statement.
int a[][]=new int[3][2];

Here, 3 is the row size and 2 is the column size.

Initialization of Two-Dimensional Array
Like a single-dimensional array, a two-dimensional array can also be declared
and initialized at the same time. To understand how to initialize a two-dimensional
array, consider this statement.
int a[3][2]={ {101,51},
{102,67},
{103,76} };

In this statement, an array a[][] of type int having three rows and two columns
is declared and initialized. This type of initialization is generally used to increase
the readability.
Now, consider another statement.
int b[][]={ { 2,3,4}, {1,1,1} };

In this statement, an array b[][] of type int having two rows and three columns
is initialized.
Accessing Two-Dimensional Array Elements
Once a two-dimensional array is declared and initialized, the value stored in the
array elements can be accessed using two subscripts.
The syntax for accessing the two-dimensional array elements is
array_name[row][column]

The first subscript value (row) specifies the row number and the second subscript
value (column) specifies the column number. Both the subscript values specify
the position of the array element within the array.
For example, the elements of array a (declared earlier) are referred to as
a[0][0], a[0][1], a[1][0], a[1][1], a[2][0] and a[2][1]
respectively.

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176 Material
Generally, two-dimensional arrays are represented with the help of a matrix. Arrays, Strings
and Vectors
However, in actual implementation, two-dimensional arrays are always allocated
contiguous blocks of memory. Figure 8.2 shows matrix and memory representation
of two-dimensional array a.
NOTES
a[0][0] a[0][1] a[1][0] a[1][1] a[2][0] a[2][1]

101 51 101 51 105 67 103 76

105 67 2001 2005 2009 2013 2017 2021

103 76 first row second row third row

Matrix Representation Memory Representation

Fig. 8.2 Matrix and Memory Representation of Array a[][]

Manipulation of Two-Dimensional Array Elements

A two-dimensional array can be manipulated in many ways. Some of the common
operations that can be performed on a two-dimensional array include finding the
sum of row elements, column elements and diagonal elements, finding the maximum
and minimum values, etc.
Program 2: A program to calculate the sum of two matrices
class MatricesSummation
{
public static void main(String args[])
{
int a[][]={{3,4,5},{3,2,7}};//initializing matrix a
int b[][]={{2,4,7},{1,2,2}}; //initializing matrix b

int l=a.length;
System.out.println(“First matrix is:” + “ “);
for(int i=0;i<l;i++) //displaying first matrix
{
for (int j=0;j<3; j++)
{
System.out.print(“ “ +a[i][j]);
}
System.out.println();
}

int m=b.length;
System.out.println(“Second matrix is:”+ “ “);
for (int i=0;i<m;i++) //displaying second matrix
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Material 177
Arrays, Strings {
and Vectors
for(int j=0;j<3;j++)
{
System.out.print(“ “ + b[i][j]);
NOTES
}
System.out.println();
}

System.out.println(“Summation of the two matrices

is: “);
//displaying sum of two matrices
for(int i=0;i<m;i++)
{
for(int j=0;j<=m;j++)
{
System.out.print(“ “+(a[i][j]+b[i][j]));
}
System.out.println();
}
}
}

Output of the program:

First matrix is:
3 4 5
3 2 7
Second matrix is:
2 4 7
1 2 2
Summation of the two matrices is:
5 8 12
4 4 9

Variable Size Arrays

In multi-dimensional arrays, the size of each array can be varied. For example,
consider these statements.
data_type array_name[][]=new data_type[size][];
array_name[0]=new data_type[size_1];
.
.
.
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178 Material
 array_name[n-1]=new data_type[size_n]; Arrays, Strings
and Vectors
where,
size is the number of rows in two-dimensional array
size_1, . . . , size_n represents the number of columns in each row of two- NOTES
dimensional array

Check Your Progress

1. Define an array.
2. What is a subscript?

8.3 STRINGS

In Java, a string is an object that is created either using String or

StringBuffer class. Each class has its own set of methods for creating and
manipulating strings. The difference between these two classes is that a string
created from the String class cannot be modified, that is, characters cannot be
inserted to, replaced or removed from the string. However, the string created
using StringBuffer class can not only be modified but can also be expanded
or contracted dynamically, whenever required.
8.3.1 String Class
The String class is more commonly used to display messages and when strings
need to be compared, searched or individual characters in a string have to be
extracted as a substring.
The syntax to declare string is
String string_name;

The syntax for creating a string is

string_name=new String(“Sequence_of_characters”);

These two steps of declaration and creation can be combined into a single statement
as shown.
String string_name=new String(“Sequence_of_characters”);

For example, the statement to declare and create a string str1 using String
class is
String str1=new String(“Java Programming Language”);

The String class provides various methods for manipulating strings. Some of
the most commonly used methods of String class along with their descriptions
are listed in the Table 8.1.

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Material 179
Arrays, Strings Table 8.1 String Class Methods and their Description
and Vectors
Methods Description
str1.length() Returns the length of the string str1
str1.equals(str2) Returns ‘true’ if string str1 is equal to string
NOTES str2
str1.compareTo(str2) Returns negative if str1<str2, positive if
str1>str2, otherwise 0
str1.concat(str2) Concatenates string str1 and string str2
str1=str2.trim() Removes all the white spaces at the beginning and
end of the string str2 and assigns it to str1
str1=str2.replace(‘a’,’b’) Replaces all a appearing in the string str2 with b
and assigns it to str1
str1=str2.toLowerCase() Converts uppercase letters in a string str2 to
lowercase and assigns it to str1
str1=str2.toUpperCase() Converts lowercase letters in a string str2 to
uppercase and assigns it to str1
str1.indexOf(‘a’) Gives the position of the first occurrence of
character ‘a’ in the string str1
str1.indexOf(‘a’,n) Gives the position of the first occurrence of
character ‘a’ that occurs after nth position in the
string str1

Program 3: A program to demonstrate the use of some of the methods of a

String class
class StringDemonstrate
{
public static void main(String args[])
{
String str1=new String(“New”); //creating string
str1
String str2=new String(“Delhi”); //creating string
str2
String str3=str1.concat(str2); //concatenating
strings str1 and str2
String str4=str3.toUpperCase();
String str5=str3.toLowerCase();

System.out.println(“Combined String is: “ +str3);

System.out.println(“Combined String in UPPER CASE
is: “ +str4);
System.out.println(“Combined String in LOWER Case
is: “ +str5);
}
}

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180 Material
Output of the program: Arrays, Strings
and Vectors
Combined String is: NewDelhi
Combined String in UPPER CASE is: NEWDELHI
Combined String in LOWER Case is: newdelhi NOTES
8.3.2 StringBuffer Class
As stated earlier, strings created using String class are of fixed length, whereas,
strings created using StringBuffer class are of varying length.
The syntax to declare string is
StringBuffer string_name;
The syntax for creating a string is
string_name=new StringBuffer (“Sequence_of_characters”);
These two steps of declaration and creation can be combined into a single statement
as shown below.
StringBuffer string_name=new StringBuffer
(“Sequence_of_characters”);
For example, the statement to declare and create a string str1 using
StringBuffer class is
StringBuffer str1=new StringBuffer(“Java Programming
Language”);
Some of the commonly used methods of StringBuffer class along with
their descriptions are listed in Table 8.2.
Table 8.2 StringBuffer Class Methods and their Description

Methods Description
str1.append(str2) Appends the string str2 at the end of the string
str1
str1.insert(n,str2) Inserts the string str2 at the position n of the
string str1
str1.setCharAt(n,’x’) Sets the nth character of the string str1 to x
str1.setLength(n) Sets the length of the string str1 to n. If
n<str1.length(), str1 is truncated. If
n>str1.length(), null characters are added
at the end of str1
str1.reverse() Reverses the string str1
str1.delete(m,n) Deletes characters of the string str1 from mth
index to (n-1)th index
str1.deleteCharAt(m) Removes character of the string str1 at mth
index
str1.replace(m,n,”str2”) Replaces the portion of the string str1 from mth
index to (n-1)th index with the string str2

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Arrays, Strings
and Vectors Check Your Progress
3. What is a string in Java?
4. State the difference in the strings created by St ri ng and
NOTES
StringBuffer class.

8.4 VECTORS

The vector class contained in the java.util package defines methods to

store objects into a single unit. It can be used to implement a dynamic array called
vectors which can accommodate number and any type of objects. Consider the
following statements.
Vector v1=new Vector( ); //creating vector without
specifying its initial capacity
Vector v2=new Vector(n); //creating vector having initial
capacity ‘n’

Here, the first statement creates a vector v1 having initial capacity 10. That is,
when you create a vector without specifying its initial capacity it is automatically
set to 10. Similarly, the second statement creates a vector v2 with initial capacity
n. Although you have created the vector v2 by specifying its initial capacity, this
specification does not pose any limitation on the size of the vector since the size of
the vector can be increased or decreased by adding or removing objects to it.
The vector class provides a variety of methods which can be used to
perform different operations on vectors. Some of which are listed in Table 8.3.
Table 8.3 Vector Methods and their Description

Methods Description
vect1.addElement(object) Adds the specified object at the end of the
vector list vect1
vect1.size() Returns the number of objects currently present
in the vector vect1
vect1.capacity() Returns the maximum capacity of the vector
vect1
vect1.removeElement(object) Removes the specified object from the vector
vect1
vect1.elementAt(n) Returns the name of the nth object of the vector
vect1
vect1.removeElementAt(n) Removes the item at the nth position of the vector
vect1
vect1.removeAllElements() Removes all the elements in the vector vect1
vect1.firstElement() Returns the first element of the vector vect1
vect1.lastElement() Returns the last element of the vector vect1
vect1.trimToSize() Sets the capacity of the vector vect1 to the
number of objects it is currently holding

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 Arrays, Strings
8.5 WRAPPER CLASSES and Vectors

One limitation of using vectors is that we cannot store data items of primitive data
types like int, float, char, long, double etc. since it can store only NOTES
objects. Therefore, primitive data types need to be converted into objects before
storing them in vectors. To accomplish this, Java provides wrapper classes
contained in the java.lang package. The wrapper classes are used to convert
the primitive data types into their respective class instances. For example, a float
data type is represented as an instance of Float class.
It should be noted that Java’s primitive wrapper classes are immutable, that
is, once a value is assigned to an instance of a wrapper class, it cannot be changed
later. The primitive data types and their corresponding wrapper classes are shown
in Table 8.4.
Table 8.4 Primitive Data Types and their Corresponding Wrapper Classes

Primitive Data Type Wrapper Class

boolean java.lang.Boolean
byte java.lang.Byte
char java.lang.Character
double java.lang.Double
float java.lang.Float
int java.lang.Integer
long java.lang.Long
short java.lang.Short
void java.lang.Void
Some of the methods of wrapper classes are listed in Tables 8.5–8.9.
Table 8.5 Conversion of Primitive Data Types to Object
Types using Constructor Methods

Constructor Calling Action Performed

Integer a=new Integer(i); Converts integer to Integer object
Float b=new Float(f); Converts float to Float object
Double c=new Double(d); Converts double to Double object
Long d=new Long(l); Converts long to Long object

Table 8.6 Conversion of Object Numbers to Primitive

Numbers using typeValue() Method

Method Calling Action Performed

int i=a.intValue(); Converts object to Integer
float f=b.floatValue(); Converts object to Float
double d=c.doubleValue(); Converts object to Double
long l=d.longValue(); Converts object to Long

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Material 183
Arrays, Strings Table 8.7 Conversion of Primitive Numbers to Strings using toString() Method
and Vectors
Method Calling Action Performed
str=Integer.toString(i); Converts Primitive integer to string
str=Float.toString(f); Converts Primitive float to string
NOTES str=Long.toString(l); Converts Primitive long to string
str=Double.toString(d); Converts Primitive double to string

Table 8.8 Conversion of String Objects to Numeric Objects using Valueof() Method

Method Calling Action Performed

IntVal=Integer.valueOf(str); Converts string to Integer object
FloatVal=Float.valueOf(str); Converts string to Float object
LongVal=Long.valueOf(str); Converts string to Long object
DoubleVal=Double.valueOf(str); Converts string to Double object

Table 8.9 Conversion of Strings to Primitive Numbers using Parsing Methods

Method Calling Action Performed

int i=Integer.parseInt(str) Converts string to primitive integer
long l=Long.parseLong(str) Converts string to primitive long
Note: The methods defined in the wrapper classes are static.

8.6 ENUMERATED TYPES

Enumerated means that a field has a set number of values. In Java, the enumerated
or enum type is considered very significant method. Enumerations serve the
purpose of representing a group of named constants in a programming language.
Basically, the enum type is used when we know all the possible values at compile
time, such as choices on a menu, rounding modes, command line flags, etc. The
set of constants in an enum type may or may not stay fixed for all time.
Consequently, enumerated means that something has a defined set of values it can
hold. In Java, these values are stored in an enumerated variable, using the key
word enum, which are unchanging and easily accessible.
In programming language, the values are static and final, which means that
they cannot be changed. Other data types, such as int and float, can be
changed in a program. Java key word enum are type safe, as no value can be
assigned to key word enum which does not fit with the defined values. For example,
the key word enum defined as ‘DayOfWeek’ will not accept any other data
except the days of the week that were defined. In addition, an enum is a reference
type, which means it acts more like a class or an interface. You can create methods
and variables inside the enum declaration.

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Syntax Arrays, Strings
and Vectors

The following syntax declares an enumerated (enum) variable for the days of the
week.
public enum DayOfWeek { NOTES
SUNDAY,
MONDAY,
TUESDAY,
WEDNESDAY,
THURSDAY,
FRIDAY,
SATURDAY;
}

Consider about the days of the week, it will always have Sunday through Saturday.
We can assign a numeric value to the each day of the week, for example, Sunday
will be Day (0), Monday will be Day (1), Tuesday will be Day (2), Wednesday
will be Day (3), and so on. This can be declared in the Java program as follows.
public enum DayOfWeek {
SUNDAY (0),
MONDAY (1),
TUESDAY (2),
WEDNESDAY (3),
THURSDAY (4),
FRIDAY (5),
SATURDAY (6);
}

In the above code, we can create a constructor with a private variable so that it
works appropriately. The constructor with a private variable can be declared within
the enum, i.e., between the curly brackets that define the enum, as shown below:
public enum DayOfWeek {
SUNDAY (0),
MONDAY (1),
TUESDAY (2),
WEDNESDAY (3),
THURSDAY (4),
FRIDAY (5),
SATURDAY (6);
private int value;
private DayOfWeek(int value) {

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Material 185
Arrays, Strings this.value = value;
and Vectors
}
}
NOTES Thus by creating a variable we can access the values of the enum. To obtain the
values of each part of the enum, we can declare the following public method:
public int getDayOfWeekValue() {
return this.value;
}

Thus the enumerated or enum data type in Java is used to describe a specific set
of values for a variable. They are static or final and type safe which cannot be
changed or modified. The enum types are reference type, meaning they act like
a class and can have their own constructors and methods.

8.7 INTERFACES: MULTIPLE INHERITANCE

Object Oriented Programming (OOP) provides a user the feature of multiple

inheritance, wherein a class can inherit the properties of more than a single parent
class. Basically, multiple inheritance means that a class can be extended to more
than one class. The programming language Java helps to use the multiple inheritance
feature indirectly through the usage of interfaces.
Multiple inheritance is a feature of OOP concept, where a class can inherit
properties of more than one parent class. The problem occurs when there exist
methods with same signature in both the super classes and subclass. On calling the
method, the compiler cannot determine which class method to be called and even
on calling which class method gets the priority. An interface contains variables and
methods like a class but the methods in an interface are abstract by default unlike
a class. Multiple inheritance by interface occurs if a class implements multiple
interfaces or also if an interface itself extends multiple interfaces.
In the following Java program example, we have two interfaces, the
Motorbike and Cycle. Motorbike interface consists of the attribute speed. The
method is totalDistance(). Cycle interface consists of the attribute
distance() and the method speed().
Both these interfaces are implemented by the class TwoWheeler.
Program 4: A Java program to demonstrate the use of two interfaces.
interface MotorBike
{
int speed=50;
public void totalDistance();
}
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186 Material
 interface Cycle Arrays, Strings
and Vectors
{
int distance=150;
public void speed();
NOTES
}
public class TwoWheeler implements MotorBike,Cycle
{
int totalDistance;
int avgSpeed;
public void totalDistance()
{
totalDistance=speed*distance;
System.out.println(“Total Distance Travelled :
“+totalDistance);
}
public void speed()
{
int avgSpeed=totalDistance/speed;
System.out.println(“Average Speed maintained : “+avgSpeed);
}
public static void main(String args[])
{
TwoWheeler t1=new TwoWheeler();
t1.totalDistance();
t1.speed();
}
}

Output of the Program:

Total Distance Travelled : 7500
Average Speed Maintained : 150
The above Java Program 4 avoids ambiguity even when classes are used
instead of interfaces. However, Java does not support it. When both the classes
have the same method in it, the compiler is unable to decide upon the method to
be called. Using interface avoids this ambiguity as the methods of interface are
abstract by default.
The multiple inheritance in Java can be explained with the help of following
Java program.
Program 5: A Java program to demonstrate the use of multiple inheritance without
ambiguity.
Self-Instructional
Material 187
Arrays, Strings interface InterfaceOne
and Vectors
{
public void disp();
}
NOTES
interface InterfaceTwo
{
public void disp();
}
public class Main implements InterfaceOne,InterfaceTwo
{
@Override
public void disp()
{
System.out.println(“display() method implementation”);
}
public static void main(String args[])
{
Main m = new Main();
m.disp();
}
}

The above Java Program 5 uses the display() method implementation. The
Main method implements both the interfaces, i.e., InterfaceOne and
InterfaceTwo. It executes without any ambiguity.
Check Your Progress
5. Why is the Vector class used?
6. What is the function of the wrapper classes?
7. In Java, why the enumerated or enum data type is used?
8. What is an interface? How an interface in Java supports multiple
inheritance?

8.8 ANSWERS TO CHECK YOUR PROGRESS

QUESTIONS

1. Arrays are defined as a fixed size sequence of the same type of data elements.
These data elements can be of any primitive or non-primitive data type.
2. A subscript is a positive integer value, which indicates the position of an
element in an array.
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188 Material
 3. In Java, a string is an object that is created either using String or Arrays, Strings
and Vectors
StringBuffer class.
4. The strings created using String class are of fixed length whereas those
created using StringBuffer class are of varying length.
NOTES
5. The Vector class is used to implement a dynamic array called vector
which can accommodate any number and any type of objects.
6. The wrapper classes are used to convert the primitive data types into their
respective class instances.
7. The enumerated or enum data type in Java is used to describe a specific
set of values for a variable. They are static or final and type safe which
cannot be changed or modified. The enum types are reference type, meaning
they act like a class and can have their own constructors and methods.
8. An interface contains variables and methods like a class but the methods in
an interface are abstract by default unlike a class. Multiple inheritance by
interface occurs if a class implements multiple interfaces or also if an interface
itself extends multiple interfaces. The programming language Java helps to
use the multiple inheritance feature indirectly through the usage of interfaces.

8.9 SUMMARY

 An array is defined as a fixed-size sequence of the same type of data

elements.
 The elements of an array are stored in contiguous memory locations and
each individual element can be accessed using one or more indices or
subscripts.
 Arrays can be either single-dimensional or multi-dimensional, depending
upon the number of subscripts used.
 A single-dimensional array is the simplest form of an array that requires only
one subscript to access an array element.
 Multi-dimensional arrays can be described as ‘an array of arrays’, that is,
each element of the array is itself an array.
 A two-dimensional array is the simplest form of a multi-dimensional array
that requires two subscript values to access an array element.
 A string is an object that is created either using String or
StringBuffer class.
 The strings created using the String class are of fixed length and cannot
be modified, that is, characters cannot be inserted to or removed from the
string.

Self-Instructional
Material 189
Arrays, Strings  The strings created using the StringBuffer class are of varying length
and Vectors
and can not only be modified but can also be expanded or contracted
dynamically whenever required.
 The vector class is used to implement a dynamic array called vector
NOTES
which can accommodate any number and type of objects.
 The wrapper classes are used to convert the primitive data types into their
respective class instances.
 Enumerated means that a field has a set number of values. In Java, the
enumerated or enum type is considered very significant method.
 Enumerations serve the purpose of representing a group of named constants
in a programming language.
 Basically, the enum type is used when we know all the possible values at
compile time. In Java, these values are stored in an enumerated variable,
using the key word enum, which are unchanging and easily accessible.
 Java key word enum are type safe, as no value can be assigned to key
word enum which does not fit with the defined values.
 Object Oriented Programming (OOP) provides a user the feature of multiple
inheritance, wherein a class can inherit the properties of more than a single
parent class.
 Multiple inheritance means that a class can be extended to more than one
class. The programming language Java helps to use the multiple inheritance
feature indirectly through the usage of interfaces.
 An interface contains variables and methods like a class but the methods in
an interface are abstract by default unlike a class.
 Multiple inheritance by interface occurs if a class implements multiple
interfaces or also if an interface itself extends multiple interfaces.

8.10 KEY WORDS

 Array: It is a fixed size sequence of same type of data elements.

 Subscript: It is a positive integer value which indicates the position of an
element in an array.
 String: It is an object that is created either using String or
StringBuffer class.
 Vector: It is a dynamic array which can accommodate any number and
type of objects.
 enum data type: The enumerated or enum data type in Java is used to
describe a specific set of values for a variable.

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190 Material
  Interface: An interface contains variables and methods like a class but the Arrays, Strings
and Vectors
methods in an interface are abstract by default unlike a class.

8.11 SELF ASSESSMENT QUESTIONS AND NOTES

EXERCISES

Short-Answer Questions
1. What is the need of arrays?
2. Differentiate between single-dimensional and multi-dimensional arrays.
3. What are vectors? How are they different from arrays?
4. What is the significance of enumerated types in Java?
5. Why multiple inheritance is used in Java?
Long-Answer Questions
1. Briefly discuss how the single-dimensional and multi-dimensional arrays can
be declared, initialized and manipulated in Java. Give appropriate example
Java programs.
2. Explain the use of String and StringBuffer classes for handling
strings in Java with the help of appropriate Java programs.
3. Discuss the significance of vectors and wrapper classes in Java.
4. Briefly explain the significance of enumerated or enum data type in Java.
5. How the programming language Java helps to use the multiple inheritance
feature through the usage of interfaces? Explain with the help of Java program.
6. Write a program to multiply two given matrices and print the resultant matrix.
7. Consider the given string:
String str=”Java is an interesting programming
language.”;
(a) What will be the value of str.length()?
(b) What will be the value of str.charAt(12)?
(c) Write an expression to return letter c in the string str
8. Write a program to create a list of names of 5 students in a class and store
them in a vector. In addition, perform the following operations in the list:
(a) Add a name at the end of the list
(b) Delete a name at the third position in the list
(c) Display the final contents of the list

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Material 191
Arrays, Strings
and Vectors 8.12 FURTHER READINGS

Krishnamoorty, R. and Prabhu R. Krishnamoorty. 2009. Internet and Java

NOTES Programming. New Delhi: New Age International (P) Ltd.
Balagurusamy, E. 2007. Programming with Java, Third Edition. New Delhi:
Tata McGraw-Hill.
Das, Rashmi Kant. 2009. Core Java for Beginners, Revised Edition. New Delhi:
Vikas Publishing House Pvt. Ltd.
Keogh, Jim. 2002. The Complete Reference J2SE, Fifth Edition. New York:
Tata McGraw-Hill.
Naughton, Patrick and Herbert Schidt. 1999. Java 2: The Complete Reference,
Third Edition. New Delhi: Tata McGraw-Hill.

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192 Material
 Packages

UNIT 9 PACKAGES
Structure
NOTES
9.0 Introduction
9.1 Objectives
9.2 Packages and Java API Packages
9.3 Defining Packages
9.4 CLASSPATH
9.5 Accessibility of Packages Using Package Members
9.6 Adding a Class
9.7 Hiding a Class
9.8 Packages and Visibility Controls
9.9 Interface
9.9.1 Implementing Interface
9.9.2 Extending Interfaces
9.9.3 Variables in Interfaces
9.9.4 Interface and Abstract Classes
9.9.5 Extends and Implements Together
9.10 Answers to Check Your Progress Questions
9.11 Summary
9.12 Key Words
9.13 Self Assessment Questions and Exercises
9.14 Further Readings

9.0 INTRODUCTION

Code reusability is one of the important features of object-oriented programming.

So far we have seen that a code can be reused through inheritance. However, the
reusability of a code through inheritance was restricted to only a single program. A
situation may arise when the code of one program needs to be reused in some
other program. This can be achieved in Java with the help of a concept known as
package.
The concept of multiple inheritance is not directly supported by Java, i.e., a
subclass in Java cannot have more than one superclass. However, there are certain
applications where a class needs to inherit properties from multiple classes at the
same time. Java provides an approach known as interface as a convenient
alternative to implement multiple inheritance.
In this unit, you will study about Java Packages and Interface.

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Packages
9.1 OBJECTIVES

After going through this unit, you will be able to:

NOTES  Define package and its various advantages
 Explain various API packages and their application in a program
 Explain the method for creating and accessing a user-defined package
 Understand CLASSPATH
 Discuss the procedure for adding of class to a package and hiding a class in
a package
 Differentiate between an interface and a class
 Describe the procedure for implementing an interface by a class
 Describe how an interface can be extended by another interface
 Explain how interfaces can be used to declare a set of constants
 State the differences between interface and abstract class

9.2 PACKAGES AND JAVA API PACKAGES

A package is a named collection of classes. Any number of related classes can be

grouped into a single package. By grouping the classes into a package, we can
achieve the following:
 The classes which belong to a package of another program can be easily
reused.
 Two classes in two different packages can have the same name. For instance,
we can create a class called Student without being concerned about the
collision of this name with some other class called Student which belongs to
some other package.
Every class belongs to a package. The classes that we have created and
used so far belong to the default package. Java packages are categorized into
two types, namely, API packages and user-defined packages. API (Application
Programming Interface) packages are the standard packages available in Java
which contain all of the standard classes. Java also allows us to create our own
package known as user-defined packages.
Java API Packages
There is a huge list of API packages provided by Java. Some of the quite frequently
used packages are displayed in Table 9.1.

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 Table 9.1 Commonly Used API Packages Packages

Package Description
java.lang It includes classes that are fundamental to Java such as
String, Math, Exception, etc.
java.io This package provides classes to support input and output
NOTES
operations.
java.awt This provides a set of classes to implement graphical user
interface components such as windows, dialog boxes, menus,
list, buttons, checkboxes, textfields, scrollbars, etc.
java.applet This package includes classes to create applets that can be
embedded in a webpage.
java.util This package includes language utility classes such as time,
date, random number, hash tables, vectors, enumeration, etc.
java.sql This package contains classes for accessing database using
standard SQL.

Each Java API package is organized in a hierarchical form. Consider a

package, for instance, java.lang. The java.lang package containing various classes
is organized in a hierarchical form as shown in Figure 9.1.

java

lang
String

Math
………....
Thread

Fig. 9.1 Hierarchical Representation of java.lang Package

Figure 9.1 shows that the package java contains the package lang, which in
turn contains various classes, such as Math, String, etc.
The classes stored in a package can be accessed in two ways depending on the
following two situations:
 When we need to access the class only once or when we do not need to
access any other class of the same package.
In this case, to access the class, the name of the package is followed by dot
(.) operator, which is followed by the name of the class. For instance, the
statement to access the Math class contained in lang package is as follows:
java.lang.Math
 If we want to use multiple classes contained in a package or use the same
class in various places of the program.
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Packages This can be achieved with the help of the import statement. The syntax to
access the same class in various places is as follows:
import package_name.class_name;

NOTES where,
import is a Java keyword
package_name is the name of the package

class_name is the name of the class belonging to that package.

For instance, consider the following statement:
import java.lang.Math;
In this statement, the class Math contained in the package java.lang is
imported in the program and can now be used at various places in the
program without using the package name.
We can access multiple classes contained in a package using the following
statement:
import package_name.*;

For instance, the statement import java.lang.* imports all the classes
contained in the java.lang package.
Package Naming
There are certain Java naming conventions using which packages can be named.
The names of the packages and classes or interfaces should be such that it is
easier to distinguish between the two. According to the conventions, the name of
the packages starts with a lowercase letter whereas the name of the classes begins
with an uppercase letter. For instance, consider the following statement:
java.lang.Math

In this statement, the name of the package lang begins with a lowercase
letter and the name of the class Math begins with an uppercase letter. However, as
there are number of users working simultaneously on the Internet, there may be a
chance of duplicate packages being created which may lead to run-time error.
Hence, package names must be unique. To ensure uniqueness of the package
names, the name of the package can be preceded with the Internet domain name.
For instance, consider the following statement:
dpe.aet.package_name

In this statement, the package package_name is preceded by the domain

name dpe.aet.

9.3 DEFINING PACKAGES

To create a user-defined package, first a package must be declared using the

keyword package followed by the name of the package.
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The syntax to declare a package is as follows: Packages

package package_name;
where ,
package is the Java keyword NOTES
package_name is the name of the package.
Note: This statement must be the first statement in the Java source file.
Once the package is declared, we can define any number of classes that
will be a part of this package. For instance, consider the following code segment:
package packagename;
public class ClassName
{
//body of the class
}
The ClassName is the name of the class that will belong to the package
packagename. In Java, packages are stored in the file system directories. The
above code must be saved with the filename ClassName.java in a directory
named packagename. When the Java compiler compiles the source file, the
ClassName.class file is created and automatically stored in the same directory
packagename.
Note: Since Java is case sensitive, the name of the directory must exactly match with
the package name.
Like API packages, user-defined packages can be organized in a hierarchical
structure. The package names forming part of this structure are separated by using
dot (.) operator. For instance, consider this statement.
package mypackage1.mypackage2;

This package must be stored in mypackage1/mypackage2 directory. By

using multileveled package statement, the packages which are related to each
other can be grouped into a single package.
Note: If a Java package contains multiple classes, only one of them can be
declared as public and the source file is saved with the name of the public
class having .java extension.
When a source file having multiple class definitions is compiled, the compiler
creates separate .class file for each class.
Program 1: A program to demonstrate the creation of a package.
package mypackage;
class AreaRectangle
{
int length , breadth;
AreaRectangle(int l, int b)
{
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Packages length=l;
breadth=b;
int area=l*b;
System.out.println(“The area of rectangle is: “ +area);
NOTES
}
}
class SimplePackage
{
public static void main(String[] args)
{
AreaRectangle obj=new AreaRectangle(20,30);
}
}
Save this file as SimplePackage.java under the directory called
mypackage and compile this file. Now the file can be executed using the command
line as follows:
java mypackage.SimplePackage
We cannot execute it using the command line java SimplePackage because
SimplePackage is now a part of the mypackage package.

9.4 CLASSPATH

As packages in Java are stored in the file system directories, the Java run-time
system needs to know where to look for the package that we create. There are
two possible ways to locate a package. First, the Java run-time system by default
uses the current working directory. Second, a directory path or paths can be
specified by setting the CLASSPATH environmental variable.
The procedure required in order to set a CLASSPATH environmental
variable is as follows:

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 1. Right click on My Computer icon and then select Properties from the Packages

shortcut menu that appears. This displays the System Properties dialog
box with General as the active tab.
2. Click Advanced tab.
NOTES
3. Click the Environment Variables button. This displays the Environmental
Variables dialog box.
4. Click the New button in the User Variables section. This displays the
New User Variable dialog box as displayed in the screenshot.
5. Enter CLASSPATH as the variable name.
6. Enter the list of directories in your CLASSPATH as the value of the variable
with a semicolon to separate entries it the list.
7. Click OK to close the New User Variable dialog box.
8. Click OK to close the Environment Variables dialog box.
9. Click OK to close the System Properties dialog box.

