How do I override a method in Java?

If a subclass has a method that have the same signature with a method in its superclass, then it’s an overriding method. Override inherited methods allow subclasses to provide specialized implementation for those methods. The overriding method has the same name, number and type of arguments, and return value as the method it overrides.

The overriding method can have a different throws clause as long as it doesn’t specify any types not specified by the throws clause in the overridden method. Also, the access specifier for the overriding method can allow more but not less access than the overridden method.

For example, a protected method in the superclass can be made public but not private. A subclass cannot override methods that are declared final in the superclass. A subclass must override methods that are declared abstract in the superclass, or the subclass itself must be abstract.

package org.kodejava.example.fundamental;

public class Car {
    private String type;
    private String brand;
    private String model;
    private int numberOfSeat;

    public Car() {
    }

    public Car(String type, String brand, String model) {
        this.type = type;
        this.brand = brand;
        this.model = model;
    }

    public String getType() {
        return type;
    }

    public void setType(String type) {
        this.type = type;
    }

    public String getBrand() {
        return brand;
    }

    public void setBrand(String brand) {
        this.brand = brand;
    }

    public String getModel() {
        return model;
    }

    public void setModel(String model) {
        this.model = model;
    }

    public int getNumberOfSeat() {
        return numberOfSeat;
    }

    public void setNumberOfSeat(int numberOfSeat) {
        this.numberOfSeat = numberOfSeat;
    }

    public String getCarInfo() {
        return"Type: " + type
                + "; Brand: " + brand
                + "; Model: " + model;
    }
}

In the Truck class we override the getCarInfo() method to provide more information about the truck object. We can also add an @Override annotation to an overriding method.

package org.kodejava.example.fundamental;

public class Truck extends Car {
    private int loadCapacity;

    public Truck() {
    }

    public Truck(String type, String brand, String model) {
        super(type, brand, model);
    }

    public int getLoadCapacity() {
        return loadCapacity;
    }

    public void setLoadCapacity(int loadCapacity) {
        this.loadCapacity = loadCapacity;
    }

    @Override
    public String getCarInfo() {
        return "Type: " + getType()
                + "; Brand: " + getBrand()
                + "; Model: " + getModel()
                + "; Load capacity: " + getLoadCapacity();
    }
}

How do I create and implement abstract class?

Abstract class is a class that have one or more methods declared, but not defined. Abstract class cannot have instances. This class uses in inheritance to take advantage of polymorphism. To declare that a class is abstract, use the abstract keyword in front of the class keyword in the class definition.

Methods in abstract class that have no definition are called abstract methods. The declaration for an abstract method ends with a semicolon and you specify the method with the abstract keyword to identify it as such. The implementation is left to the sub classes.

package org.kodejava.example.fundamental;

public abstract class Animal {
    private String species;

    public Animal(String species) {
        this.species = species;
    }

    public abstract void makeASound();

    public String getSpecies() {
        return species;
    }

    public static void main(String[] args) {
        Animal pig = new Pig("Warthog");
        pig.makeASound();
    }
}

The Pig class extends the Animal class. Because the Animal class contains an abstract method makeASound() the Pig class must implements this method or else the Pig will also become an abstract class.

package org.kodejava.example.fundamental;

public class Pig extends Animal {

    public Pig(String species) {
        super(species);
    }

    @Override
    public void makeASound() {
        System.out.println("oink oink");
    }
}

How do I invoke superclass constructor?

This example shows you how to use the super keyword to call a superclass constructor. The Female class constructor calls its superclass constructor and initializes its own initialization parameters. The call to the superclass constructor must be done in the first line of the constructor in the subclass.

package org.kodejava.example.fundamental;

public class Human {
    private String gender;
    private int age;

    public Human(String gender) {
        this.gender = gender;
    }
}

To call a superclass constructor we call super(). In the case below we call the superclass constructor with one string variable as a parameter.

package org.kodejava.example.fundamental;

public class Female extends Human {
    private String hairStyle;

    public Female(String hairStyle, String gender) {
        super(gender);
        this.hairStyle = hairStyle;
    }
}

How do I use the super keyword?