9.5 ACCESSIBILITY OF PACKAGES USING

PACKAGE MEMBERS

The user-defined packages are accessed in the same way as Java standard
packages. For instance, to access a class MyClassName of a package named
mypackage1, the following statements can be used:
import mypackage1.MyClassName; //statement1
or
import mypackage1.*; //statement2
Thus, if statement 1 is used, all the members of MyClassName can be directly
accessed without having to use the package name anywhere in the program. The
asterisk (*) in statement 2 specifies that whenever the compiler has to find any
class, it should search it in the package mypackage1. This allows all the classes of
this package to be accessed directly. The main advantage of this approach is that
the long package names need not be used repeatedly in the program. However, the
disadvantage is that it becomes difficult to identify the package to which a particular
member belongs.
Using Package Members
Once the required package is imported in the program, the classes belonging to that
package can be used. To understand the concept of using the package, let us first
create a package (mypackagename1).
Program 2: A program to create mypackagename1.
package mypackagename1;
public class MyClassName1
{
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Packages public void firstresult()
{
System.out.println(“This is the first class’s result from
the first package”);
NOTES }
}
Save the source file as MyClassName1 .java in the subdirectory
mypackagename1. After compiling this file, the corresponding compiled file
MyClassName1.class will be stored in the same directory.
Program 3: A program to demonstrate the use of package mypackagename1.
import mypackagename1.MyClassName1;
class UsePackage
{
public static void main(String args[])
{
MyClassName1 obj=new MyClassName1();
obj.firstresult();
}
}

Output of the program:

This is the first class’s result from the first package
Now, consider another package; mypackagename2.
Program 4: A program to create mypackagename2.
package mypackagename2;
public class MyClassName2
{
public void secondresult()
{
System.out.println(“This is the second class’s result
from the second package”);
}
}

Program 5: A program to demonstrate importing multiple packages.

import mypackagename1.MyClassName1; //importing
MyClassName1
import mypackagename2.MyClassName2; //importing
MyClassName2
class UseMultiplePackage
{
public static void main(String[] args)
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 MyClassName1 obj1=new MyClassName1(); Packages
MyClassName2 obj2=new MyClassName2();
obj1.firstresult();
obj2.secondresult();
NOTES
}
}

Output of the program:

This is the first class’s result from the first package
This is the second class’s result from the second package
When multiple packages are imported, there is a chance of having more than one
package containing classes with the same name. For instance, consider the definitions
of two packages packagename1 and packagename2 having the same class name
FirstClass.
Program 6: A program to create packagename1.
package packagename1;
public class FirstClass
{
int i=10;
int j=20;
public void display1()
{
System.out.println(“The value of i and j in the first
package is: “+i+” and “+j);
}
}

Program 7: A program to create a packagename2.

package packagename2;
public class FirstClass
{
float p=3.4F;
float q=2.55F;
public void display2()
{
System.out.println(“The value of p and q in the second
package is: “+p+” and “+q);
}
}
Since both the packages contain the class FirstClass, the compiler will
not be able to decide which package to use, thereby causing an ambiguity. In such
a case, the class name must be preceded with the name of the package while
creating the objects of the concerned class.
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Packages Program 8: A program to demonstrate importing multiple packages having classes
with same name.
import packagename1.*;
import packagename2.*;
NOTES class SameClassName
{
public static void main(String[] args)
{
packagename1.FirstClass obj1=new
packagename1.FirstClass();
obj1.display1();
packagename2.FirstClass obj2=new
packagename2.FirstClass();
obj2.display2();
}
}

Output of the program:

The value of i and j in the first package is: 10 and 20
The value of p and q in the second package is: 3.4 and 2.55
In this illustration, the class FirstClass in the package packagename1
has the same name as the class in the package packagename2. While creating
the objects of the classes of each package, the class name is preceded by their
respective package names, thereby causing no ambiguity.

Check Your Progress

1. What is a package?
2. Write the statement for declaring a package named mypackage.
3. Which Java API package is automatically imported?
4. What is the use of import statement in Java?

9.6 ADDING A CLASS

A new class can be added to an already existing package. For instance, consider a
package called mypackage whose definition is as follows:
package mypackage;
public class MyClass1
{
// body of MyClass1
}
The package mypackage contains a public class MyClass1. Now, suppose
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we want to add another class MyClass2 to this package. A package cannot have
202 Material
more than one public class. If MyClass2 is non-public, then we can simply add its Packages
definition to the same source file as follows:
package mypackage;
public class MyClass1 //existing class
{ NOTES
// body of MyClass1
}
class MyClass2 //new class
{
// body of MyClass2
}
Now recompile this source file. The MyClass2.class file is created and
stored automatically in the package mypackage. Thus, mypackage contains two
classes MyClass1 and MyClass2.
However, if the class MyClass2 is a public class, we need to create this
class in a separate source file and declare the package statement at the top of the
source file as follows:
package mypackage;
public class MyClass2
{
// body of MyClass2
}
Compile this source file. The package mypackage will now contain
MyClass2.class file as well. Thus, if we want to create multiple public classes in
a package, we need to create a separate source file for each class and compile
them. After compilation, the package will contain the .class files of all the
source files.

9.7 HIDING A CLASS

All the classes in a package which are declared public are automatically imported,
when a package is imported using asterisk (*). However, most of the time, we like
to prevent some classes from being accessed outside the package. To hide such
classes, they should not be declared as public. For instance, consider a package
packagename.
Program 9: A program to create packagename.
package packagename;
public class FirstClass //accessible to all
{
int i;
int j;
public FirstClass(int a ,int b)
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Packages {
i=a;
j=b;
System.out.println(“The value of i and j is:”+i+” and
NOTES “+j);
}
}
class SecondClass //not public, hidden
{
int p;
int q;
SecondClass(int x,int y)
{
p=x;
q=y;
System.out.println(“The value of p and q is:”+p+” and
“+q);
}
}
The package packagename contains two classes, FirstClass, which is
public and a SecondClass, which is non-public. Since, the SecondClass is
not declared as public, it is hidden from the members outside the package
packagename. It can be accessed only by the classes which are inside the same
package packagename.
Program 10: A program to demonstrate the hiding of a class in a package.
import packagename.*;
class CallingClass
{
public static void main(String[] args)
{
FirstClass obj1=new FirstClass(20,30);
SecondClass obj2=new SecondClass(30,40); //
error
}
}
In this illustration, a compile-time error will be generated as the class
SecondClass is not public and cannot be imported.

9.8 PACKAGES AND VISIBILITY CONTROLS

There are three main access specifiers, namely private, public and protected
which provide various access levels. It is simplified as follows for easy reference.
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 Anything which is declared as private can be accessed only within the Packages
class. When a member is declared as public, it can be accessed everywhere. A
member declared as protected is accessible not only to all the classes and subclasses
in the same package but also to subclasses in other packages. However, a protected
member cannot be accessed by the non-subclasses of other packages. If no access NOTES
specifier is specified, by default, the data member of a class is visible only in the
classes of the same package.
To understand the concept of visibility controls with respect to package, let
us consider two packages pkg1 and pkg2.
Program 11: A program to create a package pkg1.
package pkg1;
public class CommonClass //superclass
{
int i=1;
private int j=2;
protected int k=3;
public int l=4;
int sum=0;
public CommonClass()
{
System.out.println(“Common Class Constructor”);
System.out.println(“ i = “ +i);
System.out.println(“ j = “ +j);
System.out.println(“ k = “ +k);
System.out.println(“ l = “ +l);
sum = (i+j+k+l);
System.out.println(“The summation of all members in
CommonClass is :” +sum);
}
}
class NextClass extends CommonClass //subclass
{
NextClass()
{
System.out.println(“Next Class Constructor”);
System.out.println(“ i = “ +i);
//System.out.println(“ j = “ +j);
System.out.println(“ k = “ +k);
System.out.println(“ l = “ +l);
sum = (i+k+l);
System.out.println(“The summation of all members in
NextClass is :” +sum);
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Material 205
Packages }
}

Program 12: A program to demonstrate the accessibility of members in the

NOTES package pkg1.
package pkg1;
class FinalClasses
{
public static void main(String args[])
{
NextClass obj1=new NextClass();
}
}

Output of the program:

Common Class Constructor
i = 1
j = 2
k = 3
l = 4
The summation of all members in CommonClass is :10
Next Class Constructor
i = 1
k = 3
l = 4
The summation of all members in NextClass is :8
All the variables except the private variable j can be accessed in the
subclass NextClass.
Program 13: A program to create a package pkg2.
package pkg2;
class SecondCommonClass extends pkg1.CommonClass
{
SecondCommonClass()
{
System.out.println(“Second Class Constructor”);
/*i declared as default in pkg1, so cannot be accessed in
pkg2*/
//System.out.println(“ i = “ +i);

/*j declared as private in pkg1, so cannot be accessed in

pkg2*/
//System.out.println(“ j = “ +j);
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 Packages
System.out.println(“ k = “ +k);
System.out.println(“ l = “ +l);
}
NOTES
}

Program 14: A program to demonstrate the accessibility of members of pkg1 in

pkg2.
package pkg2;
class PClasses
{
public static void main(String args[])
{
SecondCommonClass obj2 = new SecondCommonClass();
}
}

Output of the program:

Common Class Constructor
i = 1
j = 2
k = 3
l = 4
The summation of all members in CommonClass is: 10
Second Class Constructor
k = 3
l = 4
The class SecondCommonClass of package pkg2 is the subclass of
the class CommonClass of the first package pkg1. The private variable j and
default variable i cannot be accessed in pkg2 as they belong to package pkg1.
However, the protected variable k can be accessed in p k g 2 since
SecondCommonClass is the subclass of the class in package pkg1. The public
variable l in any case can be accessed everywhere.

Check Your Progress

5. How a new class is added to an existing package?
6. How will you add a public class to a package that already contains another
public class?

9.9 INTERFACE
An interface is quite similar to a class. The only difference is that it contains only
final variables and method declarations. Hence, an interface can be considered as a
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Material 207
Packages ‘fully abstract class’. There is no limitation to the number of interfaces that a class
can implement. An interface is defined like a class but instead of the keyword
class, the keyword interface is used.
The syntax to define an interface is as follows:
NOTES interface interface_name
{
//variables and methods declaration
}

where,
interface is the Java keyword
interface_name is the name of the interface
If there is no access specifier included in the interface definition, the default
access is used and the interface is visible only to the members of the same package.
However, to make the interface accessible in any other code, it can be declared as
public. The variables in an interface are by default static and final. Hence,
they cannot be altered by the implementing class. The methods are by default
abstract. All the methods must be implemented by the class which implements
the interface. For instance, consider the following code segment:
interface Area
{
double pi=3.142;
void compute();
}
The term Area is the name of the interface. The variable pi is initialized
with a constant value. It should be noted that the method compute() does not
have the body part and its declaration ends with a semicolon.
Note: If the interface is declared as public then, all the variables and methods are
implicitly public.

9.9.1 Implementing Interface

Once an interface is defined, it can be used as a superclass whose members and
properties can be inherited by other classes. One or more classes can implement
the interface by using the keyword implements in the class definition.
The syntax for implementing an interface is as follows:
class class_name implements interface_name
{
//variables and methods declarartion
}

For instance, consider the following code segment which implements the interface
Area.
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208 Material
 class Circle implements Area Packages
{
float r=4.3F;
public void compute()
NOTES
{
double carea=pi*r*r;
System.out.println(“The area of circle is: “
+carea);
}
}
When the methods in an interface are defined in the implementing class, the
public keyword must be used. Also, the signature of the method implementing
the interface must exactly match the signature of the method declaration in the
interface.
A class can implement more than one interface as displayed in the following example:
class class_name implements interface1, interface2
{
:
}

A class can extend another class while implementing interfaces as displayed

in the following example:
class class_name extends superclass implements
interface_name
{
:
}

Program 15: A program to demonstrate implementation of interface.

interface Area //interface
{
double pi=3.142;
void compute();
}
class Circle implements Area //implementing interface
{
float r=4.3F;
public void compute() //defining interface’s method
{
double carea=pi*r*r;
System.out.println(“The area of circle is: “
+carea);
}
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Packages }
class Sphere implements Area //implementing interface
{
float r=3.5F;
NOTES
public void compute() //defining interface’s method
{
double sarea =4*pi*r*r;
System.out.println(“The area of sphere is: “
+sarea);
}
}
class ImplementInterface
{
public static void main(String args[])
{
Circle cobj=new Circle();
Sphere sobj=new Sphere();
Area intobj;

intobj=cobj; //intobj refers to cobj

intobj.compute();

intobj=sobj; //intobj refers to sobj

intobj.compute();
}
}

Output of the program:

The area of circle is: 58.095585153885004
The area of sphere is: 153.958
In this illustration, the interface Area is implemented by two classes Circle
and Sphere. The method compute() of the interface is defined in both the
classes but in different ways. A reference variable intobj is declared which is
of type Area and is assigned the instances of Circle and Sphere. The
interface reference variable intobj can be used to access the method
compute()but it cannot be used to access any other members of the classes
Circle and Sphere as it has knowledge of only those methods which are
declared by its interface.
It should be noted that the method compute() can also be called through
the reference variables of class type, i.e., through cobj and sobj. In this case,
both the classes need to be present at compile-time. On the other hand, when we
call a method through interface reference, the method to be executed is resolved
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dynamically at run-time. This dynamic method resolution at run-time is one of the Packages
key features of interface.
Partial Implementations
If a class that implements the interface does not provide complete implementation NOTES
of the methods declared in the interface, then it is necessary for the class to be
declared as an abstract.
Program 16: Consider a class Square which implements the interface Area.
abstract class Square implements Area
{
float side=2.4;
double sqarea=side*side;
void display()
{
System.out.println(“The area of square is: “+sqarea);
}
}
The class Square is declared as abstract as it does not implement the
method compute() declared in Area. Any class that inherits Square must
implement compute() method or the class itself must be declared as abstract.
9.9.2 Extending Interfaces
An interface can inherit another interface by using the extends keyword in the
same way as a class inherits from another class. Like a class, a subinterface will
inherit all the properties of the superinterface and also add its own data members.
For instance, consider the following code segment.
interface Interface1
{
:
}
interface Interface2 extends Interface1
{
:
}

An interface can also inherit from more than one interface. To define an
interface that extends several interfaces, the names of the superinterfaces are
separated by a comma (,) as displayed here.
interface Interface3 extends Interface1, Interface2
{
:
}

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Material 211
Packages It should be noted that the methods declared in the superinterfaces cannot
be implemented by the subinterfaces. They must be implemented only by the class
which implements the interface. When a class implements an interface which is
inherited from another interface then the class must provide implementation for all
NOTES the methods declared in both the interfaces.
Program 17: A program to demonstrate extending of interface by another interface.
interface FirstInterface

{
int i=30;
void display1();
}
interface SecondInterface extends FirstInterface
{
int j=i+40;
void display2();
}
class ClassName implements SecondInterface
{
public void display1()
{
System.out.println(“The value of i is: “+i);
}
public void display2()
{
System.out.println(“The value of j is: “+j);
}
}
public class ExtendingInterface
{
public static void main(String[] args)
{
ClassName obj=new ClassName();
obj.display1();
obj.display2();
}
}

Output of the program:

The value of i is: 30
The value of j is: 70
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212 Material
 In this illustration, the class ClassName implements the interface Packages
SecondInterface, which is inherited from the interface FirstInterface.
Hence, ClassName provides implementation of both the methods display1()
and display2() of the FirstInterface and the SecondInterface
respectively. NOTES
Note: An interface cannot extend classes. It can only extend another interface. Also,
an interface cannot implement another interface.

9.9.3 Variables in Interfaces

An interface can be used to declare a set of constants that can be used by the
classes implementing the interface. It is same as creating header files in C/C++
which contains a large number of constants.
Program 18: A program to demonstrate implementation of interface having only
constant values.
interface SetOfConstants
{
int red=0;
int green=1;
int blue=2;
}

class UsingConstants implements SetOfConstants

{
void display()
{
int color=2;
switch(color)
{
case red:
System.out.println(“The color is red”);
break;
case green:
System.out.println(“The color is green”);
break;
case blue:
System.out.println(“The color is blue”);
break;
}
}
}
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Material 213
Packages public class InterfaceConstants
{
public static void main(String[] args)
{
NOTES
UsingConstants obj=new UsingConstants();
obj.display();

}
}

Output of the program:

The color is blue

9.9.4 Interface and Abstract Classes

Interface and abstract class are similar in the way that neither interface nor abstract
class can be instantiated. However, there are certain differences between them,
which are as follows:
 An interface can contain only final members and abstract methods, whereas
an abstract class can contain non-final and final members and both abstract
and concrete methods. Thus, it can be concluded that an interface is a fully
abstract class.
 While an interface is defined by using the keyword interface, an abstract
class is defined using the abstract keyword.
 All the methods in an interface must be implemented by the class which
implements the interface, whereas the methods in the abstract class need
not be implemented by the class that extends the abstract class. If the class
which extends the abstract class does not implement the methods, then the
class itself must be declared as abstract.
 A class can inherit only one abstract class whereas a class can implement
more than one interface.
 Members in an interface are by default public, whereas members in an
abstract class can be private as well as protected.
9.9.5 Extends and Implements Together
By now you are familiar with the concept of interface. Now let us have a look at
how interface can be used to implement multiple inheritance by taking a simple
example. In this illustration, the class Faculty extends a class Employee and
implements an interface Bonus.
Program 19: A program to demonstrate implementation of multiple inheritance
through interface.
class Person
{
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214 Material
 String name; Packages
int age;
String address;
void persondetails(String nm, int ag, String add)
NOTES
{
name=nm;
age=ag;
address=add;
}
void displayperson()
{
System.out.println(“Name: “+name);
System.out.println(“Age: “+age);
System.out.println(“Address: “+address);
}
}
class Employee extends Person
{
int empid;
int salary;
void empdetails(int id,int sal)
{
empid=id;
salary=sal;
}
void displayemployee()
{
System.out.println(“Empid: “+empid);
System.out.println(“Salary: “+salary);
}
}
interface Bonus
{
int bonus=1000;
void compute();
}
class Faculty extends Employee implements Bonus
{
int amount;
public void compute()
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Material 215
Packages {
System.out.println(“The bonus is: “+bonus);
amount=salary+bonus;
}
NOTES
void facultydetails()
{
displayperson();
displayemployee();
compute();
System.out.println(“The total amount is: “+amount);
}
}
public class MultipleInheritance
{
public static void main(String[] args)
{
Faculty obj=new Faculty();
obj.persondetails(“Surabhi”,23,”115,Greenfield Apartment.
Patparganj,New Delhi-110092");
obj.empdetails(001,20000);
obj.facultydetails();

System.out.println(“”);

obj.persondetails(“Mili”,27,”D-50,Old Gupta Colony,Delhi-

110009");

obj.empdetails(002,30000);
obj.facultydetails();
}
}

Output of the program:

Name: Surabhi
Age: 23
Address: 115, Greenfield Apartment, Patparganj,New Delhi-
110092
Empid: 1
Salary: 20000
The bonus is: 1000
The total amount is: 21000

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216 Material
 Name: Mili Packages
Age: 27
Address: D-50,Old Gupta Colony,Delhi-110009
Empid: 2
NOTES
Salary: 30000
The bonus is: 1000
The total amount is: 31000

Check Your Progress

7. How does an interface differ from a class?
8. What is the difference between implements and extends keyword?

9.10 ANSWERS TO CHECK YOUR PROGRESS

QUESTIONS

1. A package is a named collection of classes.

2. The statement for declaring a package named mypackage is package
mypackage;
3. java.lang package is automatically imported.
4. The import statement can be used to access a particular package in a
program.
5. A new class can be added to an already existing package. For instance,
consider a package called mypackage whose definition is as follows:
package mypackage;
public class MyClass1
{
// body of MyClass1
}

6. We can add a public class to a package that already contains another public
class by creating a separate source file for the class to be added and declaring
the package statement at the top of the file.
7. Unlike a class, an interface contains only final variables and method
declarations.
8. The implements keyword is used by the class to implement an interface.
The extends keyword is used by the class to inherit another class and it is
used by the interface to inherit another interface.

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Packages
9.11 SUMMARY

 A package is a named collection of classes. Any number of related classes

NOTES can be grouped into a single package. The classes which belong to a package
of another program can be easily reused. Two classes in two different
packages can have the same name.
 Java packages are categorized into two types, namely, API packages and
user-defined packages. API (Application Programming Interface) packages
are the standard packages available in Java which contain all the standard
classes. Java also allows the users to create their own packages known as
user-defined packages.
 Popular packages include java.lang, java.io, java.awt,
java.applet, java.util and java.sql.
 There are certain Java naming conventions that can be used for naming
packages. The names of the packages and classes or interfaces should be
such that it is easier to distinguish between the two. According to the
conventions, names of packages start with a lowercase letter, whereas names
of classes begin with an uppercase letter.
 To create a user-defined package, a package must be first declared using
the keyword package followed by the name of the package. The package
statement must be the first statement in the Java source file. Once the
package is declared, we can define any number of classes which will be a
part of the package.
 As packages in Java are stored in the file system directories, the Java run-
time system needs to know where to look for the package that we create.
There are two possible ways to locate a package. First, the Java run-time
system, by default, uses the current working directory. Second, a directory
path or paths can be specified by setting the CLASSPATH environmental
variable.
 If a Java package contains multiple classes, only one of them can be declared
as public and the source file is saved with the name of the public
class having a .java extension. When a source file having multiple class
definitions is compiled, the compiler creates a separate .class file for
each class.
 Both the API packages and user-defined packages can be accessed using
the import statement. Once the required package is imported in the
program, the classes belonging to that package can be used.
 We can hide the class in a package by not declaring it public to prevent
it from being accessed outside the package.
 Java provides an approach known as interface as a convenient alternative
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to implement multiple inheritance.
218 Material
  An interface is just like a class. The difference between an interface and a Packages

class is that an interface contains only final variables and method declarations.
 An interface is defined just like a class but rather than using the keyword
class, the keyword interface is used. One or more classes can
NOTES
implement the interface by using the keyword implements in the class
definition.
 All the methods must be implemented by the class which implements the
interface. If a class that implements the interface does not provide complete
implementation of the methods declared in the interface, then it is necessary
for the class to be declared as abstract.
 An interface can inherit another interface by using the extends keyword
in the same way as a class inherits from another class.
 An interface can be used to declare a set of constants that can be used by
the classes implementing the interface.

9.12 KEY WORDS

 Package: A named collection of classes.

 API (Application Programming Interface) packages: The standard
packages available in Java which contain all of the standard classes.
 User-defined packages: Packages that are created by the users.
 Inheritance:The mechanism used to define a new class in terms of one or
more existing classes.

9.13 SELF ASSESSMENT QUESTIONS AND

EXERCISES

Short-Answer Questions
1. What are the advantages of using a package?
2. What are the steps for creating a package? How do you access a particular
package in your file?
3. Consider a program to import a package person with all its classes. Identify
and correct the error, if any.
import person;
class ImportDemo
{
public static void main(String[] args)
{
FirstClass obj=new FirstClass();
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Material 219
Packages }
}

4. What do you mean by partial implementation? Explain with example.

NOTES 5. State the difference between an interface and an abstract class.
6. Define interface. What are the differences and the similarities between a
class and an interface?
Long-Answer Questions
1. Which of the following will generate an error and why?
(a) Interface1 extends Interface2
{
:
}
(b) Class1 implements Interface1
{
:
}
(c) Interface1 extends Class1
{
:
}
(d) Class1 extends Class2 implements Interface1
{
:
}
2. Consider the following code.
interface InterfaceName
{
int i=10;
void display();
}
class ClassName implements InterfaceName
{
void display()
{
System.out.println(“ The value of i is: “ +i);

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220 Material
 } Packages
}
class Demo
{
NOTES
public static void main(String[] args)

{
ClassName obj=new ClassName();
obj.display();
}
}

Will the code compile successfully? Justify your answer.

3. Correct the code to remove the compile-time error.
interface InterfaceName
{
int a=30;
void result();
}
class Class1 implements InterfaceName
{
public void result()
{
System.out.println(“The value of a is: “+a);
}
}
class Class2 implements InterfaceName
{
public void show()
{
System.out.println(“This is Class2”);
}
}
public class SimpleInterface
{
public static void main(String args[])
{
Class1 obj1=new Class1();
Class2 obj2=new Class2();
obj1.result();

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Material 221
Packages obj2.show();
}
}

NOTES 4. ‘Java supports the concept of multiple inheritance through interface’. Explain
in detail by giving an example.
5. Consider two packages p1 and p2. The variable i of package p1 is accessed
in package p2. Will this program compile successfully? Justify your answer.
package p1;
public class A
{
protected int i=30;
}
class B extends A
{
System.out.println(“The value of i is “ +i);
}
package p2;
public class C extends p1.A
{
System.out.println(“The value of i is “ +(i+1));
}

6. Explain the steps for creating multiple public classes in a single package?

9.14 FURTHER READINGS

Krishnamoorty, R. and Prabhu R. Krishnamoorty. 2009. Internet and Java

Programming. New Delhi: New Age International (P) Ltd.
Balagurusamy, E. 2007. Programming with Java, Third Edition. New Delhi:
Tata McGraw-Hill.
Das, Rashmi Kant. 2009. Core Java for Beginners, Revised Edition. New Delhi:
Vikas Publishing House Pvt. Ltd.
Keogh, Jim. 2002. The Complete Reference J2SE, Fifth Edition. New York:
Tata McGraw-Hill.
Naughton, Patrick and Herbert Schidt. 1999. Java 2: The Complete Reference,
Third Edition. New Delhi: Tata McGraw-Hill.

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 Multithreaded Programming
BLOCK - IV
MULTITHEREADING, EXCEPTION AND APPLETS

NOTES
UNIT 10 MULTITHREADED
PROGRAMMING
Structure
10.0 Introduction
10.1 Objectives
10.2 Concept of Threads
10.2.1 Main Thread
10.3 Creating Threads
10.3.1 Extending Threads
10.3.2 Implementing Runnable Interface
10.4 Life Cycle of a Thread
10.5 Thread Methods
10.5.1 Using yield(), sleep() and stop() Methods
10.5.2 Using isAlive() and join() Methods
10.6 Thread Exceptions
10.7 Thread Priority
10.8 Synchronization of Threads
10.8.1 Synchronizing Methods
10.8.2 Synchronizing Statements
10.8.3 Deadlock
10.9 Inter-Thread Communication
10.10 Suspending, Resuming and Stopping Threads
10.11 Answers to Check Your Progress Questions
10.12 Summary
10.13 Key Words
10.14 Self Assessment Questions and Exercises
10.15 Further Readings

10.0 INTRODUCTION

Most of the modern operating systems support multitasking—the ability to execute

multiple programs simultaneously. Java’s multithreading is a specialized form of
multitasking. Multithreading is a programming concept in which a program (process)
is divided into two or more subprograms (subprocesses), each of which can perform
different tasks concurrently. For example, one subprogram can format the text in
the text editor while another subprogram is printing the same.
In this unit, you will study about multithreaded programming, creating threads,
extending the thread class, stopping and blocking a thread, life cycle of a thread,
using thread methods, thread exceptions, priority, synchronization and implementing
the ‘runnable’ interface. Self-Instructional
Material 223
Multithreaded Programming
10.1 OBJECTIVES
After going through this unit, you will be able to:
NOTES  Understand the concept of threads
 Learn about the process of creating threads
 Analyse the life cycle of a thread
 Know about thread methods, exceptions and priority
 Comprehend the synchronization of threads
 Learn about inter-thread communication
 Know about suspending, resuming and stopping threads

10.2 CONCEPT OF THREADS

The programs that you have learned about so far contain only a single sequential
flow of control, that is, the program simply starts, performs a series of operations
and ends. There is only one statement under execution at any given point of time.
A thread is just like a program which has a single flow of control. It also has a
starting point, an execution part and an end. Java also allows you to use multiple
flows of control in a program. Such a program is known as a multithreaded program.
In a multithreaded program, each thread is a separate tiny module which runs
parallely with other threads. Running parallely does not mean that they are running
at the same time. Most of the time, the threads run on the single processor, and
only one thread is executed at a given time. However, the switching from one
thread to another occurs so fast that it gives an illusion to the user that all the
threads are being executed at the same time. Threads are called lightweight
processes because all the threads in the main application program share the same
address space in the memory.
There are several advantages of using multithreaded programs over single-
threaded programs. In a traditional single-threaded environment, the CPU sits
idle most of the time, as the program has to wait for each task to be completed
before proceeding to the next task. In a multithreaded environment, since different
tasks can be assigned to different threads, the program makes maximum utilization
of the CPU keeping its idle time to a minimum. For example, one thread can read
data, another can process it and a third thread can write it, thus improving the
overall performance. Multithreading is best-suited for those applications that require
multiple tasks to be done simultaneously.
10.2.1 Main Thread
Java programs always contain at least one thread even if you do not create any
threads. This thread is called the main thread, which immediately starts executing
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224 Material
when you start a program. The main thread can be used to create and start other Multithreaded Programming

child threads and it must be the last thread to finish execution because it performs
various other actions such as shutdown and releasing resources which are used by
the program. The main thread is created automatically but it can be controlled
through a Thread object. For this, its reference is needed which can be obtained NOTES
by calling the method currentThread(), which is a public static member
of the Thread class. This method returns a reference to the thread on which it
is called. You can control the main thread just like any other thread, once you have
a reference to it.

10.3 CREATING THREADS

In Java, threads can be created in the two following ways:

 By defining a class that extends the Thread class
 By implementing the Runnable interface
In both the approaches, threads are implemented in the form of objects which
contain a method called run(). It is the most important method in the Thread
class. It is the entry point of a new thread and it is the place where the task to be
performed by the thread is defined. The execution of a thread starts with the call to
the run() method. The run() method is automatically invoked when you
invoke another method of the Thread class called start().
10.3.1 Extending Threads
You can create a thread by creating a new class that extends the Thread class
defined in java.lang package and creating an instance of the class. The
extending class must override the run() method. Inside the run() method,
the code that needs to be executed by the thread is defined.
The code segment to extend the Thread class and override the run() method
is
class ThreadName extends Thread
{
public void run()
{
: // code for the new thread
}
}
Now the instance of the class ThreadName can be created and run using the
following statements:
ThreadName objectname=new ThreadName();
objectname.start();

The second statement invokes the start() method after which the thread will
be ready to run. It will start running once the Java runtime invokes the run()
method. Self-Instructional
Material 225
Multithreaded Programming Program 1: A program to demonstrate creating threads by extending the Thread
class
class Thread1 extends Thread
{
NOTES public void run() //entry point of Thread1
{
int i=0;
while(i<5)
{
System.out.println(“First Child Thread:”+i);
i=i+1;
}
System.out.println(“\t First child exited”);
}
}
class Thread2 extends Thread
{
public void run() //entry point of Thread2
{
int j=0;
while(j<5)
{
System.out.println(“Second Child Thread:”+j);
j=j+1;
}
System.out.println(“\t Second child exited”);
}
}

class ExtendingThread
{
public static void main(String[] args)
{
Thread1 firstthread=new Thread1();
firstthread.start(); // starts the first thread
Thread2 secondthread=new Thread2();
secondthread.start(); // starts the second thread

int k=0;
while(k<5)
{
System.out.println(“Main Thread:”+k);
k=k+1;
}
System.out.println(“\t Main thread exiting”);
}
}
Output of the program:
First Child Thread:0
Main Thread:0
Second Child Thread:0
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226 Material
 First Child Thread:1 Multithreaded Programming
Main Thread:1
Second Child Thread:1
First Child Thread:2
NOTES
Main Thread:2
Second Child Thread:2
First Child Thread:3
Main Thread:3
Second Child Thread:3
First Child Thread:4
Main Thread:4
Second Child Thread:4
First child exited
Main thread exiting
Second child exited

When you start the program, the main thread immediately starts running. The main
thread then starts two child threads Thread1 and Thread2, both of which
perform different tasks. Once the main thread reaches the end of the main()
method, there will be altogether three threads running concurrently on their own,
in the program, Thread1, Thread2 and the main thread. These three threads
will run independently whenever the CPU is available for them. There is no specific
order of their execution. Hence, the program may generate a different output every
time you run it.
10.3.2 Implementing Runnable Interface
Another way of creating a thread is to create a class that implements the Runnable
interface. The Runnable interface consists of a single method run(), which
is required for implementing a thread. You will create a thread and pass the object
of the class that implements the Runnable interface as an argument of the
Thread class’s constructor. The thread will now be activated by calling the
start() method. Implementing Runnable is much more convenient than
extending a Thread class when a program needs to inherit from a class apart
from the Thread class since Java allows only a single base class.
The code segment to implement Runnable interface is as follows:
class MyNewThread implements Runnable
{
public void run()
{
: // code for the new thread
}
}
Self-Instructional
Material 227
Multithreaded Programming Program 2: A program to demonstrate creating threads by implementing
Runnable interface
class MyNewThread implements Runnable // implements
Runnable
NOTES {
public void run() // implements run()
method
{
int i=0;
while(i<=4)
{
System.out.println(“Child Thread: “+i);
i++;
}
}
}
class RunnableInterface
{
public static void main(String[] args)
{
/*an object of class implementing Runnable
interface*/
MyNewThread runnableobj=new MyNewThread();

/*an object of Thread class taking runnable object

as argument*/
Thread threadobj=new Thread(runnableobj);
threadobj.start();
int j=0;
while(j<=4)
{
System.out.println(“Main Thread: “+j);
j++;
}
System.out.println(“Main Thread Exiting”);
}
}
Output of the program:
Main Thread: 0
Child Thread: 0
Main Thread: 1
Child Thread: 1
Main Thread: 2
Child Thread: 2
Main Thread: 3
Child Thread: 3
Main Thread: 4

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228 Material
 Child Thread: 4 Multithreaded Programming
Main Thread Exiting

In this example, MyNewThread is a class which implements the Runnable

interface. Inside the main() method, an instance runnableobj of NOTES
MyNewThread is created which is passed as an argument to the Thread
class’s constructor. When the new thread starts, the run() method of
runnableobj is called.

Check Your Progress

1. Define a thread.
2. Why are threads known as lightweight processes?
3. What is the main thread used for?
4. What does the Runnable interface consist of?

10.4 LIFE CYCLE OF A THREAD

A Java thread enters various states during its life cycle. They are as follows:
1. Newborn
2. Runnable
3. Running
4. Blocked
5. Dead
A thread is always in one of these five states. The thread can transit from one state
to another as shown in Figure 10.1.

suspend()
Running sleep()
start()
wait()
Newborn
yield() Blocked
resume()
Runnable notify()

stop() stop()
stop()

Dead

Fig. 10.1 Life Cycle of a Thread

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Material 229
Multithreaded Programming 1. Newborn state: When a thread is created, it enters a state called the newborn
state. It is the first state in the life cycle of a thread in which the thread is not yet
ready to run. During this stage, you can either schedule the thread for running by
calling the start() method or kill it by using the stop() method. We cannot
NOTES use any other method in the newborn state as it will throw exception.
2. Runnable state: The thread enters the runnable state when it is ready to run
and is waiting for the CPU to be allocated to it. Whenever a thread is ready to run,
it is placed in the queue of threads that are waiting for the availability of the CPU.
The thread scheduler picks one of the threads in the queue based on their priority.
If all the threads in the queue have equal priority, the scheduler gives time slots for
execution in a round–robin fashion. A thread can voluntarily give up its turn and
give the control to another thread of equal priority using a static method called
yield(). It then joins the queue at the end and waits for its turn to come.
3. Running state: A thread is said to be in the running state when it gets the
processor for execution, that is, when the thread scheduler picks it to be the
currently executing thread. The thread will be executed by the processor and will
keep running until it gets preempted by a thread of higher priority or it gives up the
control in one of the following conditions:
(i) When being suspended using the suspend() method: If you want to
suspend a thread for sometime but do not want to kill it, then you can use
the suspend() method. The suspended thread can be brought back to
the execution state by invoking a method called resume().
(ii) When it is made to sleep using the sleep() method: The sleep()
method makes the thread sleep for a specific period of time. The thread will
automatically return back to its execution state once the specified time has
elapsed.
(iii) When it is made to wait using the wait() method: A thread can be
made to wait until some events occur by calling the wait() method. You
can make the thread run again by using the notify() method.
4. Blocked state: A thread is in a blocked state when the thread is either
suspended, sleeping or waiting. The thread in this state is not considered dead, so
it can re-enter the runnable state and subsequently run if the CPU is available.
5. Dead state: A thread is said to be in the dead state if its run() method is
completed and it has been killed deliberately by invoking the stop() method at
any state. Once a thread enters the dead state, it cannot re-enter any other state
even if the start() method is invoked.

10.5 THREAD METHODS

You have seen the usage of the start() and run() method. There are various
other methods of the Thread class. They are yield(), sleep(), stop(),
isAlive() and join() method.
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10.5.1 Using yield(), sleep() and stop() Methods Multithreaded Programming

The yield(), sleep() and stop() methods are responsible for controlling
the behaviour of a thread and the transition of thread from one state to another.
The general form of sleep() method is: NOTES
static void sleep(long milliseconds) throws Interrupted
Exception

where, milliseconds is the number of milliseconds to suspend. As the

sleep() method throws an exception, the call to sleep() method must be
enclosed in a try block followed by a catch block otherwise, the program
will not compile.
The general form of stop() method is:
static void stop()

The general form of yield() method is:

static void yield()

Program 3: A program to demonstrate the use of yield(), sleep() and

stop() method
class Thread1 extends Thread
{
public void run()
{
int i=0;
while(i<5)
{
if(i==2)
yield(); //calls yield() method on Thread1
System.out.println(“First Child Thread:”+i);
i=i+1;
}
System.out.println(“\t First child exited”);
}
}
class Thread2 extends Thread
{
public void run()
{
int j=0;
while(j<5)
{

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Material 231
Multithreaded Programming System.out.println(“Second Child Thread:”+j);
if(j==3)
stop(); //calls stop() method on Thread2
j=j+1;
NOTES
}
System.out.println(“\t Second child exited”);
}
}
class Thread3 extends Thread
{
public void run()
{
int k=0;
while(k<5)
{
System.out.println(“Third Child Thread:”+k);
if(k==3)
try
{
sleep(1000); /*calls sleep() method on
Thread3*/
}
catch(Exception e)
{
}
k=k+1;
}
System.out.println(“\t Third child exited”);
}
}
class ThreadMethods
{
public static void main(String[] args)
{
Thread1 th1=new Thread1();
Thread2 th2=new Thread2();
Thread3 th3=new Thread3();
th1.start();
th2.start();
th3.start();
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 int k=0; Multithreaded Programming
while(k<5)
{
System.out.println(“Main Thread:”+k);
NOTES
try
{
Thread.sleep(1000);
}
catch(Exception e)
{
System.out.println(“Main Thread
interrupted”);
}
k=k+1;
}
System.out.println(“\t Main thread exiting”);

}
}

Output of the program:

First Child Thread:0
First Child Thread:1
Main Thread:0
First Child Thread:2
First Child Thread:3
First Child Thread:4
First child exited
Second Child Thread:0
Second Child Thread:1
Second Child Thread:2
Second Child Thread:3
Third Child Thread:0
Third Child Thread:1
Third Child Thread:2
Third Child Thread:3
Main Thread:1
Third Child Thread:4
Third child exited
Main Thread:2
Main Thread:3
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Material 233
Multithreaded Programming Main Thread:4
Main thread exiting

In this example, although Thread1 started first, it relinquishes its control after
NOTES implementing the while loop only two times, as the yield() method is invoked.
Thread2 starts running and it is killed by invoking the stop() method.
Thread3 while running, goes to sleep for 1000 milliseconds on the invocation
of sleep() method.
10.5.2 Using isAlive() and join() Methods
As stated earlier, the main thread must often be the last thread to terminate since it
performs several other tasks. For this, you can invoke the sleep() method
within the main() method. However, it is not considered to be a good approach
as the main thread has no information regarding the time when a child thread will
finish its execution. In this case, the main thread has to sleep for a period long
enough to assure the termination of child threads prior to its termination. For
example, if the main thread is made to sleep for 2500 milliseconds and the child
threads altogether take 1000 milliseconds to terminate, then there will be a delay
of 1500 milliseconds for the main thread to terminate. Thus, it is necessary for the
main thread to know when the child threads have finished. There are two ways to
determine whether a thread has ended:
First, you can call the isAlive() method. The general form of
isAlive() method is
final boolean isAlive()

This method is used to test whether a thread is still alive. It returns true if
the thread is running, otherwise it returns false. The isAlive() method is
used occasionally.
The method which is more commonly used to wait for a thread to finish is
the join() method. The general form of join() method is
final void join() throws InterruptedException

This method is used to halt the execution of current thread (calling thread)
until the thread on which the method is called terminates. It ensures that the current
thread will wait until the called thread finishes its execution. There is another form
of join()method which takes the parameter in milliseconds, which is
the maximum amount of time that a thread can wait for the specified thread to
terminate. As the join() method throws an exception, it must be enclosed in a
try block followed by a catch block.

1.6 THREAD EXCEPTIONS

The sleep() method in a Java program is always enclosed in the try block
that is followed by a catch block. The try-catch block handles the exception
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234 Material
that the sleep() method throws. The program does not compile, if you do Multithreaded Programming

not catch the exception.

The Java run environment throws illegalThreadStateException,
whenever you invoke a method that a thread cannot handle in its present state. For NOTES
example, a sleeping thread cannot work with the resume() method, because a
sleeping thread cannot receive any instructions. An appropriate exception handler is
used to catch the exceptions that a Java method throws. The syntax for the try
block is:
try
{
sleep(t)
}

The try statement is followed by the appropriate catch block. The four types
of catch statement are:
 Type 1:
catch (ThreadDeath e)
{
// Kill the thread
}
 Type 2:
catch (InterruptedException e)
{
// Cannot handle it in this current state
}
 Type 3:
catch (IllegalArgumentException e)
{
// Illegal method arguments
}
 Type 4:
catch (Exception e)
{
// Any others exceptions
}

Check Your Progress

5. List the parameters to handle thread exceptions using catch statements.
6. When does the thread enter the runnable state?
7. State the various methods of the Thread class.
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Multithreaded Programming
10.7 THREAD PRIORITY

The threads you have seen so far are of equal priority in which the Java scheduler
NOTES selects the thread for execution by the first-come-first-serve basis. However, each
thread can be assigned for a different priority which will decide the order in which
it is scheduled for running. Priorities are the integers which specify the relative
priority of one thread to another. When a thread is created, it inherits its priority
from the thread that created it. However, the priority of a thread can be changed
by using the setPriority() method of the Thread class.
The syntax to set the priority of a thread is
ThreadName.setPriority(n);

where, n is an integer value which ranges from MIN_PRIORITY (1) and

MAX_PRIORITY (10). The default priority is NORM_PRIORITY whose value
is 5. MIN_PRIORITY, MAX_PRIORITY and NORM_PRIORITY are
the constants defined in Thread class.
When there are multiple threads ready to be executed, the highest priority
thread is chosen and executed. Only when the high priority thread stops, yields or
enters the blocked state, the low priority thread starts running. However, if any
higher priority thread enters, it will preempt the currently running thread forcing it
to move to the runnable state.
Program 4: A program to demonstrate the assigning of priority to a thread
class Thread1 extends Thread
{
public void run() //entry point of the Thread1
{
int i=0;
while(i<5)
{
System.out.println(“First Child Thread:”+i);
i=i+1;
}
System.out.println(“\t First child exited”);
}
}
class Thread2 extends Thread
{
public void run() //entry point of the Thread2
{
int j=0;
while(j<5)
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 { Multithreaded Programming
System.out.println(“Second Child Thread:”+j);
j=j+1;
}
NOTES
System.out.println(“\t Second child exited”);
}
}
class ThreadPriority
{
public static void main(String[] args)
{
Thread1 firstthread=new Thread1();
Thread2 secondthread=new Thread2();
// Thread2 assigned highest priority
secondthread.setPriority(Thread.MAX_PRIORITY);

// Thread1 assigned lowest priority

firstthread.setPriority(Thread.MIN_PRIORITY);

firstthread.start();
secondthread.start();
System.out.println(“\t Main Thread Exiting”);
}
}

Output of the program:

Second Child Thread:0
Second Child Thread:1
Second Child Thread:2
Second Child Thread:3
Second Child Thread:4
Second child exited
Main Thread Exiting
First Child Thread:0
First Child Thread:1
First Child Thread:2
First Child Thread:3
First Child Thread:4
First child exited

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Material 237
Multithreaded Programming The first child thread Thread1 has been assigned the minimum priority and the
second child thread Thread2 has been assigned the maximum priority. So
despite Thread1 being the first on which the start() method is called, its
output is printed in the last as it has been preempted by the higher priority thread,
NOTES Thread2.
Note: The amount of CPU time a thread gets depends not only on its priority but
also on other factors such as how an operating system implements multithreading.

Check Your Progress

8. What are the main constants defined in the Thread class?
9. In what cases does the low priority thread start running?

10.8 SYNCHRONIZATION OF THREADS

When multiple threads need access to a single resource, there must be a way to
ensure that only one thread will use the resource at any given point of time,
otherwise, it may lead to a severe problem. For example, if one thread in a program
reads salary from a file and another thread tries to update it, then the program may
produce an undesirable output. The solution to this problem can be achieved by
using a technique known as synchronization. The objective of synchronization is to
control the access to shared resources.
Synchronization uses the concept of monitor. A monitor is an object which
is used as a mutually exclusive lock. That is, it can be owned by only one thread at
any given point of time. A thread is said to have entered the monitor when it
acquires a lock. Any other thread which attempts to acquire the lock has to wait
until the first thread comes out of the monitor. There are two ways to implement
synchronization:
1. Synchronizing methods
2. Synchronizing statements
10.8.1 Synchronizing Methods
You can synchronize a subset (or all) of the methods of any class by using the
synchronized keyword. When a method is declared as synchronized, Java
creates a monitor. To enter the monitor, you need to call a synchronized method.
Only one of the synchronized methods in a class object can execute at any given
time. Java hands over the monitor to the thread that calls the method first. As long
as a thread is inside a synchronized method, other threads trying to call it (or any
other synchronized method) on the same instance have to wait. Only when the
currently executing thread finishes executing and exits the monitor can another
waiting thread enter the monitor.
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The syntax to declare a method as synchronized is Multithreaded Programming

synchronized data_type method_name()

{
// code for the method
NOTES
}

To understand synchronization, let us first consider a program which is not

synchronized.
Program 5: A program to demonstrate synchronized method
class A
{
synchronized void display(String msg)
{
System.out.print(“(“ +msg);
try
{
Thread.sleep(1000);
}catch(InterruptedException e)
{
System.out.println(“Interrupted”);
}
System.out.println(“)”);
}
}
class MyThread extends Thread
{
String str;
A obj;
MyThread (A obj1,String s)
{
obj=obj1;
str=new String (s);
}
public void run()
{
obj.display(str);
}
}

class SynchronizedMethod
{
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Multithreaded Programming public static void main(String[] args)
{
A obj=new A();
MyThread th1=new MyThread(obj,”THIS”);
NOTES
MyThread th2=new MyThread(obj,”IS”);
MyThread th3=new MyThread(obj,”SYNCHRONIZATION”);

th1.start();
th2.start();
th3.start();
}
}

Output of the program:

(THIS)
(IS)
(SYNCHRONIZATION)

Note: Once a thread is in synchronized method on an instance, no other thread

can enter any other synchronized method on the same instance. However,
simultaneous execution of synchronized methods is possible for two different
instance of the same class.
10.8.2 Synchronizing Statements
Another way of managing the execution of the thread is to synchronize a block of
code or statement as this is more powerful. Synchronizing a method does not
work in all cases. For example, the class you want to access is created by someone
else, which does not have synchronized methods and you do not have the access
rights to modify it. In this case, the access to objects of this class can be synchronized
by placing the call to the methods defined by this class inside a synchronized
block. However, two block of codes synchronized on the same instance cannot
execute at the same time.
The general form to synchronize a block of code is
synchronized(object)
{
//statements to be synchronized
}

where,
object is a reference to the object being synchronized.

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10.8.3 Deadlock Multithreaded Programming

Deadlock is a situation that occurs when two or more threads are in a simultaneous
wait state and each of them is waiting for the release of a resource held by one of
the other waiting threads. For example, consider the following code segments. NOTES
Thread X: Thread Y:
run() run()
{ {
synchronized(obj1) synchronized(obj2)
{ {
sleep(1000); sleep(1000);
obj2.method2(); obj1.method1();
} }

} }

First, Thread X starts and synchronizes on the object obj1 which prevents
other threads to call the methods of obj1. Thread X then goes to sleep by
calling the sleep() method and allows Thread Y to start. Thread Y
starts and synchronizes on the object obj2. This prevents method of obj2 to
be called by any other thread. Thread Y goes to sleep on the invocation of
sleep() method allowing Thread X to wake up. Thread X continues
execution and tries to call method2() on obj2 but it cannot call the method
on obj2 until the code in Thread Y that is synchronized on obj2 finishes
execution. As Thread X cannot proceed, Thread Y gets the control and
tries to call method1() on obj1 which is not possible until the code in Thread
X that is synchronized on obj1 finishes its execution. Here, neither of the threads
can continue because they are deadlocked.
Program 6: A program to demonstrate deadlock
class A
{
void display1( A obj2)
{
System.out.println(“First thread waiting for second
thread to release the resource”);
synchronized(obj2)
{
System.out.println(“Deadlocked”);
}
}
void display2(A obj1)
{
System.out.println(“Second thread waiting for first
thread to release the resource”);
synchronized(obj1)
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Material 241
Multithreaded Programming {
System.out.println(“Deadlocked”);
}
}
NOTES
}
class Thread1 extends Thread
{
A obj1,obj2;
Thread1(A i,A j)
{
obj1=i;
obj2=j;
}
public void run()
{
synchronized(obj1)
{
try
{
sleep(1000);
}
catch(Exception e)
{
System.out.println(e);
}
obj2.display1(obj2);
}
}
}
class Thread2 extends Thread
{
A obj1,obj2;
Thread2(A p,A q)
{
obj1=p;
obj2=q;
}
public void run()
{
synchronized(obj2)
Self-Instructional
{
242 Material
 try Multithreaded Programming
{
sleep(1000);
}
NOTES
catch(Exception e)
{
System.out.println(e);
}
obj1.display2(obj1);
}
}
}
class Deadlock
{
public static void main(String args[])
{
A obj1=new A();
A obj2=new A();
Thread1 t1=new Thread1(obj1,obj2);
Thread2 t2=new Thread2(obj1,obj2);
t1.start();
t2.start();
}
}

Output of the program:

Second thread waiting for first thread to release the
resource
First thread waiting for second thread to release the
resource

In this example, the thread Thread1 owns the monitor on obj1 and waits for
the monitor on obj2. Similarly, the thread Thread2 owns the monitor on
obj2 and waits for the monitor on obj1. Thread1 will never release obj1
unless it gets hold of obj2 and Thread2 will never release obj2 unless it
gets obj1. The program will never complete as the two threads are in the deadlock
situation. You need to press CTRL-C to end the program.

Check Your Progress

10. What is the objective of synchronization?
11. How can subsets of methods be synchronized?
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Material 243
Multithreaded Programming
10.9 INTER-THREAD COMMUNICATION

Inter-thread communication is a process in which multiple threads exchange

NOTES messages with one another. A thread exchanges the message before or after it
changes its state. There are several situations where communication between threads
is important. For example, let us consider two threads A and B in which thread B
uses data produced by thread A. After thread A produces data, it will keep checking
every now and then whether thread B has finished using the data so that it can
generate more, thus wasting CPU cycles. Thread B would again waste many
CPU cycles while it waits for thread A to produce data. If threads A and B
communicate with one another when they have finished their tasks, then they do
not have to wait and check each other’s status every time. This way, CPU cycles
are not wasted.
Inter-thread communication can be achieved by using three methods, namely,
wait(), notify() and notifyall(). These methods can be invoked
only from within synchronized method or a synchronized block of code, otherwise
an exception of type IllegalMonitorStateException is thrown.
All these methods are declared final.
 wait(): It informs the current thread to release the monitor and to go
into sleep state until another thread wakes it up by calling the notify()
method. This method throws InterruptedException. There is
another form of wait() method which allows us to specify the amount of
time a thread can wait.
 notify(): It starts the first thread that called the method wait() on
the same object.
 notifyall(): It starts all the threads that called the method wait()
on the same object. In this case, the thread with the highest priority will run
first.
The following is an example where a thread uses data produced by another thread
without the use of wait() and notify() methods.
Program 7: A program without using wait() and notify() method
class P
{
int i;
synchronized int recieve()
{
System.out.println(“Recieved:” +i);
return i;
}
synchronized void deliver(int i)
Self-Instructional {
244 Material
 this.i=i; Multithreaded Programming
System.out.println(“Delivered:” +i);
}
}
NOTES
class Thread1 extends Thread
{
P obj;
Thread1(P obj1)
{
obj=obj1;
}
public void run()
{
int j=0;
while(true)
{
obj.deliver(j++);
}
}
}
class Thread2 extends Thread
{
P obj;
Thread2(P obj1)
{
obj=obj1;
}
public void run()
{
while(true)
{
obj.recieve();
}
}
}
class NoCommunication
{
public static void main(String[] args)
{
P obj=new P();
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Material 245
Multithreaded Programming Thread1 t1=new Thread1(obj);
Thread2 t2=new Thread2(obj);
t1.start();
t2.start();
NOTES
}
}

Output of the program:

Delivered:0
Delivered:1
Delivered:2
Delivered:3
Delivered:4
Delivered:5
Delivered:6
Recieved:6
Recieved:6
Recieved:6
Recieved:6
Recieved:6
Delivered:7
Delivered:8
Delivered:9

In this example, data produced by Thread1 is used by Thread2. Note that

Thread1 produces data 0 to 6 without letting Thread2 to use it. Again,
Thread2 uses data 6, five times in a row. There is no way for the two threads to
communicate with each other.

10.10 SUSPENDING, RESUMING AND STOPPING

THREADS

As mentioned earlier, the predefined methods suspend(), resume() and

stop() have been deprecated in Java2 though they are a convenient way for
managing the execution of threads. These methods were deprecated as they may
cause deadlocks and serious system failures in a multithreaded environment.
However, in the new version of Java, suspending, resuming and stopping a thread
can be performed using boolean type flags. The run() method of a thread
will work based on the current flag values that indicate the execution state of a
thread. For example, if the running flag is set to true, then the run() method
must let the thread execute. For the run() method to suspend the execution of

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246 Material
the currently running thread, the suspend flag must be set to true. Likewise, the Multithreaded Programming

thread will die once the stop flag is set to true.

Program 8: A program to demonstrate suspend, resume and stop operations
class ChildThread extends Thread NOTES
{
boolean suspend_flag,stop_flag;
String name;
ChildThread(String str)
{
name=str;
suspend_flag=false;
stop_flag=false;
}
public void run()
{
try
{
int i=5;
while(i>=1)
{
System.out.println(name+” “+i);
sleep(1000);
i—;
synchronized(this)
{
while(suspend_flag)
{
wait();
if(stop_flag)
{
break;
}
}
}
}
}catch(InterruptedException e)
{
System.out.println(“Thread interrupted”);
}

Self-Instructional
Material 247
Multithreaded Programming }
synchronized void my_suspend()
{
suspend_flag=true;
NOTES
}
synchronized void my_resume()
{
suspend_flag=false;
notify();
}
synchronized void my_stop()
{
suspend_flag=false;
stop_flag=true;
notify();
}
}
class SRS
{
public static void main(String[] args)
{
try
{
ChildThread obj=new ChildThread(“Thread”);
obj.start();
System.out.println(“Thread started”);
Thread.sleep(2000);
obj.my_suspend();
System.out.println(“Thread is suspended”);
Thread.sleep(2000);
obj.my_resume();
System.out.println(“Thread is resumed”);
Thread.sleep(2000);
obj.my_suspend();
System.out.println(“Thread is suspended”);
Thread.sleep(2000);
obj.my_resume();
System.out.println(“Thread is resumed”);
Thread.sleep(2000);
obj.my_stop();
Self-Instructional
System.out.println(“Thread stopped”);
248 Material
 } Multithreaded Programming
catch(InterruptedException e)
{
System.out.println(“Thread interrupted”);
NOTES
}

}
}

Output of the program:

Thread started
Thread 5
Thread 4
Thread 3
Thread is suspended
Thread is resumed
Thread 2
Thread 1
Thread is suspended
Thread is resumed
Thread stopped

Check Your Progress

12. What is inter-thread communication?
13. How can inter-thread communication be achieved?
14. How is the suspension, resuming and stopping of thread performed in the
new version of Java?

10.11 ANSWERS TO CHECK YOUR PROGRESS

QUESTIONS
1. A thread is a program which has a single flow of control.
2. Threads are called lightweight processes because all the threads in a main
application program share the same address space in the memory.
3. The main thread is used to create and start other child threads and it must
often be the last thread to finish execution because it performs various other
actions.
4. The Runnable interface consists of a single method run(), which is
required for implementing a thread.
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Material 249
Multithreaded Programming 5. Inter-thread communication is a process in which multiple threads exchange
messages with one another.
6. The thread enters the runnable state when it is ready to run and is waiting
for the CPU to be allocated to it.
NOTES
7. The various methods of the Thread class are yield(), sleep(),
stop(), isAlive() and join() method.
8. MIN_PRIORITY, MAX_PRIORITY and NORM_PRIORITY are
the constants defined in the Thread class.
9. The low priority thread starts running only when the high priority thread
stops, yields or enters the blocked state.
10. The objective of synchronization is to control the access to shared resources.
11. A subset (or all) of the methods of any class can be synchronized by using
the synchronized keyword.
12. Inter-thread communication is a process in which multiple threads exchange
messages with one another.
13. Inter-thread communication can be achieved by using three methods, namely,
wait(), notify() and notifyall().
14. In the new version of Java, suspending, resuming and stopping a thread can
be performed using boolean type flags.

10.12 SUMMARY

 Multithreading is a programming concept in which a program (process) is

divided into two or more subprograms (subprocesses), each of which can
perform a different task concurrently.
 A thread is just like a program which has a single flow of control. It also has
a starting point, an execution part and an end.
 Threads are called lightweight processes because all the threads in a main
application program share the same address space in the memory.
 Java programs always contain at least one thread even if you do not create
one. This thread is called the main thread and it is the one which immediately
starts executing when you start a program.
 In Java, threads can be created in two ways, by extending the Thread
class and by implementing the Runnable interface. In both the approaches,
threads are implemented in the form of objects which contain a method
called run(). It is the entry point of a new thread and it is the place where
the task to be performed by the thread is defined.
 There are various states that a Java thread can enter during its life cycle.
They are newborn, runnable, running, blocked and dead state. A thread is
always in one of these five states.
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250 Material
  The yield(), sleep() and stop() methods are responsible for Multithreaded Programming

controlling the behaviour of a thread and the transition of thread from one
state to another.
 There are two ways to determine whether a thread has ended—the
NOTES
isAlive() method and the join() method.
 Priorities are the integers which specify the relative priority of threads. When
a thread is created, it inherits its priority from the thread that created it. The
priority of a thread can be changed by using the setPriority() method
of the Thread class.
 When multiple threads need access to a single resource, there is a technique
called synchronization to ensure that only one thread will use the resource
at any given point of time.
 There are two ways to implement synchronization—one is to use the
synchronize method and another is to synchronize statements. The keyword
synchronized is used in both the cases.
 Deadlock is a situation that occurs when two or more threads are in a
simultaneous wait state and each of them is waiting for the release of a
resource held by one of the other waiting thread.
 Inter-thread communication is a process in which multiple threads exchange
messages with one another. A thread exchanges message before or after it
changes its state.
 Inter-thread communication can be achieved by using three methods, namely,
wait(), notify() and notifyall().
 The predefined methods suspend(), resume() and stop() have
been deprecated in Java2 as they may cause deadlocks and serious system
failures in a multithreaded environment.
 In the new version of Java, suspending, resuming and stopping a thread can
be performed using boolean type flags.

10.13 KEY WORDS

 Multitasking: It refers to the concurrent execution of two or more tasks
by the CPU of a computer.
 Deadlock: It is a situation that occurs when two or more threads are
concurrently in a wait state.
 Synchronization: It is a method that allows the execution of methods or
threads in a specific format—either statement by statement or by blocks of
statements.

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Material 251
Multithreaded Programming
10.14 SELF ASSESSMENT QUESTIONS AND
EXERCISES

NOTES Short-Answer Questions

1. What is multithreading?
2. How do you set priorities for threads?
3. What is synchronization?
4. When are two threads said to be deadlocked?
5. What are the general forms of the isAlive() and Join() methods?
6. Define the concept of Thread exception
7. Enumerate the advantages of synchronizing statements.
8. What are situations in which inter-thread communication occur?
Long-Answer Questions
1. Explain the concept of thread in Java. What is the advantage of using a
multithreaded program over a single-threaded program?
2. What are the two ways of creating a thread in Java? Give an example of
each.
3. Describe the complete life cycle of a thread.
4. Write a program to illustrate the use of stop() and suspend()
methods.
5. Explain the different ways to implement synchronization by the help of
examples.
6. Write the correct code that demonstrates the sleep() method.
7. Write a program which implements Runnable interface.

10.15 FURTHER READINGS

Krishnamoorty, R. and Prabhu R. Krishnamoorty. 2009. Internet and Java
Programming. New Delhi: New Age International (P) Ltd.
Balagurusamy, E. 2007. Programming with Java, Third Edition. New Delhi:
Tata McGraw-Hill.
Das, Rashmi Kant. 2009. Core Java for Beginners, Revised Edition. New Delhi:
Vikas Publishing House Pvt. Ltd.
Keogh, Jim. 2002. The Complete Reference J2SE, Fifth Edition. New York:
Tata McGraw-Hill.
Naughton, Patrick and Herbert Schidt. 1999. Java 2: The Complete Reference,
Self-Instructional Third Edition. New Delhi: Tata McGraw-Hill.
252 Material
 Managing Error

UNIT 11 MANAGING ERROR AND and Exceptions

EXCEPTIONS
NOTES
Structure
11.0 Introduction
11.1 Objectives
11.2 Types of Errors
11.3 Exception Handling
11.3.1 Handling of Exception
11.3.2 Types of Exceptions
11.3.3 Using try and catch Blocks
11.3.4 Multiple catch Blocks
11.3.5 Nested try Blocks
11.3.6 Using finally Block
11.3.7 Throw Keyword
11.3.8 Creating Your Own Exceptions
11.4 Graphics Programming
11.5 Answers to Check Your Progress Questions
11.6 Summary
11.7 Key Words
11.8 Self Assessment Questions and Exercises
11.9 Further Readings

11.0 INTRODUCTION

An exception (or exceptional event) is a problem that arises during the execution of
a program. When an ‘Exception’ occurs the normal flow of the program is disrupted
and the Program/Application terminates abnormally, which is not recommended,
therefore, these exceptions are to be handled. An exception can occur for many
different reasons. The exception occurs when a user has entered an invalid data, a
file that needs to be opened cannot be found, a network connection has been lost in
the middle of communications or the JVM has run out of memory, etc.
An exception is an unwanted or unexpected event, which occurs during the
execution of a program, i.e., at run time, that disrupts the normal flow of the
program’s instructions. An ‘Error’ indicates serious problem that a reasonable
application should not try to catch while the ‘Exception’ indicates conditions that a
reasonable application might try to catch.
In this unit, you will study about the types of errors, exceptions, syntax of
exception handling code, multiple catch statements, using finally statement, throwing
our own exceptions, graphics programming: the graphics class, lines and rectangles,
circles and ellipses, drawing arcs, drawing polygons and line graphs.

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Managing Error In this unit, you will also learn about exception handling in Java. Exception
and Exceptions
is an unpredicted event that occurs while the program is executing, and thus disrupts
the normal flow of the program or terminates the program abnormally. Therefore,
exception handling is used to provide solution to these exceptions, if a solution is
NOTES not possible then to provide an error message alerting the user.
After reading this unit, you will be able to work with Java output presentation
using Graphics class, Font class and Image class.

11.1 OBJECTIVES
After going through this unit, you will be able to:
 Understand the concept of managing errors
 Identify the types of errors in Java programs
 Know the importance of exception handling
 Create a user defined exception
 Describe various methods and classes available in Graphics class
 Learn about the Java output presentation using Graphics class, Font class
and Image class

11.2 TYPES OF ERRORS

Error is an illegal operation performed by the user which results in the abnormal
working of the program. Programming errors often remain undetected until the
program is compiled or executed. Some of the errors inhibit the program from
getting compiled or executed. Thus errors should be removed before compiling
and executing.
The most common errors can be broadly classified as follows:
1. Run Time Error: Run Time errors occur or we can say, are detected
during the execution of the program. Sometimes these are discovered when
the user enters an invalid data or data which is not relevant. Runtime errors
occur when a program does not contain any syntax errors but asks the
computer to do something that the computer is unable to reliably do. During
compilation, the compiler has no technique to detect these kinds of errors.
It is the JVM (Java Virtual Machine) which detects it while the program is
running. To handle the error during the run time we can put our error code
inside the try block and catch the error inside the catch block.
2. Compile Time Error: Compile Time Errors are those errors which prevent
the code from running because of an incorrect syntax such as a missing

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 semicolon at the end of a statement or a missing bracket, class not found, Managing Error
and Exceptions
etc. These errors are detected by the java compiler and an error message is
displayed onto the screen while compiling. Compile Time Errors are
sometimes also referred to as Syntax errors. These kind of errors are easy
to spot and rectify because the java compiler finds them for you. The NOTES
compiler will tell you which piece of code in the program got in trouble and
its best guess as to what you did wrong. Usually, the compiler indicates the
exact line where the error is, or sometimes the line just before it, however,
if the problem is with incorrectly nested braces, the actual error may be at
the beginning of the block. In effect, syntax errors represent grammatical
errors in the use of the programming language.
3. Logical Error: A logic error is when your program compiles and executes,
but does the wrong thing or returns an incorrect result or no output when it
should be returning an output. These errors are detected neither by compiler
nor by JVM. The Java system has no idea what your program is supposed
to do, so it provides no additional information to help you find the error.
Logical errors are also called Semantic Errors. These errors are caused
due to an incorrect idea or concept used by a programmer while coding.
Syntax errors are grammatical errors whereas, logical errors are errors arising
out of an incorrect meaning.