When a class extends from other class, the class or usually called as subclass inherits all the accessible members and methods of the superclass. If the subclass overrides a method provided by its superclass, a way to access the method defined in the superclass is through the super keyword.

package org.kodejava.basic;

public class Bike {
    public void moveForward() {
        System.out.println("Bike: Move Forward.");
    }
}

In the ThreeWheelsBike‘s moveForward() method we call the overridden method using the super.moveForward() which will print the message from the Bike class.

package org.kodejava.basic;

public class ThreeWheelsBike extends Bike {
    public static void main(String[] args) {
        Bike bike = new ThreeWheelsBike();
        bike.moveForward();
    }

    @Override
    public void moveForward() {
        super.moveForward();
        System.out.println("Three Wheels Bike: Move Forward.");
    }
}

How do I implement interfaces in Java?

To implement an interface, a java class must use implements keyword on its class definition. For example, class A implements interface B. The class definition of class A would look like this:

class A implements B {
}

A class can implements more than one interfaces. For example, class A can implements interface B and interface C:

class A implements B, C {
}

Classes that implements an interface must implements all methods declared in that interface.

package org.kodejava.basic;

public interface Language {

    String getBirthday();
    String getGreeting();

}

The following class is an English implementation of the Language interface.

package org.kodejava.basic;

public class English implements Language {
    public String getBirthday() {
        return "Happy Birthday";
    }

    public String getGreeting() {
        return "How are you?";
    }
}

The following class is an Indonesian implementation of the Language interface.

package org.kodejava.basic;

public class Indonesian implements Language {
    public String getBirthday() {
        return "Selamat Ulang Tahun";
    }

    public String getGreeting() {
        return "Apa kabar?";
    }
}

And here is a snippet that show the interface and classes in action.

package org.kodejava.basic;

public class LanguageDemo {
    public static void main(String[] args) {
        Language language = new English();
        System.out.println(language.getBirthday());
        System.out.println(language.getGreeting());

        language = new Indonesian();
        System.out.println(language.getBirthday());
        System.out.println(language.getGreeting());
    }
}

How do I create an interface in Java?

Interface only contains methods declaration and all its methods are abstract methods. In its most common form, an interface is a group of related methods with empty bodies. To create an interface, use interface keyword in class definition. The file name of interface always the same with the interface name in class definition and the extension is .java.

The RemoteControl interface defines four move methods and a getPosition() methods. These methods have no bodies. If a class implements an interface, the class should implement all the contracts / methods defined by the interface.

package org.kodejava.basic;

public interface RemoteController {
    void moveUp(int n);

    void moveRight(int n);

    void moveDown(int n);

    void moveLeft(int n);

    int[] getPosition();
}

The following snippet show you how to create a class that implements the RemoteController interface.

package org.kodejava.basic;

public class DummyRemoteControl implements RemoteController {
    private int x;
    private int y;

    public DummyRemoteControl(int x, int y) {
        this.x = x;
        this.y = y;
    }

    public static void main(String[] args) {
        RemoteController control = new DummyRemoteControl(0, 0);
        control.moveDown(10);
        control.moveLeft(5);
        System.out.println("X = " + control.getPosition()[0]);
        System.out.println("Y = " + control.getPosition()[1]);
    }

    public void moveUp(int n) {
        x = x + n;
    }

    public void moveRight(int n) {
        y = y + n;
    }

    public void moveDown(int n) {
        x = x - n;
    }

    public void moveLeft(int n) {
        y = y - n;
    }

    public int[] getPosition() {
        return new int[]{x, y};
    }
}

How do I extend classes in Java?

Inheritance is one of object-oriented programming concepts. This concept allows classes to inherit commonly used state and behavior from other classes. Inheritance is the way to put commonly used states and behaviors into one class and reuse it.

The class that inherits all the attributes from other class is called as sub class. While, the class that inherited is called as superclass. You can use the extends keyword in class definition to inherit from other classes.

When you apply the final keyword to the class declaration you will make the class final, a final class cannot be extended by other class.