Check Your Progress

1. Define errors in Java.
2. Differentiate between run time error and compile time error.

11.3 EXCEPTION HANDLING

The term exception is an abbreviation for the phrase ‘exceptional event’. It is an

unpredicted event that occurs while the program is executing, and thus disrupts
the normal flow of the program or terminates the program abnormally. The errors
that cause exceptions can range from simple programming errors, such as opening
or reading an invalid file or accessing an invalid index of an array to severe errors,
such as running out of memory.
When an error occurs within a method, the Java runtime system creates an
exceptional object. This exceptional object contains information about the exception
which includes its type and the state of the program when the error occurred.
Once an exceptional object is created, it is thrown and the runtime system searches
for a method to handle the exception. It keeps on searching for a method that
contains an appropriate exception handler. An exception handler is considered

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Managing Error appropriate if the type of exception handled by the handler is same as the type of
and Exceptions
the exception thrown.
Before understanding the significance of the exception handling mechanism,
it is necessary to see what happens if the exceptions are not handled.
NOTES
Program 1: A program to demonstrate an unhandled exception.
class ExceptionExample
{
public static void main(String args[])
{
int a=15;
int b=3;
int c=a/(a-(5*b)); //exception occurs here
System.out.println(“Result: “+c);
}
}

Output of the program:

Exception in thread “main” java.lang.ArithmeticException:
/ by zero at ExceptionExample.main(ExceptionExample.java:7)

In this program, no compile time error occurs. However, when the division by
zero statement is executed a runtime error is generated. At this point, the Java
runtime system creates an exceptional object and throws it. The thrown object
expects an exception handler to handle it. Since no exception handler is provided
in this program, Java’s default exception handler is invoked. The default exception
handler will display the error message and terminate the program abruptly.
11.3.1 Handling of Exception
The mechanism of exception handling in Java not only guarantees the detection
and handling of runtime errors but also provides a way to separate the error handling
code from the rest of the program. This makes the program less complex, more
readable and efficient, as the normal execution path is not interrupted for checking
errors. Moreover, the routine of exception handling (called exception handler) is
invoked automatically whenever an error occurs.
Java exception handling is governed by the five following keywords:
 try
 catch

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  finally Managing Error
and Exceptions
 throw
 throws
A set of statements that needs to be monitored for the exceptions is contained in NOTES
the try block. Whenever an exception occurs within the try block, it is thrown.
This passes the control to the catch block which handles the exception
appropriately. The Java runtime system automatically throws system generated
exceptions. If the user wants to throw the exception explicitly, the throw keyword
is used. Sometimes, a method may throw exceptions which it cannot handle. This
must be specified by using the throws keyword. The code that must be executed
whether an exception is thrown or not is kept within the finally block, which
is optional.
11.3.2 Types of Exceptions
Java provides several built-in classes which define all types of exceptions. These
exception classes are arranged in a hierarchy having a Throwable class on the
top (see Figure 11.1). This means that the Throwable class is the superclass
and all the exception classes inherit methods defined by it. Two immediate subclasses
of the Throwable class are the Exception class and Error class.
 Exception Class: It defines those exceptions which are thrown by
methods of the standard Java class library or methods defined in the user’s
program and can be trapped within the program. That is, the program can
reasonably recover from these types of exceptions. This class is also used
(inherited) when the users want to create their own exceptions in the
application.
 Error Class: It defines those exceptions that do not occur frequently
and are difficult to be recovered from. For example, if a class file is missing
or system runs out of memory.

Throwable

Exception Error

Fig. 11.1 Java Exception Hierarchy

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Managing Error Some of the most commonly used exceptions that will be encountered are listed in
and Exceptions
Table 11.1.
Table 11.1 Some Common Exceptions in Java
NOTES Exception Description
ArithmeticException Thrown when arithmetic error occurs in the
program, such as divide-by-zero.
NullPointerException Thrown when the user tries to use an object
without initializing the object or in other
words when an object that has not been
allocated memory is used.
IOException Thrown when error occurs during
input/output of data.
ArrayIndexOutOfBoundsException Thrown when an attempt is made to access
an array element with invalid index value.
ArrayStoreException Thrown when an attempt is made to store
the incompatible type of data in an array.
IllegalAccessException Thrown when an illegal attempt is made to
access a class.
NumberFormatException Thrown when an invalid conversion of a
string to a numeric format takes place.
StringIndexOutOfBoundsException Thrown when an attempt is made to access
a string element that is beyond the index of
the string.
IllegalArgumentException Thrown when an illegal argument is used to
invoke a method.
NegativeArraySizeException Thrown when an array of negative size is
created.

11.3.3 Using try and catch Blocks

The default exception handler provided by the Java runtime system does not prevent
the abrupt termination of the program. To prevent this, Java provides the facility to
construct your own exception handler, by which you can fix the errors yourself.
This can be achieved by enclosing the code that may throw an exception within a
try block. The try block is enclosed by curly braces and preceded by the
keyword try. Whenever, an exception occurs within the try block, it is thrown.
This passes the control to the catch block associated with the try block.
The syntax to define try-catch block is as follows:
try //try block begins
{
//code that may cause an exception

} //try block ends

catch(exception_type ex)
{
//code to handle the exception
}
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If the first statement of the try block causes an exception, the remaining statements Managing Error
and Exceptions
are not executed and the control passes to the catch block. The catch statement
requires a single argument which is of the same type as of the exception that needs
to be handled. This exception type must be a subclass of Throwable class. It is
not necessary that every time the program is executed, an exception occurs. If an NOTES
exception is not thrown, the catch block is skipped and the control passes to the
statement immediately following the catch block.
The try and catch blocks form a logical unit. The scope of the catch block is
limited only to those statements which are enclosed within the immediately preceding
try block.
Note: Compile time error is generated if the try statement is not followed by any catch
statement.
Program 2: A program to illustrate handling of an exception using try and catch
blocks.
class TryCatchBlock
{
public static void main(String args[])
{
int a=15;
int b=3;
int c=0;
try
{
System.out.println(“try block begins”);
c=a/(a-(5*b)); //exception generated
System.out.println(“try block ends”);
}
catch(ArithmeticException ae)
{
System.out.println(“Arithmetic Exception is
caught here”);
System.out.println(“The resultant value of c
is: “+c);
}
c=a/b;
System.out.println(“New value of c is: “ +c);
}
}

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Managing Error Output of the program:
and Exceptions
try block begins
Arithmetic Exception is caught here
NOTES The resultant value of c is: 0
New value of c is: 5
In this example, the exception generated within the try block is caught inside
the catch block thus, preventing the abnormal termination of the program as
seen in program 4.
11.3.4 Multiple catch Blocks
It is not necessary that the code enclosed within the try block throws a single
exception. In case, multiple exceptions are thrown within a try block, Java allows
the use of multiple catch blocks for handling all these exceptions.
The syntax to define multiple catch blocks is
try //try block
{
//code that may cause exceptions
}
catch (exception_type e1) //catch block 1
{
...
}
catch (exception_type e2) //catch block 2
{
...
}
...
catch(exception_type en) //catch block N
{
...
}

There is only one try block from which the exception is thrown and depending
on the type of exception thrown, the corresponding catch block will be executed.
Whenever, an exception is thrown, the catch blocks are searched in sequential
order for an appropriate match. The first catch block, whose parameter type
matches with the type of exception, gets executed and other catch blocks are
ignored. Once the execution of the appropriate catch block is over, the control
passes to the statement immediately following the last catch block.

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11.3.5 Nested try Blocks Managing Error
and Exceptions
The try blocks can be nested, that is, one try-catch block can be placed
inside another try-catch block. If an exception occurs within a particular
try block, then the catch blocks associated with this try block are searched NOTES
for an appropriate match. If no match is found then the control passes to the next
outer try-catch block. This process continues until an appropriate match is
found. If no match is found, the program terminates abnormally.
The syntax of the nested try block is
try //outer try block
{
try //inner try block
{
...
}
catch //inner catch block
{
...
}
}
catch //outer catch block
{
...
}

11.3.6 Using finally Block

It has been observed that when an exception is thrown in the program, the remaining
statements in the try block are not executed and the control directly gets transferred
to the subsequent catch block. However, there are certain statements in the
program that need to be executed whether or not the exception is raised. For this,
Java provides the finally keyword. The code within the finally block will
always be executed whether or not the exception is thrown. If an exception is
raised with a matching catch block, then the finally block gets executed
after the execution of that catch block. On the other hand, if no matching catch
block is found then also the finally block is executed after the execution of the
try block. The finally block is optional, however, it is necessary to include
either catch or finally block with try block.
Program 3: A program to illustrate the use of finally block.
class FinallyBlock
{
public static void main(String args[])
{ Self-Instructional
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Managing Error int a=67;
and Exceptions
int b=0;
try
{
NOTES
System.out.println(“The value of a: “ +a);
System.out.println(“The value of b: “ +b);
int c=(a/b); //exception thrown
System.out.println(“Result is: “ +c);
}
catch(Exception e)
{
System.out.println(e); //prints the
corresponding exception
}
finally
{
System.out.println(“Denominator cannot be
zero”);
}
}
}

Output of the program:

The value of a: 67
The value of b: 0
java.lang.ArithmeticException: / by zero
Denominator cannot be zero

Here, the thrown exception is caught in the catch block and an appropriate
error message is displayed. After that, the statement within the finally block is
executed.
11.3.7 Throw Keyword
As you already know, Java runtime system automatically throws system generated
exceptions. However, Java provides a mechanism to throw an exception explicitly
by using the throw keyword.
The syntax of throw statement is as follows:
throw ExceptionObject;

where, ExceptionObject is an object of Throwable class or its subclass.

When a throw statement is encountered in the program, the execution of the
subsequent statements in the try block stops and the corresponding catch
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262 Material
catch block to match the exception of its type. If it is found, then that catch Managing Error
and Exceptions
block is executed else subsequent try blocks are inspected. In case, if no matching
catch block is found, then the, default exception handler comes into action and
stops the normal execution of the program and displays the error message on the
output screen. NOTES
It should be noted that instances of classes other than Throwable class
or its subclasses cannot be used as exception objects. The Throwable object
can be created using a new operator or using a parameter inside the catch
clause.
Program 4: A program to demonstrate the use of throw keyword.
class ThrowExampleDemo
{
public static void main(String args[])
{
try
{
ThrowExample(); //invoking ThrowExample() method
}
catch(ArithmeticException ae)
{
System.out.println(“The exception is recaught
here: “+ae);
}
}
static void ThrowExample()
{
int a=0;
int b=6;
try
{
int c=b/a; //system-generated exception
System.out.println(c);
}
catch(ArithmeticException aoe)
{
System.out.println(“The exception is caught
inside the method ThrowExample”);
throw aoe; //exception thrown explicitly
}
}
}
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Managing Error Output of the program:
and Exceptions
The exception is caught inside the method ThrowExample
The exception is recaught here:java.lang.
ArithmeticException: / by zero
NOTES
In this example, the ArithmeticException occurs inside the
ThrowExample(). This exception is caught inside the catch block inside the
same method, which explicitly rethrows it using the throw keyword. This is called
rethrowing of the exception. Now the control passes back to the catch block of
the main() method and the thrown exception is again caught here.
Using throws Keyword
Sometimes, a method may generate an exception but cannot handle it. That is,
there may be a method in the program which is generating (throwing) an exception
but it does not have the appropriate exception handing mechanism. The methods
that call such methods must be cautioned about this behaviour so that calling
methods can take appropriate measures to safeguard themselves against the
exceptions. This is done by appending the throws keyword after the method
name in the method declaration statement. The throws clause includes all types
of exceptions excluding those belonging to Error or Runtime classes or their
subclasses. All other exceptions which a method may throw must be listed after
the throws keyword in the method declaration, otherwise compile time error is
generated.
The syntax of the throws clause is
return_type method_name() throws exception_list
{
//body of the method
}
where, exception_list includes all the exceptions that the method might
throw.
11.3.8 Creating Your Own Exceptions
You have studied some of the built-in exceptions provided by the Java platform.
These built-in exceptions are used to handle the errors occurring in the program.
But sometimes the programmer wants to create his own application specific
exceptions. User defined exceptions can be created by defining a subclass of
Exception class and using the throw keyword.
Program 5: A program to demonstrate the creation of user defined exceptions.
class OwnException extends Exception
{
public OwnException(String message) //Constructor
{
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 System.out.println(“OwnException class Managing Error
constructor”); and Exceptions

}
}
public class CreateOwnException NOTES
{
public static int divide(int i,int j) throws
OwnException
{
if(j==0)
throw new OwnException(“This statement is not
executed”);
return i/j;
}
public static void main(String[] args)
{
int i=70;
int j=0;
try
{
System.out.println(“The value of i: ” +i);
System.out.println(“The value of j: ” +j);
System.out.println(“Division of two numbers
is: ” +divide(i,j));
}
catch (OwnException oe)
{
System.out.println(“Denominator can not be
zero”);
oe.printStackTrace();
}
catch(Exception e)
{
System.out.println(e.getMessage());
}
}
}

Output of the program:

The value of i: 70
The value of j: 0

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Managing Error OwnException class constructor
and Exceptions
Denominator can not be zero
OwnException
at CreateOwnException.divide(CreateOwnException.java:13)
NOTES
at CreateOwnException.main(CreateOwnException.java:24)

This example defines a subclass of Exception called OwnException, which

inherits the methods defined by the Throwable class through Exception class.
The CreateOwnException class defines a method divide() which throws
an object oe of OwnException type when the denominator of the fraction is
zero. The printStackTrace() method of the Throwable class is overridden
to display the message which contains all the information that lead to the error,
such as the name of the method which caused the error, the name of the caller of
the method which lead to the error, the line number in which that error has occurred,
and so on.

Check Your Progress

3. What do you understand by exception handling?
4. Why finally is used in exception handling?
5. Define IOException.
6. Write the syntax of try-catch block.
7. What do you understand by throws keyword in exception handling?
8. What is Java built-in class hierarchy that defines all types of exceptions?

11.4 GRAPHICS PROGRAMMING

So far, you have learned how to create and run a simple Java applet. Java also
allows the creation of an applet, which uses various classes to draw figures of
different shapes, add images, display text in different fonts and styles, use and
create various colors, etc.
Using Graphics Class
Java allows graphical elements in an applet via Graphics object. Graphics
object is an instance of the class java.awt.Graphics. Each Graphics
object has its own coordinate system and the methods of Graphics class
include drawing shapes, lines, rectangles, circles, polygons and more. You can
access the Graphics object through the paint(Graphics gra) method
of your applet where gra is the particular Graphics object with which you
can draw.

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Drawing Lines Managing Error
and Exceptions
A line can be drawn using the drawLine() method of the Graphics class.
This method takes four parameters, which represent the coordinates of the end
points of the line.
NOTES
The general form of the drawLine() method is
void drawLine(int a1, int b1, int a2, int b2)
where,
a1, b1 is the coordinate of the starting points of the line and a2, b2 is the
coordinate of the starting points of the line.
For example, the statement gra.drawLine(20,100,90,100) will draw a
straight line from the coordinate point (20,100) to (90,100) as shown in
Figure 11.2.

(20, 100) (90, 100)

Fig. 11.2 A Straight Line having Coordinates (20,100) and (90,100)

Drawing and Filling Rectangles

A rectangle can be drawn by using the drawRect() method and it also takes
the four parameters.
The general form of the drawRect() method is as follows:
void drawLine(int a1, int b1, int w, int h);

where, a1, b1 is the coordinate of the top left corner of the rectangle, w is the
width of the rectangle and h is the height of the rectangle.
For example, the statement gra.drawRect(20,20,50,30) will draw a
rectangle starting at (20,20) with width of 50 pixels and height of 30 pixels as
shown in Figure 11.3.
(20, 20)

30 (height)

50 (width)

Fig. 11.3 A Rectangle with Width 50 pixels and Height 30 pixels

Note that the drawRect() method draws only the boundary of the rectangle.
To draw a solid (filled) rectangle, fillRect() method is used. This method
also takes four parameters similar to the drawRect() method.

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Managing Error To draw a solid rectangle having aforementioned parameters, we use the statement
and Exceptions
gra.fillRect(20,20,50,30), which draws the rectangle as shown in
Figure 11.4.

NOTES (20, 20)

30 (height)

50 (width)

Fig. 11.4 A Filled Rectangle having Width 50 pixels and Height 30 pixels

A rounded outlined rectangle can be drawn by using the drawRoundRect()

method. This method takes the six parameters (see Figure 11.5).
The general form of the drawRoundRect() method is
void drawRoundRect(int a1, int b1, int w, int h, int
xdia, int ydia);

(a1, b1) h (height)

w (width)
xdia, ydia (arc)

Fig. 11.5 A Rounded Rectangle

where, xdia is the diameter of the rounding arc (along X-axis) and ydia
is the diameter of the rounding arc (along Y-axis).
Similarly, a rounded filled rectangle can be drawn using
drawfillRoundRect() method. This method also takes six parameters similar
to the drawRoundRect() method.
Note: All the shapes are drawn relative to the Java’s coordinate system. The origin (0, 0)
of the coordinate system is located at its upper-left corner such that the positive x values are
to its right and the positive y values are to its bottom.

Drawing and Filling Ellipses and Circles

An ellipse can be drawn using the drawOval() method. The ellipse is drawn
within an imaginary bounding rectangle. This method takes four arguments in which
the first two represent the top left corner of the bounding rectangle and the next
two represent the width and height of the oval or the bounding rectangle (see
Figure 11.6).

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The general form of the drawOval() method is as follows: Managing Error
and Exceptions
void drawOval(int a1, int b1, int w, int h);

where, a1, b1 is the coordinate of the top left corner of the bounding rectangle,
w is the width of the bounding rectangle and h is the height of the bounding NOTES
rectangle.

height

width
Fig. 11.6 An Ellipse

Similarly, a circle can be drawn using this method but the dimension of width and
height should be same. That is, the bounding rectangle must be a square.
Similar to the rectangle methods, the drawOval() method draws the
boundary of an oval and the fillOval() method draws a solid oval.
Drawing Arcs
An arc can be drawn using the drawArc() method. This method takes six
arguments in which the first four are same as the arguments of the drawoval()
method and the next two represents the starting angle of the arc and the sweep
angle around the arc, respectively.
The general form of the drawArc() method is as follows:
void drawArc(int a1, int b1, int w, int h, int strt_angle,
int sweep_angle);

where, a1,b1 is the coordinate of the top left corner of the bounding rectangle,
w is the width of the bounding rectangle, h is the height of the bounding rectangle,
strt_angle is the starting angle of the arc (in degrees) and sweep_angle
is the number of degrees (angular distance) around the arc (in degrees).
The arc shown in Figure 11.7 has the starting angle as 00 degrees and sweep angle
as 1350.
90o
Arc

180o 135o

0o

270o
Fig. 11.7 An Arc of 1350 Sweep Angle
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Managing Error You can also draw filled arcs using the fillArc() method.
and Exceptions
Drawing Polygons
A polygon is a closed geometrical figure, which can have any number of sides. A
NOTES polygon can be drawn by using the drawPolygon() method. This method
takes the three parameters (see Figure 11.8).
The general form of the drawPolygon() method is
void drawPolygon(int a[], int b[], int n);

where, a[] is the array of integers having x-coordinates, b[] is the array of
integers having y-coordinates and n is the total number of coordinate points
required to draw a polygon.
(a1, b1) (a2, b2)

(a3, b3)
(a6, b6)

(a5, b5) (a4, b4)

Fig. 11.8 A Polygon having Six Sides

Program 6: An applet code to demonstrate the use of various methods of

Graphics class
import java.awt.*;
import java.applet.*;
public class GraphicsExample extends Applet
{
public void paint(Graphics gra)
{
gra.drawRect(10,40,80,40);
gra.fillRect(130,40,80,40);
gra.drawRoundRect(250,40,80,40,8,8);
gra.fillRoundRect(370,40,80,40,8,8);

gra.drawOval(0,125,80,40);
gra.fillOval(120,125,80,40);

gra.drawArc(240,125,80,40,0,180);
gra.fillArc(370,125,80,40,0,180);

int x[]={100,150,200,170,130,100};
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 int y[]={250,200,250,300,300,250}; Managing Error
and Exceptions
int n=x.length;
gra.drawPolygon(x,y,n);

gra.drawOval(270,200,80,80); NOTES
gra.fillOval(380,200,80,80);

gra.drawLine(480,50,480,350);
}
}

The HTML code for GraphicsExample is as follows:

<HTML>
<HEAD>
</HEAD>
<BODY>
<CENTER>
<APPLET
CODE=”GraphicsExample.class”
WIDTH =600
HEIGHT=350>
</APPLET>
</CENTER>
</BODY>
</HTML>

Output of the program:

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Managing Error Using Color Class
and Exceptions
The Color class provides various methods to use any color you want in the
display. It defines the various color constants which can be directly used only by
NOTES specifying the color of your choice. In addition, the Color class allows creation
of millions of colors. The Color class contains three primitive colors namely, red,
blue and green, and all other colors are a combination of these three colors.
One of the constructors that is used to create color of your choice is as follows:
Color(int red, int green, int blue);

where, red, green, blue can take any value between 0 and 255.
Setting Background and Foreground Color
To set the color of the background of an applet window, setBackground()
method is used.
The general form of the setBackground() method is as follows:
void setBackground(mycolor);

Similarly, to set the foreground color to a specific color, that is, the color of text,
setForeground() method is used.
The general form of the setForeground() method is as follows:
void setForeground(mycolor);

where, mycolor is one of the color constants or the new color created by the
user.
The list of color constants is as follows:
 Color.red
 Color.orange
 Color.gray
 Color.darkGray
 Color.lightGray
 Color.cyan
 Color.pink
 Color.white
 Color.blue
 Color.green
 Color.black
 Color.yellow

Program 7: An applet code to demonstrate the use of Color class.

import java.applet.*;
import java.awt.*;

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 public class ColorExample extends Applet Managing Error
and Exceptions
{
Color c1,c2;
public void init()
NOTES
{
//creating new colors
Color c1=new Color(0,0,255);
Color c2=new Color(100,220, 190);
}
public void paint(Graphics gra)
{
setBackground(Color.white);//setting background
color

//drawing a line of color c1

gra.setColor(c1);
gra.drawLine(10,20,150,60);

//drawing a solid oval of color c2

gra.setColor(c2);
gra.fillOval(10,50,100,200);

//drawing a rectangle of red color

gra.setColor(Color.red);
gra.drawRect(150,120,60,120);
}
}

The HTML code for ColorExample is as follows:

<HTML>
<HEAD>
</HEAD>
<BODY>
<CENTER>
<APPLET
CODE=”ColorExample.class”
WIDTH =600
HEIGHT=250>
</APPLET>
</CENTER>
</BODY>
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Managing Error Output of the program:
and Exceptions

NOTES
Line

Red-colour oval

Rectangle

Using Font Class

The Font class is used to apply different font styles to the text. To select or apply
a new font, a Font object is required to be constructed.
The general form of the constructor of Font class is as follows:
Font(String font_name, int font_style, int font_size);

where, font_name is the name of the font, font_style is font style and
font_size is the size of the font in points.
Some other methods of Font class are listed in Table 11.2.
Table 11.2 Methods of Font Class
Method Description
static Font getFont() Returns the currently selected font.
int getSize() Returns the size of the font.
String getName() Returns the name of the font.
int getStyle() Returns the style of the font.
String getFamily() Returns the name of the family of the font.

Program 8: An applet code to demonstrate the use of Font class.

import java.applet.*;
import java.awt.*;
public class FontExample extends Applet
{
public void paint(Graphics gra)
{
Font MyFont=new Font(“Courier New”, Font.BOLD,16);
gra.setFont(MyFont);
gra.drawString(“Hello Java”,20,100);

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 Font f=gra.getFont(); Managing Error
and Exceptions
String fontName=f.getName();
gra.drawString(“Font name is :”+fontName,20,140);
String fontFamily=f.getFamily();
NOTES
gra.drawString(“Font family is
:”+fontFamily,20,160);
int fontSize=f.getSize();
gra.drawString(“Font size is :”+fontSize,20,180);
int fontStyle=f.getStyle();
gra.drawString(“Font style is :”+fontStyle,20,200);
}
}

The HTML code for FontExample is as follows:

<HTML>
<HEAD>
</HEAD>
<BODY>
<CENTER>
<APPLET
CODE=”FontExample.class”
WIDTH =600
HEIGHT=250>
</APPLET>
</CENTER>
</BODY>
</HTML>

Output of the program:

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Managing Error Using Image Class
and Exceptions
The Image class is used to load and display images. To load an image, the
getImage() method of the Image class is used and to display the image, the
NOTES drawImage() method of the Graphics class is used.
The general form of the getImage() method is as follows:
Image getImage(URL pathname, String filename);
Image getImage(URL pathname);

where, pathname is the address of the image file on Web. When the image file
and the source file are in the same directory, getCodeBase() method is used
as first parameter to the method. filename is the name of the image file.
The general form of the drawImage() method is as follows:
boolean drawImage(Image image, int startx, int starty,
int width, int height, ImageObserver img_obj);

where, image is the image to be loaded in the applet, startx is the pixels
space from the left corner of the screen, starty is the pixels space from the
upper corner of the screen, width is the width of the image, height is the
height of the image and img_obj is object of the class that implements
ImageObserver interface.
Program 9: An applet code to demonstrate the use of Image class.
import java.applet.*;
import java.awt.*;
public class ImageExample extends Applet
{
private Image pic;
public void init()
{
pic=getImage(getCodeBase(), “java_pic.gif”);
}
public void paint(Graphics gra)
{
gra.drawImage(pic,150,50,120,200,this);
}
}

The HTML code for ImageExample is as follows:

<HTML>
<HEAD>

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 </HEAD> Managing Error
and Exceptions
<BODY>
<CENTER>
<APPLET
NOTES
CODE=”ImageExample.class”
WIDTH =600
HEIGHT=250>
</APPLET>
</CENTER>
</BODY>
</HTML>

Output of the program:

Check Your Progress

9. What method is used to draw a line while working with graphics?
10. State the general form of drawPolygon() method?
11. What Graphics class provide to Java programmers?
12. What are the three primitive color provided by Color class?

11.5 ANSWERS TO CHECK YOUR PROGRESS

QUESTIONS

1. Error is an illegal operation performed by the user which results in the

abnormal working of the program. Programming errors often remain
undetected until the program is compiled or executed. Some of the errors
inhibit the program from getting compiled or executed. Thus errors should
be removed before compiling and executing.

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Managing Error 2. 1. Run Time Error: Run Time errors occur or we can say, are detected
and Exceptions
during the execution of the program. Sometimes these are discovered when
the user enters an invalid data or data which is not relevant. Runtime errors
occur when a program does not contain any syntax errors but asks the
NOTES computer to do something that the computer is unable to reliably do. During
compilation, the compiler has no technique to detect these kinds of errors.
It is the JVM (Java Virtual Machine) which detects it while the program is
running. To handle the error during the run time we can put our error code
inside the try block and catch the error inside the catch block.
2. Compile Time Error: Compile Time Errors are those errors which
prevent the code from running because of an incorrect syntax such as a
missing semicolon at the end of a statement or a missing bracket, class not
found, etc. These errors are detected by the java compiler and an error
message is displayed onto the screen while compiling. Compile Time Errors
are sometimes also referred to as Syntax errors. These kind of errors are
easy to spot and rectify because the java compiler finds them for you. The
compiler will tell you which piece of code in the program got in trouble and
its best guess as to what you did wrong. Usually, the compiler indicates the
exact line where the error is, or sometimes the line just before it, however,
if the problem is with incorrectly nested braces, the actual error may be at
the beginning of the block. In effect, syntax errors represent grammatical
errors in the use of the programming language.
3. The term exception is an abbreviation for the phrase ‘exceptional event’. It
is an unpredicted event that occurs while the program is executing, and thus
disrupts the normal flow of the program or terminates the program
abnormally. Exception handling is used to provide solution to these
exceptions, if a solution is not possible then to provide an error message
alerting the user.
4. The code that must be executed whether an exception is thrown or not is
kept within the finally block, which is optional.
5. IOException is thrown when an error occurs during input or output of
data.
6. The syntax to define try-catch block is as follows:
try //try block begins
{
//code that may cause an exception
} //try block ends
catch(exception_type ex)
{
//code to handle the exception
}

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 7. Sometimes, a method may generate an exception but does not have the Managing Error
and Exceptions
appropriate exception handing mechanism for it. The methods that call such
methods must be cautioned about this behavior so that calling methods can
take appropriate measures to safeguard themselves against the exceptions.
This is done by appending the throws keyword after the method name in NOTES
the method declaration statement. The throws clause includes all types of
exceptions excluding those belonging to Error or Runtime classes or
their subclasses.
8 Java provides several built-in classes which define all types of exceptions.
The Throwable class is the superclass and all the exception classes inherit
methods defined by it. Two immediate subclasses of the Throwable class
are the Exception class and Error class.
9. A line can be drawn using the drawLine() method of the Graphics
class. This method takes four parameters, which represent the coordinates
of the end points of the line.
10. The general form of the drawPolygon() method is
void drawPolygon(int a[], int b[], int n);

where, a[] is the array of integers having x-coordinates, b[] is the

array of integers having y-coordinates and n is the total number of
coordinate points required to draw a polygon.
11. The Graphics class provides different methods to draw and fill various
shapes.
12. The Color class contains three primitive colors namely, red, blue and green,
and all other colors are a combination of these three colors.

11.6 SUMMARY

 The term exception is an abbreviation for the phrase ‘exceptional event’. It

is an unpredicted event that occurs while the program is executing, and thus
disrupts the normal flow of the program or terminates the program
abnormally. Exception handling is used to provide solution to these
exceptions, if a solution is not possible then to provide an error message
alerting the user.
 The mechanism of exception handling in Java not only guarantees the
detection and handling of run time errors but also provides a way to separate
the error handling code from the rest of the program. Java exception handling
is governed by the five keywords, namely, try, catch, finally, throw
and throws.

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Managing Error  The Throwable class is the superclass and all the exception classes inherit
and Exceptions
methods defined by it. Two immediate subclasses of the Throwable class
are the Exception class and Error class.
 A set of statements that needs to be monitored for the exceptions is contained
NOTES
in the try block. Whenever an exception occurs within the try block, it is
thrown. This passes the control to the catch block which handles the
exception appropriately. The Java runtime system automatically throws
system generated exceptions. If the user wants to throw the exception
explicitly, the throw keyword is used. In case, multiple exceptions are
thrown within a try block, Java allows the use of multiple catch blocks
for handling all these exceptions.
 The try blocks can be nested, that is, one try-catch block can be
placed inside another try-catch block. Sometimes, a method may throw
exceptions which it cannot handle, i.e., it does not have the appropriate
exception handing mechanism for the exception. This must be specified by
using the throws keyword. The code that must be executed whether an
exception is thrown or not is kept within the finally block, which is
optional.
 User defined exceptions can be created by defining a subclass of
Exception class and using the throw keyword.
 Java also allows the creation of an applet, which uses various classes to
draw figures of different shapes, add images, display text in different fonts
and styles, use and create various colors, etc. The Graphics class provides
different methods to draw and fill various shapes.
 In Graphics class, drawLine()method is used to draw a line,
drawRect() method is used to draw rectangle, drawOval() method
is used to draw an ellipse, drawArc() method is used to draw an arc and
drawPolygon() method is used to draw a polygon.
 The Color class provides various methods to use any color you want in
the display. It defines the various color constants which can be directly
used only by specifying the color of your choice. The Color class contains
three primitive colors namely, red, blue and green, and all other colors
are a combination of these three colors.
 To set the color of the background of an applet window,
setBackground() method is used. Similarly, to set the foreground color
to a specific color, that is, the color of text, setForeground() method
is used.

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  The Font class is used to apply different font styles to the text. Managing Error
and Exceptions
 The Image class is used to load and display images. To load an image, the
getImage() method of the Image class is used and to display the image,
the drawImage() method of the Graphics class is used.
NOTES
11.7 KEY WORDS

 Exception handling: Exception handling is used to provide solution to

exceptions that occurs during runtime, if a solution is not possible then to
provide an error message alerting the user
 Applet: Small program typically embedded within the Web page, which is
used to create a dynamic and interactive application
 AppletViewer: A tool of the Java Development Kit, which is specifically
designed for viewing applets

11.8 SELF ASSESSMENT QUESTIONS AND

EXERCISES

Short-Answer Questions
1. What are the different types of errors in Java programming?
2. Define the use of try and catch blocks in exception handling.
3. How do you throw your own exception in Java?
4. Why is finally block used?
5. How do you apply different font styles in the graphics programming?
6. Elaborate the method of drawing and filling an ellipse and a circle.
Long-Answer Questions
1. Describe the various types of errors in Java.
2. Write a program illustrating the use of exception handling by using try,
catch, finally, throw and throws blocks.
3. Differentiate between throw and throws keyword in exception
handling.
4. List the various exception handling keywords.
5. Explain the process of drawing a rectangle in graphics programming.
6. Write a note on graphics class describing its various methods.

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Managing Error
and Exceptions 11.9 FURTHER READINGS

Krishnamoorty, R. and Prabhu R. Krishnamoorty. 2009. Internet and Java

NOTES Programming. New Delhi: New Age International (P) Ltd.
Balagurusamy, E. 2007. Programming with Java, Third Edition. New Delhi:
Tata McGraw-Hill.
Das, Rashmi Kant. 2009. Core Java for Beginners, Revised Edition. New Delhi:
Vikas Publishing House Pvt. Ltd.
Keogh, Jim. 2002. The Complete Reference J2SE, Fifth Edition. New York:
Tata McGraw-Hill.
Naughton, Patrick and Herbert Schidt. 1999. Java 2: The Complete Reference,
Third Edition. New Delhi: Tata McGraw-Hill.

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 Applet Programming

UNIT 12 APPLET PROGRAMMING

Structure
NOTES
12.0 Introduction
12.1 Objectives
12.2 Applets
12.3 Applet Tag
12.3.1 The Applet Tag
12.3.2 The Applet Class
12.3.3 Adding an Applet to an HTML File
12.3.4 Running the Applet
12.3.5 More About the Applet Tag
12.3.6 Passing Parameters to Applets
12.4 Applet Life Cycle
12.5 Methods Using Applets
12.6 Simple AWT Controls
12.6.1 Introducing the Abstract Window Toolkit (AWT)
12.6.2 Creating AWT Controls
12.7 Answers to Check Your Progress Questions
12.8 Summary
12.9 Key Words
12.10 Self Assessment Questions and Exercises
12.11 Further Readings

12.0 INTRODUCTION

Java applets were small applications written in the Java programming language, or
another programming language that compiles to Java bytecode, and delivered to
users in the form of Java bytecode. The user launched the Java applet from a web
page, and the applet was then executed within a Java Virtual Machine (JVM) in a
process separate from the web browser itself. A Java applet could appear in a
frame of the web page, a new application window, Sun's AppletViewer, or a
stand-alone tool for testing applets.
Java applets were introduced in the first version of the Java language, which
was released in 1995. Java applets were usually written in Java, but other languages,
such as Jython, JRuby, Pascal, Scala, or Eiffel (via SmartEiffel) can also be used.
Since Java bytecode is cross-platform (or platform independent), Java applets
can be executed by browsers (or other clients) for many platforms, including
Microsoft Windows, FreeBSD, Unix, macOS and Linux. They cannot be run on
modern mobile devices, which do not support Java.
The 'Java Applets' are used to provide interactive features to web applications
that cannot be provided by HTML alone. They can capture mouse input and also
have controls like buttons or check boxes. In response to user actions, an applet
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Applet Programming can change the provided graphic content. An applet can also be a text area only;
providing, for instance, a cross-platform command-line interface to some remote
system. If needed, an applet can leave the dedicated area and run as a separate
window.
NOTES
Fundamentally, an applet is a Java program that can be embedded into a
web page. It runs inside the web browser and works at client side. An applet is
embedded in an HTML page using the APPLET or OBJECT tag and hosted on a
web server.
In this unit, you will study about the Java applet programming, how applets
differ from applications, writing applets, building applet code, applet life cycle,
creating an executable applet, designing a web page, applet tag, adding applet to
HTML file, running the applet, passing parameters to applets, displaying numerical
values and getting input from the user.

12.1 OBJECTIVES
After going through this unit, you will be able to:
 Discuss the significance of applet programming in Java
 Understand how applets differ from applications
 Write applets, create an executable applet and build applet codes
 Elaborate on the applet life cycle
 Design a web page using applet tag
 Add applet to HTML file and run the applet
 Explain how parameters are passed to applets
 Display numerical values and get input from the user using Java applets

12.2 APPLETS

Applets are executed in the web browser and have made Java a web-enabled
language. Applet codes also embed the HTML tags together. This is the package
that has made Java a language for distributed application.
Generally, Java programs can be classified into two groups, namely
applications and applets. Unlike applets, Java applications do not require a browser
to run. They can be created like any normal programming language program. An
applet is executed in the browser. An applet is a class file that displays graphics
application in the web browser and one can embed applet codes in the web pages
by HTML tags. Briefly, it can be said that an applet is a Java byte code embedded
in an HTML page. The program structure of applets differs from the other Java
applications.

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Definition Applet Programming

An applet is a dynamic and interactive program that can run inside a web page
displayed by a Java-capable browser such as a HotJava Browser or an Internet
Explorer browser, which are World Wide Web browsers used to view web pages. NOTES
An applet is a class present in a java.applet package.
A special HTML tag is embedded in an applet to make it run on the web
browser. The appletviewer application, present in the jdk, is used to run and
check the applets. An applet has added advantages, such as frame, event-handing
facility, graphics context and surrounding user interfaces.
Java applets have some restrictions to ensure full security and to make them
virus free. Some of these are as follows:
(a) Applets have no permission to read or write the file system.
(b) Applets can communicate with the server in which they were stored
originally, but not with the others.
(c) Applets cannot execute any programs on the system.

12.3 APPLET TAG

12.3.1 The Applet Tag

The body section of the HTML file contains a pair of <APPLET…> and
</APPLET> tags, which allows one to provide the name of the applet and helps
the browser recognize the space required for the applet. The following code shows
the minimum code required to place the FirstApplet applet on the web
page:
<APPLET
CODE = FirstApplet.class
WIDTH = 300
HEIGHT = 150 >
</APPLET>

The above written HTML code helps a web browser load the compiled
Java applet FirstApplet.class, which is present in the same directory as the HTML
file. The <APPLET> tag discussed above includes the following:
 Name of the Applet
 Width of the Applet (in pixels)
 Height of the Applet (in pixels)

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Applet Programming 12.3.2 The Applet Class
The applet class is a member of the Java Application Programming Interface (API)
package, java.applet. The applet class is used for creating a Java program that
NOTES displays an applet.
Figure 12.1 shows the hierarchical representation of the Java classes.

Fig. 12.1 Java Class Hierarchies

The applet class is extended from the class, Panel, which is further extended from
the classes, Container, Component and Object. The object class is a member of
the java.lang package and is called in the program automatically. The classes,
Component, Container and Panel are members of the java.awt package and provide
the visual components such as label, button or text fields. The applet is the only
member of the java.applet package.
The applet class has several methods that are used to display the text and
the image, play the audio file and respond when you interact with the applet. Table
12.1 lists the various methods of an applet class.
Table 12.1 Applet Class Methods

Methods Description
void destroy() Terminates an applet when the
web browser or Java tool calls
this method.
getAccessibleContext() Returns the accessibility
context of an object.
Accessibility context
represents the information
about the accessible objects.
getAppletContext() Returns the context that is
associated with the applet.
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GetAppletInfo() Returns a string type that Applet Programming
describes the information
about the applet.
GetAudioClip(URL url, String clip-name) Returns an object of the audio
clip that encapsulates the NOTES
location and name of the audio
clip.
getCodeBase() Returns the URL that is
associated with the invoking
applet.
getDocumentBase() Returns the URL of the HTML
document that is invoking the
applet.
getImage(URL url, String image-name) Returns the image object that
encapsulates the location and
name of the image.
getLocale() Returns the locale object that
contains a set of end user
preferences such as language,
country, region or time.
getParameter(String param-name) Returns a string that contains
the parameter associated with
the paramname.
getParameterInfo() Returns a table that describes
the information about the
parameters that are recognized
by the applet.
void init() Begins the execution of the
applet when it is called by the
web browser or Java tool.
IsActive() Returns the Boolean type true
if the applet is started,
otherwise returns false.
void play(URL url, String clip-name) Plays the audio clip if it is
found at the specified URL.
void resize(int width, int height) Changes the size of an applet
according to the specified
height and width.
void setStub(AppletStub stub-object) Returns the stub object of an
applet. A stub is a piece of
program that provides the
linkage between the applet
and the web browser.
ShowStatus(String str) Displays a string in the status
window of the appletviewer or
web browser.

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Applet Programming void start() Starts the execution of the
applet when it is called by the
web browser or Java tool.
void stop() Suspends the execution of the
NOTES applet when it is called by the
web browser or Java tool. This
suspended stage is resumed
by the start() method.
Applets are programs based on the Internet that can be used to display
text, image or animation. For example, an applet can be created that will display a
text. To display text on the applet, the following four steps are to be followed:
1. Create a Java program for an applet
2. Compile the Java program
3. Create a web page that contains an applet
4. Run the applet
12.3.3 Adding an Applet to an HTML File
To run the applet, the HTML file that embeds an applet on the web page has to be
created using the <APPLET> tag. This file has to be saved as FirstApplet.html.
The following program code creates an HTML web page that embeds an applet:
<HTML>
<HEAD>
<TITLE>First Applet Program</TITLE>
</HEAD>
<BODY>
<APPLET CODE = “FirstApplet.class” HEIGHT = 150
WIDTH = 300>
</APPLET>
</BODY>
</HTML>

The above code creates an HTML file in which the <APPLET> tag is used
to embed the applet. The attribute of the <APPLET> tag, HEIGHT and WIDTH,
sets the dimension of the applet window.
Note: You may specify the <APPLET> tag as a comment inside the Java
applet source file. The code, which is specified inside the Java applet source file,
is:
/*
<APPLET CODE = “FirstApplet” HEIGHT = 150 WIDTH = 300>
</APPLET>
*/

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12.3.4 Running the Applet Applet Programming

You can run the applet either on the web browser or the appletviewer of Java.
When you run the applet on a web browser, you invoke the HTML file from the
web browser. NOTES
The following screenshot displays the applet in Internet Explorer.

You can display the applet in appletviewer either by running the Java file,
which consists of the <APPLET> tag as comment or by running the separate
HTML file. The code to display the applet in the appletviewer of Java is:
C:\ >java>Unit 07>appletviewer FirstApplet.html
Or
C:\ >java>Unit 07>appletviewer FirstApplet.java

The above code shows an applet in the appletviewer of Java.

The following screenshot shows the output.

12.3.5 More About the Applet Tag

The <APPLET> tag is used to display an applet in the web browser or appletviewer
tool of Java. You can also use the <OBJECT> tag of HTML to display the applet.
The appletviewer executes the <APPLET> tag and displays an applet in an applet
window. A web browser, such as Internet Explorer or Netscape Navigator, displays
the applet on a web page interpreting the <APPLET> tag. The <APPLET> tag
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Applet Programming has various attributes that enable you to integrate your applet into the web page.
The syntax of <APPLET> with all its attributes is:
<APPLET [CODEBASE] [CODE] [ALT] [NAME] [WIDTH] [HEIGHT]
[ALIGN] [VSPACE] [HSPACE]>
NOTES </APPLET>

The above syntax shows the <APPLET> tag and its attributes. The
<APPLET> tag provides nine attributes, which are as follows:
 CODEBASE: Specifies the base URL of the applet class file. The base
URL is the complete path of the applet where it is stored. This is an
optional attribute that searches the executable file of an applet, class file,
from the specified URL.
 CODE: Specifies the name of the file that contains a class file. This is a
compulsory attribute of the <APPLET> tag that is relative to the URL
of the HTML file.
 ALT: Specifies the tool tip text of an applet. This is also an optional
attribute that is displayed to provide information about the applet whether
the applet is running or not on the web browser.
 NAME: Specifies the name of an applet. This is an optional attribute of
the <APPLET> tag. The name of an applet is obtained by the
getApplet() method.
 WIDTH: Specifies the width of the applet display area in pixels.
 HEIGHT: Specifies the height of the applet display area in pixels.
 ALIGN: Specifies the alignment of the applet. The values of the ALIGN
attribute are LEFT, RIGHT, TOP, BOTTOM, MIDDLE, BASELINE,
TEXTTOP, ABSMIDDLE and ABSBOTTOM.
 VSPACE: Sets the vertical space of the applet, in pixels, on each side
of the applet.
 HSPACE: Sets the horizontal space of the applet, in pixels, on each
side of the applet.
12.3.6 Passing Parameters to Applets
The <APPLET> tag enables you to pass the applet parameter in the applet using
the <PARAM> tag. The <PARAM> tag has two attributes, NAME and VALUE,
which are used to set the name and values of the parameter. The syntax of the
<PARAM> tag that is enclosed within the <APPLET> tag is:
<APPLET>
<PARAM [NAME] [VALUE]>
</APPLET>

The above syntax shows the <APPLET> tag with parameter values. The
NAME represents the name of the parameter and VALUE sets a value for that
Self-Instructional parameter. The <PARAM> tag is an empty tag. You can put several <PARAM>
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tags inside a single <APPLET> tag. You can retrieve the value of a parameter Applet Programming

using the getParameter() method that returns the specified parameter as a

String object. The following program code shows an applet displaying the
information of an end user that is passed as the parameter of the <PARAM> tag:
NOTES
Program 1: Displaying User Information by Passing Parameters
import java.awt.*;
import java.applet.Applet;
public class AppletHTML extends Applet
{
String firstName, lastName, sex, add, city, phone,
email;
Font font1, font2;
public void init()
{
font1 = new Font(“Arial”, Font.PLAIN, 16);
font2 = new Font(“Arial”, Font.BOLD, 20);
}
public void start()
{
//String param;
firstName = getParameter(“firstName”);
if(firstName == null)
firstName = “Not Found”;
lastName = getParameter(“lastName”);
if(lastName == null)
lastName = “Not Found”;
sex = getParameter(“sex”);
if(sex == null)
sex = “Not Found”;
add = getParameter(“add”);
if(add == null)
add = “Not Found”;
city = getParameter(“city”);
if(city == null)
city = “Not Found”;
phone = getParameter(“phone”);
if(phone == null)
phone = “Not Found”;
email = getParameter(“email”);
if(email == null)
email = “Not Found”;
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} Material 291
Applet Programming public void paint(Graphics g)
{
g.setFont(font2);
g.drawString(“-: User Information :- “ , 75,
NOTES
0);
g.setFont(font1);
g.drawString(“First Name : “ + firstName, 5,
0);
g.drawString(“Last Name : “ + lastName, 5, 80);
g.drawString(“Sex : “ + sex, 5, 100);
g.drawString(“Address : “ + add, 5, 120);
g.drawString(“City : “ + city, 5, 140);
g.drawString(“Phone No : “ + phone, 5, 160);
g.drawString(“Email : “ + email, 5, 180);
}
/*
<APPLET CODE=”AppletHTML” WIDTH=375 HEIGHT=200>
<PARAM NAME=firstName VALUE=”Vishal”>
<PARAM NAME=lastName VALUE=”Jayaswal”>
<PARAM NAME=sex VALUE=”Male”>
<PARAM NAME=add VALUE=”779-A,Civil-Lines”>
<PARAM NAME=city VALUE=”Jhansi”>
<PARAM NAME=phone VALUE=”9891066098">
<PARAM NAME=email VALUE=”vishal1431@rediffmail.com”>
</APPLET>
*/
}

The above code shows the user information that is passed as a parameter
of the <PARAM> tag. The getParameter() method retrieves the value of
each parameter and displays this value on the applet.
Output of the program:

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 You can create an interactive or dynamic applet by passing the values of the Applet Programming

parameter that are specified within the <PARAM> tag of the <HTML> document.
When you are working with the <PARAM> tag, you can change the contents that
are displayed on the applet by changing the parameter values in the HTML file.
NOTES
12.4 APPLET LIFE CYCLE

Each applet class inherits the properties and methods of the class, Applet. An
applet is loaded on the web browser or the appletviewer tool of Java. An Applet
may change its current state when a specific method is called byAWT. Java provides
four methods to change the state of an applet. These methods are as follows:
 init()
 start()
 stop()
 destroy()
The init() method is called when an applet loads the initialization
process. The initialization process creates the objects that an applet needs for
loading images, fonts and colours or for setting up the initial parameters such as
variables and constants. This method is called only once when an applet is loaded
the first time. The syntax to initialize the applet is:
public void init()
{
// init() method definition.
}

The start() method is called when an applet is initialized and starts the
execution of the applet. The syntax to start the applet is:
public void start()
{
// start() method definition.
}

The paint() method is called when you want to display an applet. The
syntax to display the applet is:
public void paint(Graphics g)
{
g.drawString(str, 10, 10);
}

The stop() method is called when either the end user stops an applet or
an applet loses the focus. The syntax to stop the applet is:
public void stop()
{
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Applet Programming // stop() method definition.
}

The destroy() method is called when an applet is destroyed. When

NOTES you want to exit from the web browser or appletviewer tool of Java, an applet
calls this method to free the resources. This method also occurs only once in the
life cycle of an applet. The syntax to destroy the applet is:
public void destroy()
{
// destroy() method definition.
}

Here, only the paint() method is a member of the graphics class, while
the other methods are members of the applet class. Figure 12.2 shows the life
cycle of an applet.

Fig. 12.2 Life Cycle of an Applet

There are four states in the life cycle of an applet: new born, running, idle
and dead. The newborn state consists of a newly loaded applet that is initializing
its resources. In the running state, an applet is executed and it displays the text or
image that the applet contains. An applet that is initialized but is not currently in the
running state is said to be in the idle state. When the destroy() method is
invoked, the applet acquires a dead state and releases all the resources. The
following code creates an applet that shows the various states of an applet life
cycle:
Program 2: Creating an Applet showing the various States of an Applet
Life cycle
import java.applet.Applet;
import java.awt.Graphics;
public class AppletLifeCycle extends Applet
{
Self-Instructional String str = “Hello! “;
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 public void init() Applet Programming
{
str = str + “ <init()> “;
}
NOTES
public void start()
{
str = str + “ <start()> “;
}
public void stop()
{
str = str + “ <stop()> “;
}
public void destroy()
{
str = str + “ <destroy()> “;
}
public void paint(Graphics g)
{
str = str + “ <paint()> “;
g.drawString(str, 30, 50);
}
/*
<APPLET CODE=”AppletLifeCycle” HEIGHT = 80 WIDTH = 410>
</APPLET>
*/
}

The above code shows the various states of the applet life cycle using applet
methods. The init() method initiates all the variables that are used in the
applet program. The paint() method displays text on the applet.
The following screenshot shows the output.

You can stop the execution of the applet by calling the stop() method.
The following screenshot shows the suspended applet.
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Applet Programming

NOTES

AWT calls the start()and paint() methods when you re-start the
applet.
The following screenshot shows re-starting the applet that was suspended
by the stop() method.

There is one additional method, paint, that is not a part of the applet life
cycle but is used for displaying the contents of the applets on the appletviewer or
web browser. The paint() method is called to display text or graphics on an
applet. This method takes an argument, which is the instance of the Graphics
class. The syntax to display the text on an applet is:
public void paint(Graphics g)
{
// paint() method definitions.
}

The above syntax shows the paint() method of the graphics class of
Java.

Check Your Progress

1. Define an applet.
2. What is the use of applet-viewer in applet programming?
3. What does <APPLET> tag refers to?
4. Write a code to add an applet to an HTML file.
5. How is CODEBASE used while programming applets?
6. What are the four methods use to change the state of an applet?
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 Applet Programming
12.5 METHODS USING APPLETS

An applet uses the classes and methods of AWT to perform its input and output
operations. To display the output in the applet, one uses the drawstring() NOTES
method present in the graphics class. Its general form is:
void drawString(String msg, int x_co, int y_co)

Here, msg holds the string to be written on the applet screen starting from
the coordinates specified by int x_co, int y_co. In a Java window, the upper-left
corner is location 0,0.
The setBackground() method is used to set the background colour
of the applet.
The setForeground() method is used to set the foreground colour
of the applet, i.e., the colour of the text to be written.
The above methods are defined in component class, and their general forms
are:
(a) void setBackground(Color Color)
(b) void setForeground(Color Color)
Color specifies the new colour. The color class defines the following
constants that can be used to specify colours:
Color.black Color.magenta
Color.blue Color.orange
Color.cyan Color.pink
Color.darkGray Color.red
Color.gray Color.white
Color.green Color.yellow
Color.lightGray

The following example sets the background colour to pink and the text
colour to magenta.
Program 3:
setBackground(Color.pink);
setForeground(Color.magenta);

An example for the creation of an applet is given below:

Program 4:
import java.awt.*;
import java.applet.*;
/*
<applet code=”SimpleBanner” width=750 height=500>
</applet>
*/ Self-Instructional
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Applet Programming public class abc extends Applet {
String mesg = “WELCOME TO APPLET”;
public void init() {
setBackground(Color.cyan);
NOTES
setForeground(Color.red);
}
public void start() {
mesg = mesg+” MISS SAMITA”;
}
public void stop() {
}
public void paint(Graphics g1) {
g1.drawString(mesg, 50, 30);
}
}

Output of the program:

From the above example, you can be seen that the steps to create an applet are:
First, one has to import both the packages, java.applet and java.awt.
After that, the HTML tag has to be defined, which is required to make the applet
run in the web browser. Then the init() method has to be defined. Then the
start() method and the paint method have to be defined. Here, the stop()
or destroy() methods are not required and therefore have not been defined.
Now from the above example, it can be seen that first the init() method is
called and the background colour and foreground colour are set using the
s e t B a c k g r o u n d ( C o l o r . c y a n ) and s e t F o r e g r o u n d
(Color.red) methods. After that, the start method is called, in which the
mesg variables content is modified. Then the paint method is called, in which the
code g.drawString(msg,50,30) has been written to print the output
on the applet.
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 Another example would make the concept clearer and help in understanding Applet Programming

the usage of passing parameters to the applet:

NOTES

Program 5:
import java.applet.Applet;
import java .awt .*;
public class Second extends Applet
{
Font f = new Font (“TimesRoman”, Font.BOLD, 40);
String name;
public void init()
{
name = getParameter (“name”);
if (name == null)
{
name = “Java”;
name = “Have a nice day “ + name;
}
}
public void paint(Graphics g1)
{
g1.setFont (f);
g1.setColor (Color.blue);
g1.drawString (name, 50, 50);
}
}
/*<applet code=”Second.class” width=200 height=200
align=TOP>
<param name=”name” value=”Sai”>
</applet>*/

An instance of the font class f is declared. This object has been initialized
to contain TimesRoman as font name, font size as 40 and font style as BOLD. The
init() method, declared in line 7, contains the getParameter () method,
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Applet Programming which accepts the name (a string) as its parameter. The paint () method of
the component class is overridden to execute the paint () method in the class. This
method contains the drawString() method, apart from the two methods,
namely, setFont() and setColor(). These two methods are used to set
NOTES the desired font and colour respectively.
Passing Parameters to Applets
A programmer can set the parameter, as already explained. To retrieve the value,
the getParameter() method has to be used, which takes the name of the
parameter and returns the value stored in the parameter.
Program 6:
import java.awt.*;
import java.applet.*;
/*
<applet code=”SimpleBanner” width=750 height=500>
<param name=”param1" value =”SAI”>
</applet>
*/
public class abc extends Applet {
String mesg ;
public void init() {
setBackground(Color.white);
setForeground(Color.red);
}
public void start() {
mesg = getParameter(“param1”);
}
public void paint(Graphics g1) {
g1.drawString(mesg, 50, 30);
}
}

Output of the program:

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Playing an Audio Clip Applet Programming

Consider the following example.

Program 7:
import java.applet.*; NOTES
import java.awt.*;
public class player extends Applet {
AudioClip a1;
public void init()
{
a1=getAudioClip(getCodeBase(),”sai.au”);
}
public void start()
{
a1.play();
}
public void paint(Graphics g1)
{
g1.drawString(“playing music”,50,30);
}
}
/*<applet code=”Play” width=200 height=200>
</applet>*/

Output of the program:

This program will open the applet and the music file named sai.au will be
played.

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Applet Programming The getAudioclip() method returns the URL of the music file specified
as its parameter value. Then the play method is called to play the music file.
One can only play the *.au format music files and the music file should
reside in the same directory in which the Java file is present.
NOTES
The following is a designer applet to play and stop music files:
Program 8:
import java.awt.*;
import java.awt.event.*;
import java.applet.*;
public class Play extends applet implements ActionListener
{
AudioClip a1;
Button b1,b2;
public void init()
{
b1=new Button(“Start”);
b2=new Button(“Stop”);
a1=getAudioClip(getCodeBase(),”sai.au”);
b1.addActionListener(this);
b2.addActionListener(this);
add(b1);
add(b2);
}
public void actionPerformed(ActionEvent ae)
{
if(ae.getSource()==b1)
{
a1.play();
}else{
a1.stop();
}
}
public void paint(Graphics g1)
{
g1.setColor(Color.red);
g1.setFont(new Font(“Arial”,Font.BOLD,40));
g1.drawString(“This Is Music World”,50,70);
}
}

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 /*<applet code=”Play” width=200 height=200> Applet Programming
</applet>*/

Output of the program:

NOTES

AppletContext
It is an interface that is implemented by an object that represents the environment
of the applet. To use it, one has to first create an object of AppletContext,
using the getAppletContext() method. This is shown below:
Program 9:
AppletContext context= getAppletContext( );

In AppletContext, some interesting methods are defined, such as the

getApplet( )method. It returns the name of the applet and the
getApplets( ) method, which returns all the applets in the document base.
getApplet( )
getApplets( )

In AppletContext, another method, showDocument( ) is also

defined, which either takes a URL or a URL and the file name in the form of a
string. It creates an HTML page in the web browser, which shows the applet. It is
useful with HTML frames where the applet should reside in a frame and the new
HTML pages should be shown in another frame.
The showStatus() method shows the string passed to it as a parameter
on the status bar at the bottom of the web browser. The following example shows
the use of the showDocument() and showStatus() methods.
Program 10:
AppletContext Code Sample
import java.applet.*;
import java.awt.*;
import java.net.*;
// <applet code=”applet1.class” width=400 height=100></
applet>
public class applet1 extends Applet{
public void init(){
try{ Self-Instructional
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Applet Programming URL url1=new URL(“http://wallpaper.net/pkomisar/
Flowere.html”);
getAppletContext( ).showDocument(url1);
}catch(MalformedURLException me){}
NOTES }
public void paint( Graphics g1){
g1.setFont(new Font(“Monospaced”, Font.BOLD, 22));
g1.drawString(“Hello World”, 55, 65 );
getAppletContext( ).showStatus(“Puts the message in
status bar”);
}
}

Now, in the above program, the user gets the current appletcontext using
the getAppletContext() method. Then, using the showDocument()
method, the user just transfers the control to another HTML file, which is passed
to it as a parameter. The showStatus() method displays the string passed to
it as a parameter at the bottom of the applet window.
Note: One can use console output in an applet, such as
System.out.println(). The string passed to it will not get displayed on
the screen; rather it will get displayed in the console. It is generally used for the
purpose of debugging; otherwise, the use of these methods is discouraged.
Advantages of a Java Applet
A Java applet has the following advantages:
(a) The applet can work properly on all versions of installed Java, excluding
the latest plug-in version.
(b) Almost all web browsers support the applet.
(c) A user can permit it to have full access to the machine on which it is running.
(d) It can improve with use, which means that after a first applet is run, the
JVM is already running and starts quickly, benefitting the regular Java users.
However, the JVM will need to restart each time the browser starts a fresh.
(e) In terms of its speed of execution, it is slower than C++ codes, but faster
than JavaScript.
Disadvantages of a Java Applet
A Java applet has the following disadvantages:
(a) Sometimes, the Java plug-in is required, but it is not available on every web
browser by default.
(b) The process of loading an applet is very slow.
It can now be concluded that without an applet, Java cannot get the honour
of a web-enabled language. The AWT package present in Java is an important
Self-Instructional package. It is needed to develop a sophisticated applet.
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 Applet Programming
12.6 SIMPLE AWT CONTROLS

12.6.1 Introducing the Abstract Window Toolkit (AWT)

NOTES
An end user interacts with applications via an interface. Java Development Kit
(JDK) provides a package called the Abstract Window Toolkit (AWT), which
enables you to design user-friendly interfaces. The AWT package is a collection
of classes and methods that allow an end user to design and manage Graphical
User Interface (GUI) based applications. AWT is used to support applet windows
and it also helps in creating independent windows, such as frame windows or
panel windows that run in a GUI environment.
Window Fundamentals
AWT is Java’s largest package and can be included in a Java program by giving
the java.awt.* statement. It is a part of Java Foundation Classes (JFC). AWT has
63 classes and 14 interfaces used for creating user interfaces. You can use AWT
classes and interfaces to design and manage components such as lines, rectangles,
ellipses, polygons, text boxes, command buttons, lists, menus and scroll bars.
The features of the AWT package are:
 It provides graphics and imaging tools that enable you to develop GUI.
 It provides layout managers that enable an end user to develop window
layouts.
 It supports event handling.
The java.awt package contains all the classes used for developing graphical
interfaces. These classes are organized in a hierarchical order. Figure 12.3 shows
the hierarchy of classes in the java.awt package.

Fig. 12.3 AWT Class Hierarchy

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Applet Programming It shows the multi-level inheritance structure of AWT classes and subclasses. Multi-
level inheritance means that a derived class has more than one base class, for
example, the frame class is derived from the window class, which is derived from
the container class. Component class and container class are the two important
NOTES classes of AWT package. The component class consists of subclasses and methods
for creating components such as command button, text boxes and labels. The
container class enables you to create objects such as frames that contain
components.
All other classes are subclasses of these two classes. Each subclass inherits
the characteristics of its super class. Apart from inheriting the functionality of the
upper class, it also has some additional functionality that is unique to its level.
Component Class
Component class is at the top of the AWT inheritance class hierarchy. It is the
super class and all other classes in the hierarchy inherit its characteristics directly
or indirectly. Component class is an abstract class that encapsulates all the properties
of a visual component or object.
Component class defines the various methods that are used to handle events,
define the layout of a component, provide the content of the component and repaint
the window during the execution of a program. The methods that the objects of
the components class use include:
 void setSize (int width, int height): Defines the size of a component in
terms of width and size.
 void setLocation (int x, int y): Specifies the location of a component, in
the window, at the position specified by the X and Y coordinates.
 void setBounds (int x, int y, int width, int height): Sets the bounds of a
component in terms of position X & Y and size in terms of width and height.
 void setForeground (Color B): Sets the foreground colour of the
component.
 void setBackground (Color B): Sets the background colour of the
component.
Container Class
Container class is the subclass of the component class and its objects inherit all the
characteristics of the component class. Therefore, container objects can also be
used as component objects. The objects of container class are also known as
containers. This class supports nested container objects. You can place one
container object inside another container object, if required.
It is the function of the container object to determine the position of other
component objects that it contains. Layout managers are responsible for performing
this function.

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 Containers use the add() function to nest other components inside them. Applet Programming

The methods that are used to manipulate components on container objects are:
 void add (object o): Nests a component or an object inside a
container.
NOTES
 void remove (object o): Removes a component or an object
from a container.
 void removeALL(): Removes all the components or objects that
are placed inside a container.
Panel Class
Panel is a subclass of the container class and is used for organizing components.
The panel class inherits the methods from its super class rather than defining them.
It uses the add() method to nest components inside it.
The panel class is a super class of the applet class. It does not contain a
border, title bar or menu bar. It supports nested panel objects. A panel container
object can have more than one panel and different panels can have different layouts.
In addition to the add() method, the methods that the panel class uses
are:
 panel(): Creates an object of the panel class.
 setLocation(): Determines the position of a component inside the
panel.
 setSize(): Sets the size of a component in terms of width and height.
 setBounds(): Sets the bounds of a component in terms of position
and size.
Window Class
Window is another subclass of the container class. Its objects are called windows
and they are top-level containers. Window objects are not contained in any other
object.
You can place window objects directly on the desktop. The window class
has two subclasses, frames and dialog.
The methods used by the window class include:
 void pack(): Adjusts the layout of a window according to the size
and number of components it holds.
 void show(): Displays a window on the screen and places the window
on top of the other windows that may be open on the desktop.
 void dispose(): Deallocates the memory allotted to a window.
Frame Class
Frame is a subclass of the window class. The frame class enables you to create
pop-up windows. It is an important class of AWT that enables an end user to Self-Instructional
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Applet Programming create stand-alone applications. The frame window has a border, title bar and
menu bar. The default layout for frame is border layout. Its objects respond to
mouse, keyboard and focus events.
Frame objects are created either through an applet program or through any
NOTES
other Java program using its constructor. If a frame object is created in an applet,
it displays a message like Java Applet Window. Objects can be added to a frame
using the add () method.
Canvas Class
Canvas class is another type of window class and is used to create blank windows.
Canvas objects are used only for drawing purposes, but they can enable an end
user to create customized components. The canvas constructor takes no arguments
and creates an empty drawing area. The canvas class does not define any method.
It inherits the paint() method from the component class that needs to be overridden
to provide the drawing functionality.
Working with Frames
Frame is the most often used window. End users can resize frames at runtime, and
therefore, a frame object does not require X and Y dimensions to be declared at
design time. Frames are resized after they have been created. Frames can be
created using two types of constructors:
 Frame(): Creates a standard window that does not contain any title bar.
This constructor does not take parameters.
 Frame(String Title): Creates a window that has a title. This
constructor accepts the title for a frame window as a string argument.
The title of the frame window can be changed using the setTitle ()
method. The syntax to use the setTitle () method is:
void setTitle (String newtitle)

In the above syntax, the setTitle() method changes the title of a

frame by accepting the new title as an argument passed to it. The Show() method
is used to make the frame window visible and active on the screen. The frame
inherits the color class from its super classes. The color class sets the colour of the
frame.
Creating a Frame
An instance of a frame can be created using any of the above two constructors.
You can use the frame objects unique methods as well as its inherited method
by specifying the frame object name with the method name. The syntax to invoke
a method is:
Frame1.show()

The following program code shows how to create a frame window:

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Program 11: Applet Programming

How to Create a Frame

/* Importing AWT package. */
import java.awt.*; NOTES
/* Creating a frame class. */
public class Framed1 extends Frame
{
public static void main (String arg[])
{
/* Creating a frame object. */
Frame framed1 = new Frame(“my”);
framed1.setSize(300,400);
framed1.setVisible(true);
}}

The above code shows how to create an empty frame. The java.awt.*
package should be included in the Java program to implement the functions of the
AWT classes in your program. The following screenshot shows the output.
Output of the program:

Setting Frame Properties

The frame class inherits all the methods of its super class. The inherited methods,
such as setSize() and setVisible(), enable you to set the properties
for a frame window. The default size of a frame is 0,0 in terms of width and height.
You can set the size of a frame at any time in your program using the setSize()
method. The syntax to implement the setSize() method is:
void setSize(int width, int height)
void setSize(Dimension size)

In the above syntax, you can specify the width and height of a frame window
as arguments in the setSize() method. In addition, you can specify the dimensions
of the frame window by passing an object of the dimension class. Size is the Self-Instructional
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Applet Programming object of the dimension class that has the width and height fields, which set the size
of the frame in terms of pixels. These are the two ways of setting the frame window
size property.
You can use the getSize() method to obtain the current size of the
NOTES
frame. The syntax to obtain the current size of the frame window is:
Dimension getSize()

This method returns an object of dimension type. This object has the width
and height fields that store the current size of the frame window, which is displayed
on the screen. Other methods commonly used with the frame object are:
 setBackground(): Sets the background colour of the frame.
 setEnabled(): Enables or disables a frame window object.
 void setLocation(int x, int y): Sets the location of the
frame to the left of the screen, by default, at X and Y positions.
Specifying the frame name followed by the method name sets the properties
for a frame. The following program code shows how to set the properties of a
frame window:
Program 12:
Setting the Properties of a Frame
import java.awt.*;
import java.awt.event.*;
class Framed extends Frame
{
public static void main (String arg[])
{
Framed framd1 = new Framed();
Framec fc = new Framec(framd1);
/* Setting frame properties. */
framd1.setSize(250,250);
framd1.setVisible(true);
framd1.setTitle(“Demo”);
/* Setting the background colour for frame using color
object. */
Color col = new Color(178,185,252);
framd1.setBackground(Col);
/* Add windowlistener method to provide window
functionality. */
framd1.addWindowListener(fc);
}
}

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 /* Subclass of the windowadapter class is created to Applet Programming
provide window events such as closing a frame or minimizing
a frame. */
class Framec extends WindowAdapter
{ NOTES
/* Object of the frame subclass is created. */
Framed fd;
/* Object of frame subclass is passed as arguments in the
windowadapter method. */
Framec(Framed f)
{ fd = f; }
/* Closing event is defined for frame. */
public void windowClosing(WindowEvent we)
{
System.exit(0);
}
}

The above code shows how to create a frame window and set its properties
using various methods such as setSize(), setVisible() and
setBackground(). An object of the color class is created to set the
background colour of the frame. An object of the windowadapter class is also
created to provide all the functionalities of a window such as minimize, maximize
and close.
Output of the program:

In this case, the frame size is set to 250,250, its visible property is set to
true, its title is Demo and its colour is set to blue.
12.6.2 Creating AWT Controls
An AWT control is a component that allows the end user to interact with
applications created in Java. All AWT controls in Java are subclasses of the
component class. The component class provides the add() method to add AWT

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Applet Programming components to containers such as applet windows. The various classes in Java for
creating AWT controls are:
 Label
NOTES  Button
 Check boxes
 Radio buttons
 Choice
 Text fields
 Text areas
 Scroll bars
All AWT components are capable of generating events other than labels, which
are also known as passive AWT components. The AWT controls that can generate
events are known as active AWT components.
Creating Labels
Labels are created in an applet to display text in a form. Labels can be used for
naming other form controls such as text fields, checkboxes, radio buttons and text
area boxes. The label class that is available in the java.awt package is used for
creating labels. You use the label constructor to create an instance of the label
class. The various constructors available in the label class are:
 public Label( )
 public Label(String txt)
 public Label(String txt, int align)
The public Label() constructor is an empty constructor that does
not accept any parameter. It is used for creating empty labels that do not display
any text.
The public Label(String txt) constructor accepts an argument
of the string class. The string value passed to the constructor as an argument is
displayed as the text message of the label class.
The public Label(String txt, int align) constructor
accepts two arguments. The first argument is of the string class and represents the
text message that the label displays. The second argument is an integer type value
that describes the alignment of the label as left, right or centre.
Table 12.2 lists the parameter values for the integer argument in the
constructor, public Label(String txt, int align).

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 Table 12.2 Alignment Values for a Label Applet Programming

Values Description
Label.RIGHT Aligns label to the right of the applet window.
Label.CENTER Aligns label to the centre of the applet window. NOTES
Label.LEFT Aligns label to the left of the applet window.
Note: Labels are aligned to the centre by default if the alignment is not specified.
You can use the methods available in the font and color classes to apply
formatting and colour to the label objects. The following code shows how to
create labels:
Program 13:
Creating Labels in an Applet Window
import java.awt.*;
import java.applet.*;
/ * < ap p l e t c o d e = ” L a b e l Im p l . c l a s s ” w i d t h = ”2 0 0 "
height=”300"></applet>*/
public class LabelImpl extends Applet
{
/*Creating Label references*/
Label l1,l2,l3;
public void init()
{
/*creating instances for labels*/
/*creating a right aligned Label*/
l1=new Label(“Right Aligned Label”,Label.RIGHT);
/*Creating a centre aligned Label*/
l2=new Label(“Center Aligned Label”,Label.CENTER);
/*Creating a left aligned Label*/
l3=new Label(“Left Aligned Label”,Label.LEFT);
/*Creating a Font object*/
Font f=new Font(“Impact”,Font.BOLD,25);
/*Creating objects of Color class*/
Color c1=new Color(255,200,210);
Color c2=new Color(200,200,250);
Color c3=new Color(100,100,250);
/*Applying Font Format to Label*/
l1.setFont(f);
l2.setFont(f);
l3.setFont(f);
/*Applying Colour Format to a Label*/
l1.setForeground(c1);
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Applet Programming l2.setForeground(c2);
l3.setForeground(c3);
/*Adding Labels to the Applet Window*/
add(l1);
NOTES
add(l2);
add(l3);
}
}

The above code shows how to create labels that are right aligned, left aligned
and centre aligned. Objects of the font and color classes are used in the code to
apply font formats and colour to the labels. The add() method is used to add all
the labels to the applet window.
Output of the program:

Java provides various methods with the label class that allow you to modify
the existing labels in a program.
Table 12.3 describes the methods available in the Label class.
Table 12.3 Methods of the Label Class

Methods Description
void setText(String msg) Modifies the text of the label to the
value passed as the argument String
msg.
String getText() Retrieves the string value of the
label.
void setAlignment(int align) Sets the alignment of the label to
the value specified as argument.
int getAlignment() Retrieves the current alignment of
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Creating Buttons Applet Programming

Buttons are the AWT controls that are used for handling events. Some of the
actions associated with buttons are validating the form and submitting the information
of the form to the database at the click of a button. Java provides the button class NOTES
to create the AWT button components. The constructors of the button class for
creating buttons are:
 public Button()
 public Button(String txt)
The public Button() constructor is the empty constructor for creating
button controls. The button you create using this constructor does not contain a
label. The public Button(String txt) constructor is the constructor
for creating button controls with labels. The label of the button you create using
this constructor is specified by the argument, String txt. You can enhance the
appearance of the buttons you create using the font and color class objects. The
following program code shows how to create buttons in an applet.
Program 14:
Creating Buttons
import java.awt.*;
import java.applet.*;
/*<applet code=”ButtonImp l. class ” wi dth=” 200"
height=”300"></applet>*/
public class ButtonImpl extends Applet
{
Label l1,l2;
TextField t1,t2,t3;
/*Creating references of the Button class*/
Button b1,b2;
public void init()
{
l1=new Label(“Name”);
l2=new Label(“Password”);
/*Creating Password and Text Fields*/
t1=new TextField(10);
t2=new TextField(10);
t2.setEchoChar(‘#’);
/*Creating instances of Button class*/
b1=new Button(“Validate”);
b2=new Button(“Submit”);
/*Creating an instance of the Font class*/
Font f=new Font(“Arial”,Font.BOLD,14);
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Applet Programming Font f1=new Font(“Arial”,Font.BOLD | Font.ITALIC,12);
Color c=new Color(100,100,250);
Color bc=new Color(100,200,250);
Color fc=new Color(100,100,90);
NOTES
l1.setFont(f);
l2.setFont(f);
/*Applying colour to AWT components*/
l1.setForeground(c);
l2.setForeground(c);
b1.setForeground(fc);
b2.setForeground(fc);
b1.setBackground(bc);
b2.setBackground(bc);
/*Adding the AWT Controls*/
add(l1);
add(t1);
add(l2);
add(t2);
add(b1);
add(b2);
}
}

The above code shows how to create buttons using constructors of the
button class. You can add colour to the background and foreground of the button
objects using instances of the color class. You can apply formatting to the label
font of the label objects using an instance of the color class.
Output of the program:

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 The button class provides methods that allow you to modify the properties Applet Programming

of the existing button objects. Table 12.4 describes the two methods of the button
class.
Table 12.4 Methods of the Button Class
NOTES
Methods Description
void setLabel(String txt) Modifies the existing label of the button
to the value specified by the argument,
String txt.
String getLabel() Retrieves the value of the label of the
button.

Creating Checkboxes and Radio Buttons

The checkbox control is used for making multiple selections. Java provides the
checkbox class for creating check boxes. The checkbox class is also used for
creating radio buttons using the class, CheckboxGroup. The constructors of the
checkbox class used for creating checkbox and radio button objects are:
 public Checkbox()
 public Checkbox(String txt)
 public Checkbox(String txt, boolean true_false)
 public Checkbox(String txt, boolean tf,
CheckboxGroup cbg)
 public Checkbox(String txt, CheckboxGroup cbg,
boolean tf)
The constructor, public Checkbox() is an empty constructor. This
constructor creates a checkbox without a label. The constructor, public
Checkbox(String txt) creates a checkbox with a label. The value of
the label is specified by the argument String txt.
The constructor, public Checkbox(String txt, boolean
true_false) creates a checkbox with a label. You can also specify whether
the checkbox initially appears selected or deselected. The value of the label is
specified by the argument, String txt. If the value of the argument, boolean true_false
is true then the checkbox appears selected. If the value of the argument, boolean
true_false is false then the checkbox appears deselected.
The public Checkbox(String txt, boolean tf,
CheckboxGroup cbg) is the constructor for creating radio buttons. The
argument, String txt specifies the label of the radio button. The argument, boolean
tf specifies whether the radio button appears selected by default or not. The
argument, CheckboxGroup cbg, is an instance of the CheckboxGroup
class that specifies several radio buttons, which belong to the same group. You
can select only one radio button in each group.
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Applet Programming The constructor, p u b l i c C h e c k b o x ( S t r i n g t x t ,
CheckboxGroup cbg, boolean tf) creates radio buttons. This
constructor is the same as public Checkbox(String txt, boolean tf, CheckboxGroup
cbg). Only the order of the arguments, CheckboxGroup cbg and boolean tf, is
NOTES interchanged.
The following program code shows how to create checkboxes and radio
buttons in an applet:
Program 15:
Creating Checkboxes and Radio Buttons
import java.awt.*;
import java.applet.*;
/*<applet code=”CheckboxImpl.class” width=”200"
height=”300"></applet>*/
public class CheckboxImpl extends Applet
{
Label l1,l2,l3,l4;
TextField t1,t2;
Button b1;
/*Creating references for Checkbox class*/
Checkbox c1,c2,c3,c4,c5;
Checkbox r1,r2;
/*Creating references for Checkbox class*/
CheckboxGroup cbg;
public void init()
{
l1=new Label(“Name”);
l2=new Label(“Password”);
l3=new Label(“Hobby”);
l4=new Label(“Gender”);
t1=new TextField(10);
t2=new TextField(10);
t2.setEchoChar(‘*’);
/*Creating instances of the Checkbox class*/
c1=new Checkbox(“Sports”);
c2=new Checkbox(“Music”);
c3=new Checkbox(“Reading”, true);
c4=new Checkbox(“Dancing”);
c5=new Checkbox(“Gardening”);
/*Creating instance of the CheckboxGroup class*/
cbg=new CheckboxGroup();
r1=new Checkbox(“Female”,true,cbg);
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 r2=new Checkbox(“Male”,false,cbg); Applet Programming
/* Creating instance of Button class*/
b1=new Button(“Submit”);
/* Creating instance of Font class*/
NOTES
Font f=new Font(“Arial”,Font.BOLD,14);
/* Creating instance of the Color class*/
Color c=new Color(100,100,250);
/*Applying font and colour formats to the Labels*/
l1.setFont(f);
l2.setFont(f);
l3.setFont(f);
l4.setFont(f);
l1.setForeground(c);
l2.setForeground(c);
l3.setForeground(c);
l4.setForeground(c);
/*Adding AWT components*/
add(l1);
add(t1);
add(l2);
add(t2);
add(l3);
add(c1);
add(c2);
add(c3);
add(c4);
add(c5);
add(l4);
add(r1);
add(r2);
add(b1);
}
}

The above code shows how to create checkboxes and radio buttons using
the constructors of the checkbox class. An instance of the CheckboxGroup
class is created to group the radio buttons. The add() method is used for
adding checkboxes and radio buttons to the applet window.
Output of the program:
The checkbox class provides methods that allow you to modify the properties
of the existing checkboxes and radio buttons.
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Applet Programming

NOTES

Table 12.5 describes the methods of the checkbox class.

Table 12.5 Methods of the Checkbox Class

Methods Description
boolean getState() Retrieves a boolean value that
represents whether the radio
button or checkbox is selected or
not. A true value represents that
the checkbox or radio button
control is selected. A false value
represents that the control is not
selected.
void setState(boolean tf) Modifies the state of the radio
button or checkbox to either
selected or deselected. If the value
of the argument, boolean tf, is true
then the control appears selected.
If the value of the argument,
boolean tf, is false then the control
appears deselected.
String getLabel() Retrieves the label of the radio
button or checkbox.
void setLabel(String str) Modifies the label of the radio
button or checkbox to the value
specified by the argument, String
str.
Checkbox getSelectedCheckbox() Retrieves the selected radio
button object from a group.
void setSelectedCheckbox(Checkbox rd) Selects a radio button specified by
the argument, Checkbox rd.

Creating Choice Controls

You can create combination boxes that are also known as drop-down menus
using the class, Choice, in Java. The choice class contains a single constructor,
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public Choice(), which creates an instance of the choice class. Then, the add() Applet Programming

method of the choice class is used for adding members to the combination box.
The syntax for creating a combination box using the choice class is:
Choice ch=new Choice();
ch.add(“Item 1”); NOTES
ch.add(“Item 2”);
ch.add(“Item 3”);
add(ch);

The above syntax shows that the add() method of the choice class accepts
a string type argument, which is added to the choice object. Another add()
method is also used for adding the choice object to the applet window. The following
program code shows how to create a combination box using the choice class:
Program 16:
Creating Combination Boxes
import java.awt.*;
import java.applet.*;
/*<applet code=”ChoiceImp l. class ” wi dth=” 200"
height=”300"></applet>*/
/*Creating class to display Choice options*/
public class ChoiceImpl extends Applet
{
Label l1,l2;
Choice ch1,ch2;
public void init()
{
/* Creating instances of the Label class*/
l1=new Label(“Select a SAARC Nation”);
l2=new Label(“Select your country”);
/* Creating instances of the Choice class*/
ch1=new Choice();
ch2=new Choice();
/* Creating instances of the Font class*/
Font f1=new Font(“Arial”,Font.BOLD | Font.ITALIC,14);
/* Creating instances of the Color class*/
Color c=new Color(100,100,250);
/* Applying font and colour formats to the components*/
l1.setFont(f1);
l2.setFont(f1);
l1.setForeground(c);
l2.setForeground(c);
/*Adding Items to the first Choice instance*/
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Applet Programming ch1.add(“Bangladesh”);
ch1.add(“Bhutan”);
ch1.add(“India”);
ch1.add(“Maldives”);
NOTES
ch1.add(“Nepal”);
ch1.add(“Pakistan”);
ch1.add(“Sri Lanka”);
/*Adding Items to the second Choice instance*/
ch2.add(“India”);
ch2.add(“U.S.A”);
ch2.add(“U.K”);
ch2.add(“Japan”);
ch2.add(“China”);
ch2.add(“Pakistan”);
ch2.add(“Korea”);
/*Adding AWT components*/
add(l2);
add(ch2);
add(l1);
add(ch1);
}
}

The above code shows how to create two combination boxes. One
combination box contains the name of the seven SAARC nations and the other
combination box contains the names of some countries. You create two instances
of the choice class that contain this information.
The choice class provides methods that allow you to modify the properties
of the combination boxes.
Output of the program:

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 Table 12.6 describes the methods of the Choice class. Applet Programming

Table 12.6 Methods of the Choice Class

Methods Description
String getSelectedItem() Retrieves the text option from the NOTES
combination box that is selected by the end
user.
int getSelectedIndex() Retrieves the position of the text member in
the combination box that is selected by the
end user.
int getItemCount() Retrieves the total number of members in
the combination box.
void select(int indx) Selects the text option specified at the
location by the argument, int indx.
String getItem(int indx) Retrieves the member that exists at the
position specified by the argument, int indx.

Creating Text Fields

A text field is an AWT component that allows you to accept input from the end
user. Java provides the textField class to create a text field control. The textField
class is available in the java.awt package. The various constructors of the textField
class are:
 public TextField()
 public TextField(int num)
 public TextField(String txt)
 public TextField(String txt, int num)
The public TextField() constructor is an empty constructor. It is
used for creating text fields with default settings. You make use of empty text fields
to create form controls.
The public TextField(int num) constructor creates a text
field of the size specified by the argument, int num. The argument, num, is an
integer type value that specifies the number of characters as the length of the text
field. For example, the value of int num is set to 10 for creating a text field, which
can hold 10 characters.
The public TextField(String txt) constructor creates a
text field where a string message is displayed within the text field. The value of the
argument String txt is displayed in the text field as the default text.
The public TextField(String txt, int num) constructor
creates a text field, which is of the length specified by the argument, int num. The
value specified as the argument, String txt, appears as the default text within the
text field.

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Applet Programming The following program code shows how to create text fields in an applet
using the TextField class:
Program 17:
NOTES Creating Text Fields
import java.awt.*;
import java.awt.event.*;
import java.applet.*;
/*
<applet code=”TextArea” width=50 height=800>
</applet>
*/
public class TextArea extends Applet
implements ActionListener {
TextField tfname, tlname, tstreet, tstate, tpin,
temployee;
public void init() {
Label fname = new Label(“First Name: “, Label.RIGHT);
Label lname = new Label(“Last Name: “, Label.RIGHT);
Label street = new Label(“Street: “, Label.RIGHT);
Label state = new Label(“State: “, Label.RIGHT);
Label pin = new Label(“Pin: “, Label.RIGHT);
Label employee = new Label(“Employee Code: “,
Label.RIGHT);
tfname = new TextField(12);
tlname = new TextField(12);
tstreet = new TextField(12);
tstate = new TextField(12);
tpin = new TextField(12);
temployee = new TextField(12);
add(fname);
add(tfname);
add(lname);
add(tlname);
add(street);
add(tstreet);
add(state);
add(tstate);
add(pin);
add(tpin);
add(employee);
add(temployee);
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 // register to receive action events Applet Programming
tfname.addActionListener(this);
tlname.addActionListener(this);
tstreet.addActionListener(this);
NOTES
tstate.addActionListener(this);
tpin.addActionListener(this);
temployee.addActionListener(this); }
// User pressed Enter.
public void actionPerformed(ActionEvent ae) {
repaint();
}
public void paint(Graphics g) {
g.drawString(“First Name: “ + tfname.getText(), 5,
260);
g.drawString(“Last Name: “ + tlname.getText(), 5,
280);
g.drawString(“Street: “ + tstreet.getText(), 5,
300);
g.drawString(“State: “ + tstate.getText(), 5, 340);
g.drawString(“Pin: “ + tpin.getText(), 5, 360);
g.drawString(“Employee Code: “ + temployee.getText(),
5, 380);
}
}

The above code shows how to create text fields using the textField class.
The add() method is used for adding the text field to the applet window.
Output of the program:

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Applet Programming The textField class also contains methods that are used for modifying the
properties of the existing text fields.
Table 12.7 describes the methods of the textField class.
NOTES Table 12.7 Methods of the Text Field Class

Methods Description
String getText() Retrieves the text input in the text
field.
void setText(String txt) Sets the value in the text field to the
value assigned to the argument,
String txt.
String getSelectedText() Retrieves the selected text from the
text field. The end user selects the
text either by using the mouse or
the keyboard.
void select(int start, int end) Selects the text within the text field
starting from the position specified
by the argument, int start to the
position specified by the argument,
int end.
boolean isEditable() Retrieves a value, true or false that
tells whether the end user can
modify the text within the text field
or not. A true value means that the
text within the text field can be
modified. A false value means that
the value within the text field
cannot be modified.
void setEditable(boolean true_false) Assigns the value true or false that
specifies the editable property of
the text field.
void setEchoChar(char encchar) Converts a text field to a password
field. The characters entered by the
end user appear encrypted by the
character specified by the
argument, char encchar.
Boolean echoCharIsSet() Retrieves a value, true or false that
determines whether the text field is
converted to a password field or
not.
char getEchoChar() Retrieves the character that
encrypts the text in a password field.
You can create a password field using the methods of the textField class.
The following program code shows how to create password fields:

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Program 18: Applet Programming

Creating Password Fields

import java.awt.*;
import java.applet.*;
NOTES
import java.util.*;
/*<applet code=”PasswordImpl.class” width=”200"
height=”300"></applet>*/
public class PasswordImpl extends Applet
{
Label l1,l2,l3;
TextField t1,t2,t3;
public void init()
{
/*Creating instances of Label*/
l1=new Label(“Name”,Label.LEFT);
l2=new Label(“Password”,Label.LEFT);
l3=new Label(“Date”,Label.LEFT);
/*Creating instances of TextField*/
t1=new TextField(25);
t2=new TextField(25);
t3=new TextField(25);
/*Creating an instance of the Date class */
Date d=new Date();
/*Creating an instance of the Font class */
Font f=new Font(“Arial”,Font.BOLD,12);
/*Creating an instance of the Color class */
Color c=new Color(100,200,250);
/*Applying fonts*/
l1.setFont(f);
l2.setFont(f);
l3.setFont(f);
/*Applying colour*/
l1.setForeground(c);
l2.setForeground(c);
l3.setForeground(c);
/*Adding AWT controls to the applet window*/
add(l3);
add(t3);
add(l1);
add(t1);
add(l2);
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Applet Programming add(t2);
/*Converting text field to the password field*/
t2.setEchoChar(‘*’);
/*Displaying current date in a text field*/
NOTES
t3.setText(d.toString());
/*Setting the editable property of a text field to false*/
t3.setEditable(false);
}
}

The above code shows how to create a password field. An instance of the
date class is created to display the current date in a text field. The text field that
displays the current date is disabled using the setEditable() method.
Output of the Program:

Creating Text Areas

A multi-line text field is called a text area box. A text field accepts a single line of
input whereas a text area box can accept several lines of input. Java provides the
AWT class, TextArea to create a text area box. The constructors for creating a
text area box are:
 public TextArea()
 public TextArea(int height_in_chars, int
width_in_chars)
 public TextArea(String txt)

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  public TextArea(String txt, int Applet Programming

height_in_chars, int width_in_chars)

 public TextArea(String txt, height_in_chars,
int width_in_chars ,int scroll_value)
NOTES
The constructor, public TextArea() is the empty constructor. It
creates a text area box with the default settings for width and height.
The constructor, public TextArea(int height_in_chars,
int width_in_chars) allows you to specify the height and width of the
text area box. The argument int height_in_chars specifies the height of
the text area box in characters. The argument int width_in_chars specifies the
width of the text area box in characters.
The constructor, public TextArea(String txt) allows you
to specify the default text within the text area box. The height and width of the text
area box are set to default size.
The constructor, public TextArea(String txt, int
height_in_chars, int width_in_chars) allows you to specify
the default text, height and width of the text area box. The argument String txt
specifies the default text within the text area box. The argument, int
height_in_chars, specifies the height of the text area box in characters.
The argument, int width_in_chars, specifies the width of the text area
box in characters.
The constructor, public TextArea(String txt, int
height_in_chars, int width_in_chars, int
scroll_value) allows you to specify the default text, height, width and
scroll bars of the text area box. The argument String txt specifies the default text
within the text area box. The argument int height_in_chars specifies
the height of the text area box in characters. The argument i n t
width_in_chars specifies the width of the text area box in characters. The
argument int scroll_value specifies the type of scrollbar in the text area
box. Table 12.8 lists the scrollbar values for the text area box that can be specified
with the TextArea() constructor.
Table 12.8 Scrollbar Values

Values Description
SCROLLBARS_BOTH Displays both the horizontal and the
vertical scrollbars with the text area box.
SCROLLBARS_ HORIZONTAL_ONLY Displays the horizontal scrollbar with
the text area box.
SCROLLBARS_NONE Displays no scrollbars.
SCROLLBARS_VERTICAL_ONLY Displays the vertical scrollbar with the
text area box.

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Applet Programming You may use the textArea constructors to create text area boxes. The
following program code shows how to create text area boxes using the various
constructors available with the textArea class:
Program 19:
NOTES
Creating Text Area Boxes
import java.awt.*;
import java.applet.*;
/*<applet code=”TextAreaImpl.class” width=”200"
height=”300"></applet>*/
public class TextAreaImpl extends Applet
{
Label l1,l2,l3,l4;
/*Creating references of the TextArea class*/
TextArea ta1,ta2,ta3,ta4;
public void init()
{
/*creating instances for Label class*/
l1=new Label(“TextArea One”);
l2=new Label(“TextArea Two”);
l3=new Label(“TextArea Three”);
l4=new Label(“TextArea Four”);
/*Creating instances for the TextArea class*/
ta1=new TextArea();
ta2=new TextArea(5,15);
ta3=new TextArea(“This is the Default Text”,4,10);
ta4=new TextArea(“This is the Default
Text”,4,25,TextArea.SCROLLBARS_BOTH);
/*Creating instance of the Font class*/
Font f=new Font(“Arial”,Font.BOLD,12);
Color c=new Color(100,200,150);
l1.setFont(f);
l2.setFont(f);
l3.setFont(f);
l4.setFont(f);
/*Applying colour to the labels*/
l1.setForeground(c);
l2.setForeground(c);

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 l3.setForeground(c); Applet Programming
l4.setForeground(c);
/*Adding AWT components */
add(l1);
NOTES
add(ta1);
add(l2);
add(ta2);
add(l3);
add(ta3);
add(l4);
add(ta4);
}
}

The above code shows how to create several text area boxes using the
constructors of the TextArea class. The add() method is used for adding
the text area boxes to the applet window.
Output of the program:

The TextArea class provides methods that allow you to modify the
properties of an existing text area box. Both the TextField and the TextArea
classes extend the textComponent class and therefore, all the methods
available in the textComponent class are common to both the TextArea and
TextField classes.

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Applet Programming Table 12.9 lists the methods that you can use with the TextArea class.
Table 12.9 Methods for the TextArea Class

Methods Description
NOTES String getText() Retrieves the text input in the text
area box.
void setText(String txt) Sets the string value in the text area
box to the value assigned to the
argument, String txt.
String getSelectedText() Retrieves the selected text from the
text area box. The end user selects
the text either by using the mouse
or the keyboard.
void select(int start, int end) Selects the text within the text area
box starting from the position
specified by the argument, int start,
to the position specified by the
argument, int end.
boolean isEditable() Retrieves a value, true or false that
tells whether the end user can
modify the text within the text area
box or not. A true value means that
the text within the text area box can
be modified. A false value means
that the text within the text area box
cannot be modified.
void setEditable(boolean true_false) Assigns the value, true or false that
specifies the editable property of
the text area box.
void append(String txt) Appends the text specified in the
argument, String txt, to the end
of the existing text in the text area
box.
void insert(String txt, int index) Inserts a string specified by the
argument, String txt, at the position
specified by the argument, int
index.
void replaceRange
(String txt, int start, int end) Replaces the text starting from the
position specified by the argument,
int start, to the position specified
by int end with the text specified by
String txt.

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Creating Scrollbars Applet Programming

Scrollbars allow end users to select multiple options from the list continuously.
Scrollbars are used when all the options in the list box cannot be displayed on the
screen at the same time. The scrollbars allow the end user to select the options NOTES
that are hidden. To select the hidden options, you first need to move the scrollbars
to display the options on the screen and then select the options. Scrollbars can be
horizontal or vertical.
Horizontal scrollbars are generally used to display the continuous information
in a text area, where the text is present beyond the width of the text area. Vertical
scrollbars are used to present multiple options in a text box, where multiple options
are present beyond the total length of the list box in which multiple options are
present. You must have noticed vertical scrollbars on web-based forms, where
the end user needs to select an option regarding the country out of multiple options
of the country present in the list box.
A scroll bar consists of small arrows at the end that are used to move the
scroll bar in the corresponding direction that can be horizontal or vertical. To
move the scroll bar you need to click the arrow. Each time an arrow is clicked the
scroll bar moves one point up or down in the case of a vertical scrollbar and
sideways in the case of a horizontal scroll bar.
The scroll bar also consists of a slider that assists in moving the scroll bar.
To move the scroll bar using the slider, you need to press the slider and drag the
mouse to move the slider in the desired direction without leaving the mouse. The
slider bar also helps in determining the current value of the scroll bars in the list
box. Whenever a user drags the slider or clicks the arrows present at the corner,
the change in the value of the scrollbars is reflected by the slider. You can use list
boxes to visualize the effects of scrollbars. The following program code shows
how to create scrollbars in Java:
Program 20:
Creating Lists
import java.awt.*;
import java.awt.event.*;
import java.applet.*;
/*
<applet code=”Scroll” width=300 height=200>
</applet>
*/

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Applet Programming public class Scroll extends Applet
implements AdjustmentListener, MouseMotionListener {
String message = “”;
Scrollbar vertical;
NOTES
public void init() {
int h = Integer.parseInt(getParameter(“height”));
vertical = new Scrollbar(Scrollbar.VERTICAL,
10, 150, 10, h);
add(vertical);
// register to receive adjustment events
vertical.addAdjustmentListener(this);
addMouseMotionListener(this);
}
public void adjustmentValueChanged(AdjustmentEvent ae)
{
repaint();
}
// Update scroll bars to reflect mouse dragging.
public void mouseDragged(MouseEvent me) {
int movingy = me.getY();
vertical.setValue(movingy);
repaint();
}
// Necessary for MouseMotionListener
public void mouseMoved(MouseEvent me) {
}
// Display current value scroll bars.
public void paint(Graphics g) {
message = “Vertical: “ + vertical.getValue();
g.drawString(message, 15, 150);
}
}

The above code shows how to create vertical scrollbars on an applet.

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 Output of the Program: Applet Programming

NOTES

Check Your Progress

7. State the advantages and disadvantages of a Java applet.
8. Define the features of AWT Packages.
9. What is component class?
10. Define the use of setTitle() and Show() methods in the applet
programming.
11. Layout the various types of constructors of the TextField class.
12. What is the use of the constructor public TextArea()?
13. Why are scrollbar used for?

12.7 ANSWERS TO CHECK YOUR PROGRESS

QUESTIONS

1. An applet is a dynamic and interactive program that can run inside a web
page displayed by a Java-capable browser such as a HotJava Browser or
an Internet Explorer browser, which are World Wide Web browsers used
to view web pages. An applet is a class present in a java.applet package.

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Applet Programming 2. A special HTML tag is embedded in an applet to make it run on the web
browser. The appletviewer application, present in the jdk, is used to run
and check the applets.
3. The <APPLET> tag discussed above includes the following:
NOTES
 Name of the Applet
 Width of the Applet (in pixels)
 Height of the Applet (in pixels)
4. The following program code creates an HTML web page that embeds an
applet:
<HTML>
<HEAD>
<TITLE>First Applet Program</TITLE>
</HEAD>
<BODY>
<APPLET CODE = “FirstApplet.class” HEIGHT = 150
WIDTH = 300>
</APPLET>
</BODY>
</HTML>

The above code creates an HTML file in which the <APPLET> tag is used
to embed the applet. The attribute of the <APPLET> tag, HEIGHT and
WIDTH, sets the dimension of the applet window.
5. CODEBASE: Specifies the base URL of the applet class file. The base
URL is the complete path of the applet where it is stored. This is an optional
attribute that searches the executable file of an applet, class file, from the
specified URL.
6. Java provides four methods to change the state of an applet. These methods
are as follows:
 init()
 start()
 stop()
 destroy()

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 7. Advantages of a Java Applet Applet Programming

A Java applet has the following advantages:

(a) The applet can work properly on all versions of installed Java, excluding
the latest plug-in version. NOTES
(b) Almost all web browsers support the applet.
(c) A user can permit it to have full access to the machine on which it is
running.
(d) It can improve with use, which means that after a first applet is run,
the JVM is already running and starts quickly, benefitting the regular
Java users. However, the JVM will need to restart each time the
browser starts a fresh.
(e) In terms of its speed of execution, it is slower than C++ codes, but
faster than JavaScript.
Disadvantages of a Java Applet
A Java applet has the following disadvantages:
(a) Sometimes, the Java plug-in is required, but it is not available on every
web browser by default.
(b) The process of loading an applet is very slow.
It can now be concluded that without an applet, Java cannot get the honour
of a web-enabled language. The AWT package present in Java is an
important package. It is needed to develop a sophisticated applet.
8. The features of the AWT package are:
 It provides graphics and imaging tools that enable you to develop GUI.
 It provides layout managers that enable an end user to develop window
layouts.
 It supports event handling.
9. Component class defines the various methods that are used to handle events,
define the layout of a component, provide the content of the component
and repaint the window during the execution of a program.
10. The setTitle() method changes the title of a frame by accepting the
new title as an argument passed to it. The Show() method is used to
make the frame window visible and active on the screen. The frame inherits
the color class from its super classes. The color class sets the colour of the
frame.

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Applet Programming 11. The various constructors of the textField class are:
 public TextField()
 public TextField(int num)
NOTES  public TextField(String txt)
 public TextField(String txt, int num)
12. The constructor, public TextArea() is the empty constructor. It
creates a text area box with the default settings for width and height.
13. Scrollbars allow end users to select multiple options from the list continuously.
Scrollbars are used when all the options in the list box cannot be displayed
on the screen at the same time. The scrollbars allow the end user to select
the options that are hidden. To select the hidden options, you first need to
move the scrollbars to display the options on the screen and then select the
options. Scrollbars can be horizontal or vertical.

12.8 SUMMARY

 Applets are executed in the web browser and have made Java a web-
enabled language. Applet codes also embed the HTML tags together. This
is the package that has made Java a language for distributed application.
 An applet is executed in the browser. An applet is a class file that displays
graphics application in the web browser and one can embed applet codes
in the web pages by HTML tags.
 An applet is a Java byte code embedded in an HTML page. The program
structure of applets differs from the other Java applications.
 An applet is a dynamic and interactive program that can run inside a web
page displayed by a Java-capable browser, such as a HotJava Browser or
an Internet Explorer browser, which are World Wide Web browsers used
to view web pages. An applet is a class present in a java.applet package.
 A special HTML tag is embedded in an applet to make it run on the web
browser. An applet has added advantages, such as frame, event-handing
facility, graphics context and surrounding user interfaces.
 The body section of the HTML file contains a pair of <APPLET…> and
</APPLET> tags, which allows one to provide the name of the applet
and helps the browser recognize the space required for the applet.
 The applet class is a member of the Java Application Programming Interface
(API) package, java.applet. The applet class is used for creating a Java
program that displays an applet.

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 Applets are programs based on the Internet that can be used to display Applet Programming

text, image or animation.

 To run the applet, the HTML file that embeds an applet on the web page
has to be created using the <APPLET> tag.
NOTES
 The <APPLET> tag enables you to pass the applet parameter in the applet
using the <PARAM> tag. The <PARAM> tag has two attributes, NAME
and VALUE, which are used to set the name and values of the parameter.
 CODEBASE specifies the base URL of the applet class file. The base
URL is the complete path of the applet where it is stored. This is an optional
attribute that searches the executable file of an applet, class file, from the
specified URL.
 CODE specifies the name of the file that contains a class file. This is a
compulsory attribute of the <APPLET> tag that is relative to the URL of
the HTML file.
 ALT specifies the tool tip text of an applet. This is also an optional attribute
that is displayed to provide information about the applet whether the applet
is running or not on the web browser.
 NAME specifies the name of an applet. This is an optional attribute of the
<APPLET> tag. The name of an applet is obtained by the getApplet()
method.
 Each applet class inherits the properties and methods of the class, Applet.
An applet is loaded on the web browser or the appletviewer tool of Java.
An Applet may change its current state when a specific method is called by
AWT.
 The destroy() method is called when an applet is destroyed.
 There are four states in the life cycle of an applet: new born, running, idle
and dead. The newborn state consists of a newly loaded applet that is
initializing its resources.
 An applet uses the classes and methods of AWT to perform its input and
output operations. To display the output in the applet, one uses the
drawstring() method present in the graphics class.
 AppletContext is an interface that is implemented by an object that represents
the environment of the applet. To use it, one has to first create an object of
AppletContext, using the getAppletContext() method.
 Java Development Kit (JDK) provides a package called the Abstract
Window Toolkit (AWT), which enables you to design user-friendly
interfaces.

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Applet Programming  The AWT package is a collection of classes and methods that allow an end
user to design and manage Graphical User Interface (GUI) based
applications.
 AWT is used to support applet windows and it also helps in creating
NOTES
independent windows, such as frame windows or panel windows that run
in a GUI environment.
 AWT is Java’s largest package and can be included in a Java program by
giving the java.awt.* statement. It is a part of Java Foundation Classes
(JFC). AWT has 63 classes and 14 interfaces used for creating user
interfaces.
 Scrollbars allow end users to select multiple options from the list continuously.
Scrollbars are used when all the options in the list box cannot be displayed
on the screen at the same time.
 The scrollbars allow the end user to select the options that are hidden. To
select the hidden options, you first need to move the scrollbars to display
the options on the screen and then select the options. Scrollbars can be
horizontal or vertical.

12.9 KEY WORDS

 Applet: An applet is a dynamic and interactive program that can run inside
a web page displayed by a Java-capable browser such as a HotJava Browser
or an Internet Explorer browser, which are World Wide Web browsers
used to view web pages. An applet is a class present in a java.applet package.
 Applet class: The applet class is a member of the Java Application
Programming Interface (API) package, java.applet, the applet class is used
for creating a Java program that displays an applet.
 CODE: Specifies the name of the file that contains a class file. This is a
compulsory attribute of the <APPLET> tag that is relative to the URL of
the HTML file.
 ALT: Specifies the tool tip text of an applet. This is also an optional attribute
that is displayed to provide information about the applet whether the applet
is running or not on the web browser.
 NAME: Specifies the name of an applet. This is an optional attribute of the
<APPLET> tag. The name of an applet is obtained by the getApplet()
method.
 WIDTH: Specifies the width of the applet display area in pixels.
 HEIGHT: Specifies the height of the applet display area in pixels.

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  ALIGN: Specifies the alignment of the applet. The values of the ALIGN Applet Programming

attribute are LEFT, RIGHT, TOP, BOTTOM, MIDDLE, BASELINE,

TEXTTOP, ABSMIDDLE and ABSBOTTOM.
 VSPACE: Sets the vertical space of the applet, in pixels, on each side of
NOTES
the applet.
 HSPACE: Sets the horizontal space of the applet, in pixels, on each side of
the applet.

12.10 SELF ASSESSMENT QUESTIONS AND

EXERCISES

Short-Answer Questions
1. What is the importance of applet programming in Java?
2. Why are applets considered to be highly secure programs?
3. How applets differ from applications?
4. How is an applet added to an HTML file?
5. What is an applet tag?
6. Write a short note on AppleContext.
7. What are the two types of constructors that can be used to create frames?
Long-Answer Questions
1. Briefly discuss the significance of Java applet programming.
2. Write applets to building applet code with the help of Java program.
3. Explain the various stages of applet life cycle.
4. Create an executable Java applet for designing a web page.
5. Enumerate the nine attributes of the <APPLET> tag.
6. Write a Java applet program for adding applet to HTML file.
7. Write a Java applet program for running the applet and passing parameters
to applets.
8. Explain the various classes used in Java for creating AWT controls.
9. Write a Java applet program for displaying numerical values and getting
input from the user.
10. Explain the various applet class methods used for displaying text and images,
playing audio files and responding when you interact with the applet.

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Applet Programming
12.11 FURTHER READINGS
Krishnamoorty, R. and Prabhu R. Krishnamoorty. 2009. Internet and Java
NOTES Programming. New Delhi: New Age International (P) Ltd.
Balagurusamy, E. 2007. Programming with Java, Third Edition. New Delhi:
Tata McGraw-Hill.
Das, Rashmi Kant. 2009. Core Java for Beginners, Revised Edition. New Delhi:
Vikas Publishing House Pvt. Ltd.
Keogh, Jim. 2002. The Complete Reference J2SE, Fifth Edition. New York:
Tata McGraw-Hill.
Naughton, Patrick and Herbert Schidt. 1999. Java 2: The Complete Reference,
Third Edition. New Delhi: Tata McGraw-Hill.

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 Introduction to Streams
BLOCK - V
MANAGING INPUT/OUTPUT FILES IN JAVA

NOTES
UNIT 13 INTRODUCTION TO
STREAMS
Structure
13.0 Introduction
13.1 Objectives
13.2 I/O Basics
13.3 Streams and Stream Classes
13.3.1 Byte Stream Classes
13.3.2 Character Stream Classes
13.3.3 The PrintStream Class
13.3.4 Predefined Streams
13.4 Answers to Check Your Progress Questions
13.5 Summary
13.6 Key Words
13.7 Self Assessment Questions and Exercises
13.8 Further Readings

13.0 INTRODUCTION

A stream is a sequence of objects that supports various methods which can be

pipelined to produce the desired result. The Java stream is not a data structure
instead it takes input from the collections, arrays or I/O channels. Streams do not
change the original data structure, they only provide the result as per the pipelined
methods. Fundamentally, stream does not store elements. It simply conveys elements
from a source, such as a data structure, an array, or an I/O channel, through a
pipeline of computational operations.
In this unit, you will study about the concept of streams in Java, stream
classes, byte stream classes and character stream classes.

13.1 OBJECTIVES

After going through this unit, you will be able to:

 Understand the concept of streams in Java
 Discuss about stream classes in Java
 Use byte stream classes in Java programs
 Understand the importance of character stream classes in Java programs
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Introduction to Streams
13.2 I/O BASICS

Most real-life applications require large amount of input and output data to be
NOTES handled that is difficult to manage using commonly used console input/output (I/O)
devices, such as a keyboard and a screen. Moreover, the output obtained using
console I/O operation is not permanent and is lost as soon as the program terminates.
This necessitates the requirement of some devices, such as hard disk, magnetic
tape or a floppy disk to store voluminous data permanently. The data is stored in
these devices in the form of files (also known as disk files) and is called persistent
data.
It is significant for data to be persistent, i.e., it should survive when the
program is finished.
Whatever values stored in variables do not persist, or survive, when the
program is finished. Instead, the data is lost because the data is stored in RAM
(random access memory), which is cleared when the program (or the computer)
stops running.
Most programs are capable of saving data to a file on the computer’s hard
drive or other storage medium so that data later can be retrieved when needed.
That data persists after the termination of the program or even after the computer
is turned off.
A file is a collection of data, and is located on persistent storage, such as a
hard drive, a CD-ROM, or other storage device.
A file can be read or written in the form of bytes or characters using byte
stream classes and character stream classes, respectively. The objects of classes
can also be read from and written to the secondary memory (files). The process
of reading and writing objects is known as object serialization. Serialization
refers to the conversion of an object to a storable bit sequence. Serialization primary
deals with transforming a binary object into an XML (or other string) representation
so that it can be stored in a database/file or sent across a network in a web service
call. It applies to objects such as a String. A serialized object is a standard Java
object, but it must implement the java.io.Serializable interface to be used
with object serialization. The serializable interface does not have any methods,
and is used to point to the object that must be serialized. Object serialization
needs an instance of ObjectOutputStream , which is a subclass of
FilterOutputStream. ObjectOutputStream wraps itself around another output
stream to use the output functionality.

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 Introduction to Streams
13.3 STREAMS AND STREAM CLASSES

Java manages all input and output in the form of streams. A stream refers to a
channel through which data flows from the source to the destination. This data is in NOTES
the form of sequence of bytes or characters.
Java streams can be broadly categorized into two types, namely, input stream
and output stream. The streams which help to read data from various sources,
namely, keyboard, mouse, files, storage devices, etc., in order to supply it to the
program are known as input streams. The streams which receive data from the
program and directly write it to the physical devices or other programs are called
output streams. For instance, to bring the data from an input device into the
program, the program opens an input stream on the input device and reads the
data in a serial manner. Conversely, to write data from the program to an output
device, the program opens an output stream to the output device and writes data
to it serially (see Figure 13.1).
Input Stream

Input Device

Program
Output Stream

Output Device

Fig. 13.1 Java Streams

Java supports input/output streams through a hierarchy of classes defined in

the java.io package. On the basis of the type of data on which these classes
operate, they can be categorized into two groups, byte stream classes and character
stream classes (see Figure 13.2).
 Byte Stream Classes: These classes support input and output operations
on bytes (8-bit bytes). For example, while reading from or writing data to a
binary file, byte stream classes are used.
 Character Stream Classes: These classes perform input and output
operations on characters (16-bit Unicode). For example, while reading from
or writing data to a text file, character stream classes are used.

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Introduction to Streams
Stream Classes

NOTES
Byte Stream Character Stream
Classes Classes

Input Stream Output Stream Reader Classes Writer Classes

Classes Classes

Fig. 13.2 Classification of Stream Classes

13.3.1 Byte Stream Classes

Byte stream classes are used to perform reading and writing of 8-bit bytes. Streams
being unidirectional in nature can transfer bytes in one direction only, i.e., either
reading data from the source into a program or writing data from a program to the
destination. Therefore, Java further divides byte stream classes into two classes,
namely, InputStream class and OutputStream class. The subclasses of
InputStream class contain methods to support input and the subclasses of
OutputStream class contain output related methods.

Input Stream Classes

Java’s input stream classes are used to read 8-bit bytes from the stream. The
InputStream class is the superclass for all byte-oriented input stream classes.
All the methods of this class throw an IOException. Being an abstract class, the
InputStream class cannot be instantiated hence, its subclasses are used. Some
of these are listed in Table 13.1.
Table 13.1 InputStream Classes

Class Description
BufferedInputStream contains methods to read bytes from the buffer
(memory area)
ByteArrayInputStream contains methods to read bytes from a byte array
DataInputStream contains methods to read Java primitive data types
FileInputStream contains methods to read bytes from a file
FilterInputStream contains methods to read bytes from other input
streams which it uses as its basic source of data
ObjectInputStream contains methods to read objects
PipedInputStream contains methods to read from a piped output stream.
A piped input stream must be connected to a piped
output stream
SequenceInputStream contains methods to concatenate multiple input
streams and then read from the combined stream
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 The InputStream class defines various methods to perform reading Introduction to Streams

operations on data of an input stream. Some of these methods along with their
description are listed in Table 13.2.
Table 13.2 InputStream Class Methods NOTES
Method Description
int read() returns the integral representation of the next available
byte of input. It returns -1 when end of file is
encountered
int read(byte buffer[]) attempts to read buffer.length bytes into the
buffer and returns the total number of bytes
successfully read. It returns -1 when end of file is
encountered
int read(byte buffer[], attempts to read ‘nBytes’ bytes into the buffer
int loc, int nBytes) starting at buffer[loc] and returns the total
number of bytes successfully read. It returns -1 when
end of file is encountered
int available() returns the number of bytes of the input available for
reading
void mark(int nBytes) marks the current position in the input stream until
‘nBytes’ bytes are read
void reset() resets the input pointer to the previously set mark
long skip(long nBytes) skips ‘nBytes’ bytes of the input stream and returns
the number of actually skipped bytes
void close() closes the input source. If an attempt is made to read
even after closing the stream then it generates
IOException

Using ByteArrayInputStream Class

The ByteArrayInputStream class opens an input stream to read bytes from a
byte array. It contains an internal buffer which holds bytes that are read from the
stream. It should be noted that closing the stream does not have any consequences.
This implies that methods of this class can be invoked even after closing the stream
without generating any IOException.
The ByteArrayInputStream object can be created using one of the
following constructors:
ByteArrayInputStream(byte[] buffer) //first
ByteArrayInputStream(byte[] buffer, int loc, int nBytes)
//second

The first constructor creates a ByteArrayInputStream which uses a byte

array buffer as its input source. The second constructor creates a
ByteArrayInputStream which uses a subset of byte array buffer as its input
source. The reading begins from the index specified by loc and continues until
nBytes are read.

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Introduction to Streams Program 1: A program to demonstrate the use of ByteArrayInputStream
class.
import java.io.*;
class ByteArrayInputStreamExample
NOTES {
public static void main(String args[]) throws
IOException
{
byte b[]=”this is my first program”.getBytes();

ByteArrayInputStream inp =new

ByteArrayInputStream(b);
int n=inp.available();
System.out.println(“Number of available bytes: “+n);
long s=inp.skip(11); //skipping 11 bytes
System.out.println(“Number of skipped bytes: “+s);
int i;
System.out.print(“String after skipping s bytes:
“);
while((i=inp.read())!= -1)
{
System.out.print((char)i);
}
inp.reset(); /*reset the pointer to the beginning of the
stream*/
System.out.println(); //new line
int j;
System.out.print(“String in uppercase: “);
while((j=inp.read())!= -1)
{
System.out.print(Character.toUpperCase((char) j));
}
}
}

Output of the program:

Number of available bytes: 24
Number of skipped bytes: 11
String after skipping s bytes: first program
String in uppercase: THIS IS MY FIRST PROGRAM

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348 Material
 In this program, the getBytes() method is used to convert a string into Introduction to Streams

bytes. The use of available() and skip() methods is demonstrated here.

Once the entire stream is read, the reset() method is invoked to set the pointer
at the start of the stream.
NOTES
Output Stream Classes
Java’s output stream classes are used to write 8-bit bytes to a stream. The
OutputStream class is the superclass for all byte-oriented output stream classes.
All the methods of this class throw an IOException. Being an abstract class, the
OutputStream class cannot be instantiated hence, its subclasses are used. Some
of these are listed in Table 13.3.
Table 13.3 OutputStream Classes

Class Description
BufferedOutputStream contains methods to write bytes into the buffer
ByteArrayOutputStream contains methods to write bytes into a byte array
DataOutputStream contains methods to write Java primitive data types
FileOutputStream contains methods to write bytes to a file
FilterOutputStream contains methods to write to other output streams
ObjectOutputStream contains methods to write objects
PipedOutputStream contains methods to write to a piped input stream
PrintStream contains methods to print Java primitive data types

The OutputStream class defines methods to perform writing operations.

These methods are discussed in Table 13.4.
Table 13.4 OutputStream Class Methods

Method Description
void write(int i) writes a single byte to the output stream
void write(byte buffer[]) writes an array of bytes to the output stream
void write(bytes writes ‘nBytes’ bytes to the output stream from the
buffer[], int loc, int buffer b starting at buffer[loc]
nBytes)
void flush() flushes the output stream and writes the waiting buffered
output bytes
void close() closes the output stream. If an attempt is made to write
even after closing the stream then it generates
IOException

Using ByteArrayOutputStream Class

The ByteArrayOutputStream class, an output counterpart of the
ByteArrayInputStream, writes streams of bytes to the buffer. Similar to
ByteArrayInputStream, closing this stream has no effect. That is, methods of
this class can be invoked even after closing the stream without generating any
IOException.

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Introduction to Streams The ByteArrayOutputStream object can be created using one of the
following constructors.
ByteArrayOutputStream() //first
ByteArrayOutputStream(int nBytes) //second
NOTES
The first constructor creates a buffer of 32 bytes. The second constructor
creates a buffer of size equal to nBytes. The size of the buffer increases as bytes
are written to it.
Program 2: A program to demonstrate the use of ByteArrayOutputStream
class.
import java.io.*;
class ByteArrayOutputStreamExample
{
public static void main(String args[]) throws
IOException
{
ByteArrayOutputStream out=new
ByteArrayOutputStream();
byte b[]=”Today is a bright sunny day”.getBytes();
out.write(b);
System.out.println(out.toString());/*converting byte
array to String*/
out.close(); //closing the stream
}
}

Output of the program:

Today is a bright sunny day

In this program, the getBytes() method is used to convert a string into bytes.
Once the entire stream is written, the toString() method is invoked to convert
the contents (bytes) of the buffer into a string.
13.3.2 Character Stream Classes
One of the limitations of byte stream classes is that it can handle only 8-bit bytes
and cannot work directly with Unicode characters. To overcome this limitation,
character stream classes have been introduced in java.io package to match the
byte stream classes. The character stream classes support 16-bit Unicode
characters, performing operations on characters, character arrays, or strings, reading
or writing buffer at a time. Character stream classes are divided into two stream
classes, namely Reader class and Writer class.

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Reader Classes Introduction to Streams

Reader classes are used to read 16-bit Unicode characters from the input stream.
The Reader class is the superclass for all character-oriented input stream classes.
All the methods of this class throw an IOException. Being an abstract class, the NOTES
Reader class cannot be instantiated hence its subclasses are used. Some of these
are listed in Table 13.5.
Table 13.5 Reader Classes

Class Description
BufferedReader contains methods to read characters from the buffer
CharArrayReader contains methods to read characters from a character
array
FileReader contains methods to read from a file
FilterReader contains methods to read from underlying character-input
stream
InputStreamReader contains methods to convert bytes to characters
PipedReader contains methods to read from the connected piped
output stream
StringReader contains methods to read from a string

The Reader class defines various methods to perform reading operations

on data of an input stream. Some of these methods along with their description are
listed in Table 13.6.
Table 13.6 Reader Class Methods

Method Description
int read() returns the integral representation of the next available
character of input. It returns -1 when end of file is
encountered
int read(char buffer[]) attempts to read c.length characters into the buffer
and returns the total number of characters successfully
read. It returns -1 when end of file is encountered
int read(char buffer[], attempts to read ‘nChars’ characters into the buffer
int loc, int nChars) starting at buffer[loc] and returns the total number of
characters successfully read. It returns -1 when end of file
is encountered
void mark(int nChars) marks the current position in the input stream until
‘nChars’ characters are read
void reset() resets the input pointer to the previously set mark
long skip(long nChars) skips ‘nChars’ characters of the input stream and returns
the number of actually skipped characters
boolean ready() returns true if the next request of the input will not have
to wait, else it returns false
void close() closes the input source. If an attempt is made to read even
after closing the stream then it generates IOException

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Introduction to Streams Using BufferedReader Class
The BufferedReader class creates a buffered character stream between the
input device and the program. It defines the methods to read the data from the
NOTES buffer in the form of characters.
The BufferedReader object can be created using one of the following
two constructors:
BufferedReader(Reader inpStream) //first
BufferedReader(Reader inpStream, int nChars) //second

The first constructor creates a buffered character stream of a default buffer

size. The second constructor creates a buffered character stream that uses an
input buffer of size nChars.
Besides the methods provided by the Reader class, the BufferedReader
class contains some other methods which are discussed as follows:
 String readLine(): It reads a line of the input text.
 Boolean ready(): It checks whether or not the stream is ready to be
read.
Program 3: A program to demonstrate the use of BufferedReader class.
import java.io.*;
class BufferedReaderExample
{
public static void main(String args[]) throws IOException
{
String s=”This program is skipping first character of
each word in the string”;
StringReader sr=new StringReader(s);
System.out.println(“The input string is: “+s);
/*Creating an instance of BufferedReader using
StringReader*/
BufferedReader br=new BufferedReader(sr);
//Reading from the underlying StringReader
System.out.print (“The output string is: “);
br.skip(1); /*skipping the first character of the first
word of the input string*/
//reading the remaining string

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 int i=0; Introduction to Streams
while((i=br.read())!=-1)
{
System.out.print((char)i);
NOTES
if((char)i==’ ‘) //checking for white spaces
{
br.skip(1); /*skipping first character of each word*/
}
}
}
}

Output of the program:

The input string is: This program is skipping first character
of each word in the string
The output string is: his rogram s kipping irst haracter f ach
ord n he tring

In this program, the skip() method is used to skip the first character of
each word of the input string.
Writer Classes
Writer classes are used to write 16-bit Unicode characters onto an output stream.
The Writer class is the superclass for all character-oriented output stream classes.
All the methods of this class throw an IOException. Being an abstract class, the
Writer class cannot be instantiated hence, its subclasses are used. Some of these
are listed in Table 13.7.
Table 13.7 Writer Classes

Class Description
BufferedWriter contains methods to write characters to a buffer
FileWriter contains methods to write to a file
FilterWriter contains methods to write characters to underlying
output stream
CharArrayWriter contains methods to write characters to a character array
OutputStreamWriter contains methods to convert from bytes to characters
PipedWriter contains methods to write to the connected piped input
stream
StringWriter contains methods to write to a string

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Introduction to Streams The Writer class defines various methods to perform writing operations
on output stream. These methods along with their description are listed in Table
13.8.
Table 13.8 Writer Class Methods
NOTES
Method Description
void write() writes data to the output stream
void write(int i) writes a single character to the output stream
void write(char buffer[]) writes an array of characters to the output stream
void write(char buffer[], writes ‘n’ characters from the buffer starting at
int loc, int nChars) buffer[loc] to the output stream
void close() closes the output stream. If an attempt is made to
perform writing operation even after closing the stream
then it generates IOException
void flush() flushes the output stream and writes the waiting
buffered output characters

Using BufferedWriter class

The BufferedWriter class, an output counterpart of the BufferedReader, is
used to write characters onto the character-output stream.
The BufferedWriter object can be created using one of the following
two constructors.
BufferedWriter(Writer outStream) //first
BufferedWriter(Writer outStream, int nChars) //second

The first constructor creates a buffered character stream of default buffer

size. The second constructor creates a buffered character stream that uses an
input buffer of size nChars.
Besides the methods provided by the Writer class, the BufferedWriter
class contains the newLine() method which writes a new line.
Program 4: A program to demonstrate the use of BufferedWriter class.
import java.io.*;
class BufferedWriterExample
{
public static void main(String args[]) throws
IOException
{
String s=”This is an example of BufferedWriter”;
StringWriter sw=new StringWriter();
//creating an instance of BufferedWriter class

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 BufferedWriter bw=new BufferedWriter(sw); Introduction to Streams
bw.write(s,0,5);
bw.newLine();
bw.write(s,5,s.length()-5);/*writes the substring starting
from index 5*/ NOTES
bw.flush(); //flushes the stream
System.out.println(sw.getBuffer());
sw.close(); //closing the stream
bw.close(); //closing the stream
}
}

Output of the program:

This
is an example of BufferedWriter

In this illustration, the BufferdWriter class is used to write data to character-

output stream (instance of StringWriter class). The getBuffer() method of
the StringWriter class returns a buffer of String type.
13.3.3 The PrintStream Class
When a program is executed, the input is read from the various sources and the
output is sent to different destinations. Generally, a keyboard and monitor screen
are used as standard input and output device, respectively. The data fed by the
user is supplied to the program using input streams and the output of the program
is supplied to the output device using output streams. This output is displayed to
the user using Java PrintStream class. So far the two methods, print() and
println(), that have been used for displaying the primitive data type, object,
etc., on an output device are defined by the PrintStream class. This is a byte
stream class which is derived from the OutputStream class. Unlike other output
streams, the PrintStream class does not throw an IOException even if an
exceptional event occurs.
The PrintStream class can be connected to the underlying output stream,
such as F i l e O u t p u t S t r e a m , B y t e A r r a y O u t p u t S t r e a m ,
BufferedOutputStream, etc.
PrintStream class defines the following type of constructor:
PrintStream(OutputStream os)

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Introduction to Streams This constructor creates a print stream and connects it to the output stream
os.
In addition to print() and println() methods, the PrintStream class
defines some other methods which are listed in Table 13.9.
NOTES
Table 13.9 PrintStream Class Methods

Method Description
PrintStream append(char appends the character c to the output stream
c)
PrintStream appends the character sequence c to the output
append(CharSequence cs) stream
boolean checkError() checks the error state of the stream
protected void sets the error state to true
setError()

13.3.4 Predefined Streams

The package java.lang is automatically imported by all Java programs. This
package includes a class System, which holds a large number of predefined static
methods and variables. This class contains three predefined stream variables
including in, out and err. These stream variables are declared as static and
public and are initialized automatically with the start up of JVM. They can be
used by any part of the program easily without referring to a specific System
object.
 System.out: It is an object of class type PrintStream.. It refers to the
standard output stream and is generally used to write text output to the
console.
 System.in: It is an object of class type InputStream. It refers to the
standard input stream and is generally used to read keyboard input in console
programs.
 System.err: It is also an object of class type PrintStream. It refers to
the standard error stream and works in a manner similar to the System.out
except that it displays error messages.

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 Introduction to Streams

Check Your Progress

1. Differentiate between byte stream classes and character stream classes.
2. Explain about the object serialization. NOTES
3. Differentiate between input streams and output streams.
4. What do you mean by byte stream classes?
5. Why is void mark(int nBytes) used in Java?
6. State the different types of methods used to perform reading
operations on data of an input stream.
7. What are the uses of writer class in stream?
8. How can the PrintStream class connect to the output stream?
9. What are the functions of System.in object?

13.4 ANSWERS TO CHECK YOUR PROGRESS

QUESTIONS

1. Byte stream classes support input and output operations on bytes (8-bit
bytes), whereas character stream classes perform input and output
operations on characters (16-bit Unicode).
CYP
2. The process of reading and writing objects is known as object serialization.
Serialization refers to the conversion of an object to a storable bit sequence.
Serialization primary deals with transforming a binary object into an XML
(or other string) representation so that it can be stored in a database/file or
sent across a network in a web service call. It applies to objects such as a
String. A serialized object is a standard Java object, but it must implement
the java.io.Serializable interface to be used with object serialization.
The serializable interface does not have any methods, and is used to point
to the object that must be serialized. Object serialization needs an instance
of ObjectOutputStream, which is a subclass of FilterOutputStream.
ObjectOutputStream wraps itself around another output stream to use
the output functionality.
3. The streams which help to read data from various sources, namely, keyboard,
mouse, files, storage devices, etc., in order to supply it to the program are
known as input streams. The streams which receive data from the program
and directly write it to the physical devices or other programs are called
output streams.

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Introduction to Streams 4. These classes support input and output operations on bytes (8-bit bytes).
5. int read(byte buffer[], int loc, int nBytes)
attempts to read ‘nBytes’ bytes into the buffer starting at
buffer[loc] and returns the total number of bytes successfully read.
NOTES
It returns -1 when end of file is encountered.
6. The Reader class defines various methods to perform reading operations
on data of an input stream. Some of these methods along with their
description are listed in Table 13.6.
Table 13.6 Reader Class Methods

Method Description
int read() returns the integral representation of the next available
character of input. It returns -1 when end of file is
encountered
int read(char buffer[]) attempts to read c.length characters into the buffer
and returns the total number of characters successfully
read. It returns -1 when end of file is encountered
int read(char buffer[], attempts to read ‘nChars’ characters into the buffer
int loc, int nChars) starting at buffer[loc] and returns the total number of
characters successfully read. It returns -1 when end of file
is encountered
void mark(int nChars) marks the current position in the input stream until
‘nChars’ characters are read
void reset() resets the input pointer to the previously set mark
long skip(long nChars) skips ‘nChars’ characters of the input stream and returns
the number of actually skipped characters
boolean ready() returns true if the next request of the input will not have
to wait, else it returns false
void close() closes the input source. If an attempt is made to read even
after closing the stream then it generates IOException

7. Writer classes are used to write 16-bit Unicode characters onto an output
stream. The Writer class is the superclass for all character-oriented output
stream classes. All the methods of this class throw an IOException. Being
an abstract class, the Writer class cannot be instantiated hence, its
subclasses are used. The Writer class defines various methods to perform
writing operations on output stream.
8. The PrintStream class can be connected to the underlying output stream,
such as F i l e Ou t pu t S t r e a m , B y t e A rr a y O u t p u t St r e am ,
BufferedOutputStream, etc.
PrintStream class defines the following type of constructor:
PrintStream(OutputStream os)
This constructor creates a print stream and connects it to the output stream
os.

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 9. System.in: It is an object of class type InputStream. It refers to the Introduction to Streams

standard input stream and is generally used to read keyboard input in console
programs.

NOTES
13.5 SUMMARY

 Most real-life applications require large amount of input and output data to
be handled that is difficult to manage using commonly used console input/
output (I/O) devices, such as a keyboard and a screen.
 The objects of classes can also be read from and written to the secondary
memory (files). The process of reading and writing objects is known as
object serialization.
 Java streams can be broadly categorized into two types, namely, input stream
and output stream. The streams which help to read data from various sources,
namely, keyboard, mouse, files, storage devices, etc., in order to supply it
to the program are known as input streams. The streams which receive
data from the program and directly write it to the physical devices or other
programs are called output streams.
 Byte Stream Classes: These classes support input and output operations
on bytes (8-bit bytes). For example, while reading from or writing data to a
binary file, byte stream classes are used.
 These classes perform input and output operations on characters (16-bit
Unicode).
 Java’s input stream classes are used to read 8-bit bytes from the stream.
The InputStream class is the superclass for all byte-oriented input stream
classes.
 The ByteArrayInputStream class opens an input stream to read bytes
from a byte array. It contains an internal buffer which holds bytes that are
read from the stream.
 Java’s output stream classes are used to write 8-bit bytes to a stream. The
OutputStream class is the superclass for all byte-oriented output stream
classes.
 One of the limitations of byte stream classes is that it can handle only 8-bit
bytes and cannot work directly with Unicode characters. To overcome this
limitation, character stream classes have been introduced in java.io
package to match the byte stream classes.
 Reader classes are used to read 16-bit Unicode characters from the input
stream. The Reader class is the superclass for all character-oriented input
stream classes.

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Material 359
Introduction to Streams  The first constructor creates a buffered character stream of default buffer
size. The second constructor creates a buffered character stream that uses
an input buffer of size nChars.
 Generally, a keyboard and monitor screen are used as standard input and
NOTES
output device, respectively. The data fed by the user is supplied to the
program using input streams and the output of the program is supplied to
the output device using output streams. This output is displayed to the user
using Java PrintStream class. So far the two methods, print() and
println(), that have been used for displaying the primitive data type,
object, etc., on an output device are defined by the PrintStream class.
This is a byte stream class which is derived from the OutputStream class.
Unlike other output streams, the PrintStream class does not throw an
IOException even if an exceptional event occurs.
The PrintStream class can be connected to the underlying output stream,
such as F i l e Ou t pu t S t r e a m , B y t e A rr a y O u t p u t St r e am ,
BufferedOutputStream, etc.
PrintStream class defines the following type of constructor:
PrintStream(OutputStream os)

This constructor creates a print stream and connects it to the output stream
os.
 Predefined Streams
The package java.lang is automatically imported by all Java programs.
This package includes a class System, which holds a large number of
predefined static methods and variables. This class contains three predefined
stream variables including in, out and err. These stream variables are
declared as static and public and are initialized automatically with the
start up of JVM. They can be used by any part of the program easily without
referring to a specific System object.
o System.out: It is an object of class type PrintStream.. It refers to
the standard output stream and is generally used to write text output
to the console.
o System.in: It is an object of class type InputStream. It refers to
the standard input stream and is generally used to read keyboard input
in console programs.
o System.err: It is also an object of class type PrintStream. It refers
to the standard error stream and works in a manner similar to the
System.out except that it displays error messages.

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 Introduction to Streams
13.6 KEY WORDS

 Character Stream Classes: These classes perform input and output

operations on characters (16-bit Unicode). For example, while reading NOTES
from or writing data to a text file, character stream classes are used.
 String readLine(): It reads a line of the input text.
 Boolean ready(): It checks whether or not the stream is ready to be
read.
 System.out: It is an object of class type PrintStream.. It refers to the
standard output stream and is generally used to write text output to the
console.
 System.in: It is an object of class type InputStream. It refers to the
standard input stream and is generally used to read keyboard input in console
programs.
 System.err: It is also an object of class type PrintStream. It refers to
the standard error stream and works in a manner similar to the System.out
except that it displays error messages.

13.7 SELF ASSESSMENT QUESTIONS AND

EXERCISES

Short Answer Questions

1. Define stream.
2. Differentiate between byte stream classes and character stream classes.
3. What are the inputstream classes used in the stream?
4. Explain output stream classes.
5. State the features of void close() in reader class methods.
6. Describe the predefined streams.
Long Answer Questions
1. Explain the Java streams along with examples.
2. Discuss all the InputStream class methods.
3. Classify the different types of stream classes.
4. Write a program to illustrate the use of ByteArrayInputStream
method.
5. Elaborate the various types of stream variables.

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Introduction to Streams
13.8 FURTHER READINGS

Krishnamoorty, R. and Prabhu R. Krishnamoorty. 2009. Internet and Java

NOTES Programming. New Delhi: New Age International (P) Ltd.
Balagurusamy, E. 2007. Programming with Java, Third Edition. New Delhi:
Tata McGraw-Hill.
Das, Rashmi Kant. 2009. Core Java for Beginners, Revised Edition. New Delhi:
Vikas Publishing House Pvt. Ltd.
Keogh, Jim. 2002. The Complete Reference J2SE, Fifth Edition. New York:
Tata McGraw-Hill.
Naughton, Patrick and Herbert Schidt. 1999. Java 2: The Complete Reference,
Third Edition. New Delhi: Tata McGraw-Hill.

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 I/O Classes

UNIT 14 I/O CLASSES

Structure
NOTES
14.0 Introduction
14.1 Objectives
14.2 Reading From and Writing to Console
14.3 Reading and Writing Files
14.4 Data Streams
14.4.1 The DataInputStream Class
14.4.2 The DataOutputStream Class
14.5 The StringTokenizer Class
14.6 The StreamTokenizer Class
14.7 The transient and volatile Modifiers
14.8 Using instanceof Operator
14.9 Native Methods
14.10 Answers to Check Your Progress Questions
14.11 Summary
14.12 Key Words
14.13 Self Assessment Questions and Exercises
14.14 Further Readings

14.0 INTRODUCTION

Java I/O (Input and Output) is used to process the input and produce the output.
Java uses the concept of a stream to make I/O operation fast. The java.io package
contains all the classes required for input and output operations. A file is a collection
of related data stored on some storage device. The data stored in a data file is
permanent and can easily be accessed as and when required. Moreover, the data
stored in a file by one program can be accessed or modified by various programs
as per requirements. For reading and writing data to the files, file streams are
used. All these streams represent an input source and an output destination. The
stream in the java.io package supports many data, such as primitives, object,
localized characters, etc.
In this unit, you will study about the concept of I/O classes using stream,
reading and writing files, and reading writing bytes in Java.

14.1 OBJECTIVES

After going through this unit, you will be able to:

 Understand the concept of I/O classes using stream in Java
 Discuss about reading and writing files in Java
 Understand the importance of reading writing bytes in Java programs
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I/O Classes
14.2 READING FROM AND WRITING TO
CONSOLE

NOTES Java 1.0 supports console input using byte streams. Since the use of byte streams
for reading/writing console input requires using deprecated methods, this approach
is not recommended. The more desired approach used for reading input for Java
2 is to use character streams instead of byte streams. Java 1.1 and higher versions
of Java provide InputStreamReader to convert byte-oriented data into character-
oriented data. In order to read data from the console using character stream,
System.in is used. As System.in refers to an object of type InputStream, it
can be used as a character-based input stream.
To write the data to the console, the System.out stream is used which
belongs to the PrintStream class. The PrintStream class defines two methods
to write output to console, one is print() and the other is println(). Both
methods perform the same task except that the println() method writes the
output in a new line while print() method writes the output in the same line.
The statement to wrap InputStreamReader inside the BufferedReader
and create a character-based stream connected to the console through System.in
is as follows:
Bu ff e red Re a d e r b r = n e w Buf fer e dR ea d e r (n e w
InputStreamReader (System.in));

Program 1: A program to demonstrate the use of System.out and System.in.

import java.io.*;
class InputStreamReaderExample
{
public static void main(String args[])
{
try
{
int j[]=new int[5];
double sum=0.0;
System.out.print(“Enter your name: “);
BufferedReader br=new BufferedReader (new
InputStreamReader (System.in));

//reading input from the keyboard

String name=br.readLine();
System.out.println(“Enter marks you scored in five
subjects”);
for (int i=0; i<j.length; i++)
{
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364 Material
 System.out.print((i+1)+”: “); I/O Classes
String s=br.readLine();
j[i]=Integer.parseInt(s);
sum+=j[i];
NOTES
}
System.out.println(name+” your percentage is: “ +sum/
j.length+”%”);
}
catch(Exception e){}
}
}

Output of the program:

Enter your name: Kevin
Enter marks you scored in five subjects
1: 89
2: 90
3: 65
4: 78
5: 60
Kevin your percentage is: 76.4%

14.3 READING AND WRITING FILES

A file is a collection of related data stored on some storage device. The data
stored in a data file is permanent and can easily be accessed as and when required.
Moreover, the data stored in a file by one program can be accessed or modified
by various programs as per requirements. For reading and writing data to the files,
file streams are used. A file stream refers to the flow of data between the program
and the files (see Figure 14.1). Depending on the type of data handled by the file
stream, byte stream classes or character stream classes can be used.
File Input Stream

read data data input

Disk Files Program

write data data output

File Output Stream

Fig. 14.1 File Input and Output Stream

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Material 365
I/O Classes Reading and Writing Bytes to a File
Before reading or writing a file, it must be opened first. For this, it is required to
create a file stream and then link this stream to the specific file. Java provides
NOTES FileInputStream class to read bytes from a file. The FileInputStream class
creates an input stream between the file and the program and reads bytes from the
file and sends it to the program.
The FileInputStream defines following type of constructor:
FileInputStream(String FilePath)

where,
FilePath is the full path describing the location of the file
Program 2: A program to demonstrate the use of FileInputStream class to
read from a file.
import java.io.*;
class FileInputStreamExample
{
public static void main(String[] args) throws IOException
{
FileInputStream fis=new FileInputStream (“student.txt”);
int size=fis.available(); /*determine the size of the
file*/
System.out.println(“Size of the file is: “+ size);
System.out.println(“The contents of the file are:
“);
int i;
while((i=fis.read())!=-1)
{
System.out.print((char)i);
}
fis.close();
System.out.println();
System.out.println(“Reading Complete”);
}
}

Output of the program:

Size of the file is: 118
The contents of the file are:
Name: Amit Sharma
Roll No.: 1
Overall Percentage: 89%

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 Name: Shivani Dutta I/O Classes
Roll No.: 2
Overall Percentage: 92%

NOTES
Reading Complete

In this program, the statement FileInputStream fis = new

FileInputStream(student.txt) creates an input stream and causes the file
student.txt to be opened for reading. After the creation of the stream object,
the fis.read() method is used to read the next byte from the file student.txt.
Similarly, the FileOutputStream class defines methods to write bytes to
a file.
The FileOutputStream defines following type of constructor.
FileOutputStream(String FilePath)
where,
FilePath is the full path describing the location of the file.
Program 3: A program to demonstrate the use of FileOutputStream class to
write to a file.
import java.io.*;
class FileOutputStreamExample
{
public static void main(String[] args) throws
IOException
{
String filecontents=”These contents will be written to
the file”;
byte b[]=filecontents.getBytes();
FileOutputStream fos=new FileOutputStream (“newfile.txt”);

for(int i=0; i<b.length; i++)

{
fos.write(b[i]);
}
fos.close();
System.out.println(“Write successful”);
}
}

Output of the program:

Write successful

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I/O Classes In this program, when the FileOutputStream class’ object is created, a file with
the specified name is automatically created by the operating system. If a file with
the same name already exists in the same directory, the contents of the earlier file
get overwritten with the contents of the new file.
NOTES
Reading and Writing Characters to a File
The FileReader class is used to read characters from the file. The FileReader
class creates character stream between the file and the program and reads characters
from the file and sends it to the program. Similarly, to write characters to a file, the
FileWriter class is used.
Program 4: A program to demonstrate the use of FileReader and FileWriter
class for reading from and writing characters to a file.
import java.io.*;
class ReadWriteFile
{
public static void main(String args[]) throws
IOException
{
String w=”Hello\nHow\nare\nyou”;
FileWriter fw=new FileWriter(“data.txt”);
System .out .pri nt ln(“ Writin g to the file
data.txt...”);
fw.write(w);
System.out.println(“Writing complete”);
fw.close();

System.out.println();
FileReader fr=new FileReader(“data.txt”);
BufferedReader b=new BufferedReader(fr);
System.out.println(“Reading the file data.txt...”);
while((w=b.readLine())!=null)
{
System.out.println(w);
}
fr.close();
System.out.println(“Reading ends”);
}
}

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Output of the program: I/O Classes
Writing to the file data.txt...
Writing complete

Reading the file data.txt... NOTES

Hello
How
are
you
Reading ends

In this program, when the FileWriter class’ object is created, a file with
the name data.txt is automatically created by the operating system and data is
written to it. The object of FileReader class is used to read the contents of the
same file.

14.4 DATA STREAMS

Data streams support reading/writing of primitive data types (int, float, short,
long, double, boolean, char and byte) as well as String objects. These are
required when the user wants to work on data other than bytes or characters.
Data streams are filtered streams, that is, they filter existing stream so that the
primitive data types can be directly read from or written to the stream. Java provides
DataInputStream class and DataOutputStream class to read and write primitive
data types, respectively.
14.4.1 The DataInputStream Class
The DataInputSream class performs reading of Java primitive data types from
the input stream. To create a data input stream, we use the constructor of
DataInputStream class which is defined as follows:
DataInputStream (InputStream inp)

where,
inp is an existing input stream which is to be filtered, such as
FileInputStream, BufferedInputSream, etc.

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I/O Classes Some other commonly used methods are listed in Table 14.1.
Table 14.1 DataInputStream Class Methods

Method Description
NOTES int readInt() reads integer type values
float readFloat() reads float type values
char readChar() reads char type values
double readDouble() reads double type values
long readLong() reads long type values
short readShort() reads short type values
boolean readBoolean() reads boolean type values
byte readByte() reads byte type values
String readUTF() reads string type values

14.4.2 The DataOutputStream Class

The DataOutputStream class performs writing of Java primitive data types onto
the output stream. To create a data output stream, we use the constructor of
DataOutputStream class which is defined as follows:
DataOutputStream(OutputStream out)

where,
out is an existing output stream which is to be filtered such as FileOutputStream,
BufferedInputSream, etc.
Some other commonly used methods are listed in Table 14.2.
Table 14.2 DataOutputStream Class Methods

Method Description
int writeInt() writes integer type values
float writeFloat() writes float type values
char writeChar() writes char type values
double writeDouble() writes double type values
long writeLong() writes long type values
short writeShort() writes short type values
boolean writeBoolean() writes boolean type values
byte writeByte() writes byte type values
String writeUTF() writes string type values

Program 5: A program to demonstrate the use of DataInputStream class and

DataOutputStream class for handling primitive data types.
import java.io.*;
class DataStreamExample
{

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public static void main(String[] args) throws IOException I/O Classes
{
//creating file output stream
FileOutputStream fos=new FileOutputStream
(“employee.txt”); NOTES
/*creating data output stream that filters file output
stream*/
DataOutputStream dos=new DataOutputStream(fos);
int empID[]={1,2,3,4};
String empName[]={“Maria”,”James”,”Mark”,”Renne”};
float empSalary[]={50000,60000,70000,30000};
//writing primitive data to the file
System.out.println(“Writing to the file...”);
for (int i=0; i<empID.length; i++)
{
dos.writeInt(empID[i]);
dos.writeUTF(empName[i]);
dos.writeFloat(empSalary[i]);
}
dos.close();
System.out.println(“Write successful”);
System.out.println();

FileInputStream fis=new FileInputStream (“employee.txt”);

//creating file input stream
/*creating data input stream that wraps file input stream*/
DataInputStream dis=new DataInputStream(fis);

//reading data from the file

System.out.println(“Reading the file...”);
try
{
while(true)
{
int empID1=dis.readInt();
String empName1=dis.readUTF();
float empSalary1=dis.readFloat();
System.out.println(“Employee id: “+empID1);

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I/O Classes System.out.println(“Employee name: “+empName1);
System.out.println(“Employee salary: “+empSalary1);
}
}
NOTES
catch(Exception e){}
System.out.println();
System.out.println(“Read successful”);
}
}

Output of the program:

Writing to the file...
Write successful
Reading the file...
Employee id: 1
Employee name: Maria
Employee salary: 50000.0
Employee id: 2
Employee name: James
Employee salary: 60000.0
Employee id: 3
Employee name: Mark
Employee salary: 70000.0
Employee id: 4
Employee name: Alice
Employee salary: 30000.0
Read successful

In this program, a file employee.txt is created. Data is written to this file

using DataOutputStream class. After that, an input stream is created using
DataInputStream class for reading the content of this file.

14.5 THE StringTokenizer CLASS

The StringTokenizer class, a part of java.util package, defines methods

to parse an input string. Parsing a string requires breaking the string into small
parts known as tokens. The breaking up of the string into tokens is determined
by the delimiters. Delimiters are the characters that separate tokens within the
string. There are two types of delimiters: Single-character delimiters and Multi-

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character delimiters. The single-character delimiters comprises of only one I/O Classes

character, such as comma, white space, semicolon, colon, etc. For example, the
tokens of the string “What is your name?” will be “What”, “is”, “your”,
“name?” determined by the delimiter “white space”. On the other hand, a multi-
character delimiter consists of a sequence of characters and each character in the NOTES
sequence is considered as a delimiter. For example, “,*:_” is a multi-character
delimiter which splits the string into tokens based on the occurrence of comma,
asterisk, colon and underscore.
The StringTokenizer class defines the following types of constructors.
StringTokenizer(String string) //first
StringTokenizer(String string, String delimiters)
//second
StringTokenizer(String string, String delimiters, boolean
returndelimiters) //third

The first constructor creates a string tokenizer for the string that is to be
tokenized (parsed) and splits it into tokens based on the default delimiters. The
default delimiters defined by Java are blank space, newline, carriage return and
tab.
The second constructor tokenizes the string depending upon the
delimiters specified as the second argument in the constructor.
The third constructor breaks the string into tokens on the basis of
delimiters; in addition, it returns the delimiter characters that separate the tokens
if the returndelimiters is set to true.
Some of the methods defined by the StringTokenizer class are listed in
Table 14.3.
Table 14.3 StringTokenizer Class Methods

Method Description
String nextToken() returns the next available token in the string
String nextToken(String returns the next token in the string and changes the
delimiters) previously set delimiters to the set of characters in the
string delimiters. After this method is invoked,
delimiters is considered as the new delimiter set
boolean hasMoreTokens() checks whether or not tokens are available in the input
string. It returns true if tokens are present.
Otherwise, returns false
int countTokens() returns the number of tokens left in the string using the
current set of delimiters
Object nextElement() returns the same value as the nextToken() method
except that it returns next token as object
boolean returns the same value as the hasMoreTokens()
hasMoreElements() method

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I/O Classes Program 6: A program to demonstrate the use of StringTokenizer class.
import java.io.*;
import java.util.*;
class StringTokenizerExample
NOTES {
public static void main(String args[])
{
String input =”The Blue Hor,izon”; /*string to be
tokenized*/
String delimiters=”, n”;//specifying delimiters
StringTokenizer s=new StringTokenizer(input,delimiters
,true);
System.out.println(“Total number of tokens in the string:
“+s.countTokens());
System.out.println();
int n=0;
System.out.println(“The tokenized string is: “);
while (s.hasMoreElements()) //parsing the
string
{
System.out.println((++n)+”: “+s.nextElement());
}
}
}

Output of the program:

Total number of tokens in the string is: 8
The tokenized string is:
1: The
2:
3: Blue
4:
5: Hor
6: ,
7: izo
8: n

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 I/O Classes
14.6 THE StreamTokenizer CLASS

The StreamTokenizer class is used to parse an input stream into ‘tokens’

determined by the delimiters, reading them one at a time. Unlike StringTokenizer NOTES
class, the StreamTokenizer class distinguishes among numbers, identifiers, quoted
strings and different comment styles. The tokenization process involves reading
each byte from the input stream and each byte is considered as a character having
five distinct attributes, namely, alphabets, numbers, string quote, white space
and comment character. Each character is identified to be having either of these
attributes.
The StreamTokenizer class defines the following type of constructor:
StreamTokenizer(Reader input)

This statement constructs a stream tokenizer and tokenizes the specified

input stream input.
Some of the fields defined by the StreamTokenizer class are listed in
Table 14.4.
Table 14.4 StreamTokenizer Class Fields

Field Description
static int TT_WORD indicates that the word token has been read
static int TT_NUMBER indicates that the number token has been read
static int TT_EOL indicates that the end of the line has been read
static int TT_EOF indicates that the end of the file has been read
int ttype specifies the type of the token read
double nval the value of number token
String sval specifies the value of a word token

Some of the methods defined by the StreamTokenizer class are listed in

Table 14.5.
Table 14.5 StreamTokenizer Class Methods

Method Description
int lineno() returns the current line number
void eolIsSignificant determines whether the ends of the line are treated as
(boolean flag) tokens
int nextToken() returns the next token of the input stream
void whitespaceChars (int specifies that all the characters within the range between
low, int high) low and high are white space characters
void wordChars(int low, specifies that all the characters within the range between
int high) low and high are valid word characters.
void slashSlashComments sets whether the stream tokenizer recognizes C++
(boolean flag) comments
void slashStarComments sets whether the stream tokenizer recognizes C
(boolean flag) comments
void resetSyntax() resets the default set of delimiters

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I/O Classes To understand the concept of StreamTokenizer class, we use the file
student.txt having its contents as follows:
Name: Amit Sharma
Roll No.: 1
NOTES Overall Percentage: 89%

//Name: Shivani Dutta

Roll No.: 2
Overall Percentage: 92%

Program 7: A program that reads from the file student.txt to demonstrate the
use of StreamTokenizer class.
import java.io.*;
class StreamTokenizerExample
{
public static void main(String args[]) throws
IOException
{

int numCount=0, wordCount=0, lineCount=0;

//Creating the tokenizer to read from the file
FileReader f=new FileReader(“student.txt”);
StreamTokenizer s=new StreamTokenizer(f);
s.eolIsSignificant(true);/*end of line is considered
as tokens*/
//these calls will make the comments recognizable
s.slashSlashComments(true);
s.slashStarComments(true);

/*all the characters between this range(A to F) will be

considered as white spaces*/
s.whitespaceChars(65,70);

//tokenizing file
int token=s.nextToken();
while(token!=StreamTokenizer.TT_EOF)
{
switch(token)
{

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 case StreamTokenizer.TT_NUMBER: I/O Classes
double num=s.nval;
numCount++;
System.out.println(“Number token is: “+num);
NOTES
break;

case StreamTokenizer.TT_WORD:
String word=s.sval;
wordCount++;
System.out.println(“Word token is: “+word);
break;

case StreamTokenizer.TT_EOL:
lineCount++;
System.out.println(“End of line number “ +lineCount);
break;

default:
char ch=(char)s.ttype;
break;
}
token=s.nextToken();
}
System.out.println(“Total number of number tokens is:
“+numCount);
System.out.println(“Total number of word tokens is:
“+wordCount);
System.out.println(“Total number of lines is: “+
lineCount);
f.close();
}
}

Output of the program:

Word token is: Name
Word token is: mit
Word token is: Sharma
End of line number 1
Word token is: Roll

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I/O Classes Word token is: No.
Number token is: 1.0
End of line number 2
Word token is: Overall
NOTES
Word token is: Percentage
Number token is: 89.0
End of line number 3
End of line number 4
End of line number 5
Word token is: Roll
Word token is: No.
Number token is: 2.0
End of line number 6
Word token is: Overall
Word token is: Percentage
Number token is: 92.0
End of line number 7
Total number of number tokens is: 4
Total number of word tokens is: 11
Total number of lines is: 7

14.7 THE TRANSIENT AND VOLATILE MODIFIERS

The transient and volatile modifiers are two special modifiers provided by Java
which are used to handle some specialized situations.
transient
Object serialization is the process of reading and writing objects. By default, all
objects are serializable, i.e., they can be read from and written to the secondary
memory so that the value which they hold persists. To make an object non-
serializable, the transient modifier is used. If an instance variable is declared
as transient then the values of that variable will not persist while writing its object
to the secondary memory.
To understand the concept of transient keyword, consider the following
code segment:
class TransientExample
{
transient double first; // will not persist
double second; //will persist
}

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 Here, when the object of class TransientExample is written to the I/O Classes

secondary memory, the values of first will not be saved while the value of second
will be.
volatile NOTES
The volatile modifier is used to tell the compiler that the variable declared as
volatile can be changed at any time by the other parts of the program. This
modifier is mainly used in multithreading in which a program (process) is divided
into two or more subprograms (subprocesses), each of which runs by a separate
thread and performs different tasks concurrently. In a multithreaded program,
various threads share the same instance variable and keep their own copy of the
variable in their local cache memory while the master copy remains in the main
memory. Whenever a thread changes the value of the variable, it updates the value
of the variable only in its local cache memory and not in the main memory. This
leads to inconsistency because the thread using the same variable does not know
about the change of the value by another thread. So to avoid this problem, the
volatile modifier is used. When a variable is declared as volatile, it is not
stored in the cache memory and its value is updated in the main memory so that
the other threads can easily access the updated value.

14.8 USING INSTANCEOF OPERATOR

The instanceof operator is an operator which is used to check whether the

object belongs to a particular class or not.
The general form of instanceof operator is as follows:
object instanceof type

where,
object is an instance of the class
type is the class type
The instanceof operator returns true if the object represents an instance
of specified type or can be cast into a specified type, otherwise it returns false.
Program 8: A program to demonstrate the use of instanceof operator.
class FirstClass
{
void show()
{
System.out.println(“Method of FirstClass”);
}

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I/O Classes }
class SecondClass extends FirstClass
{
void show()
NOTES
{
System.out.println(“Method of SecondClass”);
}
void showstatus()
{
System.out.println(“Another method of SecondClass”);
}
}
public class InstanceofExample
{
public static void main(String args[])
{

FirstClass fc = new FirstClass();

SecondClass sc = new SecondClass();

if(fc instanceof FirstClass)
{
System.out.println(“fc is an instance of
FirstClass”);
fc.show();
}

if(sc instanceof SecondClass)

{
System.out.println(“sc is an instance of
SecondClass”);
sc.show();
sc.showstatus();
}
else
{
System.out.println(“sc is not an instance of
SecondClass”);
}
}
}
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Output of the program: I/O Classes
fc is an instance of FirstClass
Method of FirstClass
sc is an instance of SecondClass
Method of SecondClass
NOTES
Another method of SecondClass

14.9 NATIVE METHODS

A native method is a special method which contains a native code written in any
programming language other than Java. Generally, the native code is written in C
language. A method is declared native by preceding the method with the keyword
native with no body defined.
Program 9: Let us consider an example to understand the concept of native
methods. The following steps show how the native methods are created and used
in Java.
1. A native method show() is declared in a normal Java class called
NativeExample.
public class NativeExample
{
public native String show(String message);
public static void main(String args[])
{
String message = null;
NativeExample ne = new NativeExample();
message = ne.show(“I am called through a native
method”);
System.out.println(message);
}
}

2. The native implementation of show() is contained in dynamic link library

which is loaded using the static method. The static method is executed
only once when the execution of the program begins. The code which is
used to load the dynamic link library is
static
{
System.loadLibrary(“NativeExample”);
}

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I/O Classes The dynamic link library is loaded by using the
loadLibrary() method of System class.

The general form of loadLibrary() is

NOTES static void loadLibrary(String filename)

where,
filename specifies the name of the file that holds
the library

The complete Java file called NativeExample is as

follows:
public class NativeExample
{
public native String show(String message);
static
{
System.loadLibrary(“NativeExample”);
}
public static void main(String args[])
{
String message = null;
NativeExample ne = new NativeExample();
message = ne.show(“I am called through a native
method”);
System.out.println(message);
}
}

3. The Java file NativeExample is compiled to produce its class file

NativeExample.class by using the command given below.
javac NativeExample.java

4. The .h file of NativeExample is generated by using the command given

below.
javah –jni NativeExample

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This command generates a header file NativeExample.h which has the I/O Classes

following code.
/* DO NOT EDIT THIS FILE
- it is machine generated */
#include <jni.h> NOTES
/* Header for class NativeExample */
#ifndef _Included_NativeExample
#define _Included_NativeExample
#ifdef __cplusplus
extern “C” {
#endif
/*
* Class: NativeExample
* Method: show
* Signature: (Ljava/lang/String;)V
*/
JNIEXPORT void JNICALL Java_NativeExample_show (JNIEnv
*, jobject, jstring);
#ifdef __cplusplus
}
#endif
#endif

In this code, the following statement defines the prototype for the native
method show() which is to be created.
JNIEXPORT void JNICALL Java_NativeExample_show (JNIEnv
*, jobject, jstring);

where,
JNIEXPORT and JNICALL represent the macros that expand to match
platform specific directives.
JNIEnv, jobject and jstring represent the JNI data type definitions.
Java_NativeExample_show is the name of the method which is used
during the implementation of the native method. The general form of this
method is as follows:
Java_className_methodName

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I/O Classes where,
Java is added as a prefix.
className is the name of the Java class in which the native method is
NOTES declared. It is added as a prefix to identify the associated native method.
methodName is the name of the native method.
Since the name of native method is appended with the class name, different
Java classes can declare a native method with the same name.
5. A file called NativeExample.c is created which implements the method
show(). The code for NativeExample.c is as follows:
#include<jni.h>
#include “NativeExample.h”
#include<stdio.h>
JNIEXPORT void JNICALL Java_NativeExample_show (JNIEnv
*env, jobject obj, jstring msg)
{
return msg;
}

6. Compile the file NativeExample.c and create a DLL file called

NativeExample.dll.
7. The java program is run using the following command
java NativeExample

Output of the program:

I am called through a native method

Check Your Progress

1. To write the data to the console, which stream is used?
2. What is a file?
3. Why FileInputStream class is used in the program.
4. What does data streams provide?
5. Why the StringTokenizer class is used?
6. What does tokenization process involves?
7. Explain about the transient and volatile modifiers provided by Java.
8. What are native methods?

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 I/O Classes
14.10 ANSWERS TO CHECK YOUR PROGRESS
QUESTIONS

1. To write the data to the console, the System.out stream is used which NOTES
belongs to the PrintStream class. The PrintStream class defines two
methods to write output to console, one is print() and the other is
println(). Both methods perform the same task except that the println()
method writes the output in a new line while print() method writes the
output in the same line.
2. A file is a collection of related data stored on some storage device. The
data stored in a data file is permanent and can easily be accessed as and
when required.
3. The FileInputStream class creates an input stream between the file and
the program and reads bytes from the file and sends it to the program.
4. Data streams support reading/writing of primitive data types (int, float,
short, long, double, boolean, char and byte) as well as String
objects. These are required when the user wants to work on data other
than bytes or characters. Data streams are filtered streams, that is, they
filter existing stream so that the primitive data types can be directly read
from or written to the stream. Java provides DataInputStream class and
DataOutputStream class to read and write primitive data types,
respectively.
5. The StringTokenizer class, a part of java.util package, defines
methods to parse an input string. Parsing a string requires breaking the
string into small parts known as tokens. The breaking up of the string into
tokens is determined by the delimiters. Delimiters are the characters that
separate tokens within the string. There are two types of delimiters: Single-
character delimiters and Multi-character delimiters.
6. The tokenization process involves reading each byte from the input stream
and each byte is considered as a character having five distinct attributes,
namely, alphabets, numbers, string quote, white space and comment
character. Each character is identified to be having either of these attributes.
7. The transient and volatile modifiers are two special modifiers provided by
Java which are used to handle some specialized situations.
8. A native method is a special method which contains a native code written in
any programming language other than Java. Generally, the native code is
written in C language. A method is declared native by preceding the method
with the keyword native with no body defined.

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I/O Classes
14.11 SUMMARY

 Java 1.0 supports console input using byte streams. Since the use of byte
NOTES streams for reading/writing console input requires using deprecated methods,
this approach is not recommended.
 In order to read data from the console using character stream, System.in
is used. As System.in refers to an object of type InputStream, it can be
used as a character-based input stream.
 To write the data to the console, the System.out stream is used which
belongs to the PrintStream class. The PrintStream class defines two
methods to write output to console, one is print() and the other is
println(). Both methods perform the same task except that the println()
method writes the output in a new line while print() method writes the
output in the same line.
 A file is a collection of related data stored on some storage device. The
data stored in a data file is permanent and can easily be accessed as and
when required.
 For reading and writing data to the files, file streams are used. A file stream
refers to the flow of data between the program and the files (see Figure
14.1). Depending on the type of data handled by the file stream, byte stream
classes or character stream classes can be used.
 Before reading or writing a file, it must be opened first. For this, it is required
to create a file stream and then link this stream to the specific file. Java
provides FileInputStream class to read bytes from a file.
 Data streams support reading/writing of primitive data types (int, float,
short, long, double, boolean, char and byte) as well as String objects.
These are required when the user wants to work on data other than bytes
or characters. Data streams are filtered streams, that is, they filter existing
stream so that the primitive data types can be directly read from or written
to the stream.
 The DataInputSream class performs reading of Java primitive data types
from the input stream.
 The StringTokenizer class, a part of java.util package, defines
methods to parse an input string. Parsing a string requires breaking the
string into small parts known as tokens.
 The StreamTokenizer class is used to parse an input stream into ‘tokens’
determined by the delimiters, reading them one at a time.
 The transient and volatile modifiers are two special modifiers provided by
Java which are used to handle some specialized situations.

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  The volatile modifier is used to tell the compiler that the variable declared I/O Classes

as volatile can be changed at any time by the other parts of the program.
 The instanceof operator is an operator which is used to check whether
the object belongs to a particular class or not.
NOTES
 A native method is a special method which contains a native code written in
any programming language other than Java. Generally, the native code is
written in C language. A method is declared native by preceding the method
with the keyword native with no body defined.

14.12 KEY WORDS

 File: A file is a collection of related data stored on some storage device.

The data stored in a data file is permanent and can easily be accessed as
and when required.
 Data streams: Data streams support reading/writing of primitive data types
(int, float, short, long, double, Boolean, char and byte)
as well as String objects. These are required when the user wants to
work on data other than bytes or characters.
 Tokens: Parsing a string requires breaking the string into small parts known
as tokens.
 Delimiters: The breaking up of the string into tokens is determined by the
delimiters, these are the characters that separate tokens within the string.
 Object serialization: Object serialization is the process of reading and
writing objects. By default, all objects are serializable, i.e., they can be read
from and written to the secondary memory so that the value which they
hold persists.

14.13 SELF ASSESSMENT QUESTIONS AND

EXERCISES

Short Answer Questions

1. What are I/O classes?
2. Why I/O classes uses stream?
3. Define data streams in Java.
4. How reading and writing files is done in Java?
5. Explain the process of reading writing bytes in Java.
6. Why is native method used?

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I/O Classes Long Answer Questions
1. Briefly explain the concept of I/O classes using stream in Java giving
appropriate examples.
NOTES 2. Discuss the concept of reading from and writing to console in Java language.
3. Discuss all the reading and writing files methods giving appropriate examples
in Java.
4. Write a Java program for reading writing bytes in Java.
5. Write a program in Java to illustrate the use of System.out and
System.in.
6. Write a program in Java to demonstrate the use of DataInputStream
class and DataOutputStream class for handling primitive data types.

14.14 FURTHER READINGS

Krishnamoorty, R. and Prabhu R. Krishnamoorty. 2009. Internet and Java

Programming. New Delhi: New Age International (P) Ltd.
Balagurusamy, E. 2007. Programming with Java, Third Edition. New Delhi:
Tata McGraw-Hill.
Das, Rashmi Kant. 2009. Core Java for Beginners, Revised Edition. New Delhi:
Vikas Publishing House Pvt. Ltd.
Keogh, Jim. 2002. The Complete Reference J2SE, Fifth Edition. New York:
Tata McGraw-Hill.
Naughton, Patrick and Herbert Schidt. 1999. Java 2: The Complete Reference,
Third Edition. New Delhi: Tata McGraw-Hill.

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