For example below we have, a Truck class and a Sedan that derived from a Car class.

package org.kodejava.basic;

public class CarDemo {
    public static void main(String[] args) {
        Car car = new Car();
        car.setBrand("Honda");
        System.out.println("Brand = " + car.getBrand());

        // The setBrand() and getBrand() is inherited from the Car
        // class.
        Truck truck = new Truck();
        truck.setBrand("Ford");
        System.out.println("Brand = " + truck.getBrand());
        int loadCapacity = truck.getLoadCapacity();

        // The setBrand(), getBrand() and setNumberOfSeat methods
        // are is inherited from the Car class.
        Sedan sedan = new Sedan();
        sedan.setBrand("Hyundai");
        System.out.println("Brand = " + sedan.getBrand());
        sedan.setNumberOfSeat(2);
        int gearType = sedan.getGearType();
    }
}

Here the definition of the Car, the Truck and the Sedan classes.

package org.kodejava.basic;

public class Car {
    private String type;
    private String brand;
    private String model;
    private int numberOfSeat;

    public Car() {
    }

    public Car(String type, String brand, String model) {
        this.type = type;
        this.brand = brand;
        this.model = model;
    }

    public String getType() {
        return type;
    }

    public void setType(String type) {
        this.type = type;
    }

    public String getBrand() {
        return brand;
    }

    public void setBrand(String brand) {
        this.brand = brand;
    }

    public String getModel() {
        return model;
    }

    public void setModel(String model) {
        this.model = model;
    }

    public int getNumberOfSeat() {
        return numberOfSeat;
    }

    public void setNumberOfSeat(int numberOfSeat) {
        this.numberOfSeat = numberOfSeat;
    }

    public String getCarInfo() {
        return "Type: " + type
                + "; Brand: " + brand
                + "; Model: " + model;
    }
}
package org.kodejava.basic;

public class Truck extends Car {
private int loadCapacity;

    public Truck() {
    }

    public Truck(String type, String brand, String model) {
        super(type, brand, model);
    }

    public int getLoadCapacity() {
        return loadCapacity;
    }

    public void setLoadCapacity(int loadCapacity) {
        this.loadCapacity = loadCapacity;
    }

    @Override
    public String getCarInfo() {
        return "Type: " + getType()
                + "; Brand: " + getBrand()
                + "; Model: " + getModel()
                + "; Load capacity: " + getLoadCapacity();
    }
}
package org.kodejava.basic;

public class Sedan extends Car {
    private int gearType;

    public Sedan() {
    }

    public int getGearType() {
        return gearType;
    }

    public void setGearType(int gearType) {
        this.gearType = gearType;
    }
}

How do I create a JSlider that snap to the closest tick mark?

The JSlider‘s setSnapToTicks() method call is used to move JSlider‘s knob to the nearest tick mark from where you positioned the knob. The default value of this property is false. To make it snap to the closest tick set this property to true.

package org.kodejava.swing;

import javax.swing.*;
import java.awt.*;

public class SnapToTickJSlider extends JPanel {
    public SnapToTickJSlider() {
        initializeUI();
    }

    public static void showFrame() {
        JPanel panel = new SnapToTickJSlider();

        JFrame frame = new JFrame("JSlider - Snap to Tick");
        frame.setDefaultCloseOperation(WindowConstants.EXIT_ON_CLOSE);
        frame.setContentPane(panel);
        frame.pack();
        frame.setVisible(true);
    }

    public static void main(String[] args) {
        SwingUtilities.invokeLater(SnapToTickJSlider::showFrame);
    }

    private void initializeUI() {
        setLayout(new BorderLayout());
        setPreferredSize(new Dimension(500, 200));

        JSlider slider = new JSlider(JSlider.HORIZONTAL, 0, 30, 0);
        slider.setMinorTickSpacing(5);
        slider.setMajorTickSpacing(10);
        slider.setPaintLabels(true);
        slider.setPaintTicks(true);

        // Snaps to the closest tick mark next to where the user
        // positioned the knob.
        slider.setSnapToTicks(true);

        add(slider, BorderLayout.CENTER);
    }
}

The screen capture of the result of the code snippet above is:

JSlider Snap to Ticks Demo

How do I create a JSlider with custom labels?

The JSlider‘s setLabelTable() method allows you to define a custom labels for the JSlider. The label table is a Hashtable that contains an Integer number as the keys and a JLabel component as their values. The integer keys correspond to the JSlider tick where the labels will be customized.

package org.kodejava.swing;

import javax.swing.*;
import java.awt.*;
import java.util.Hashtable;

public class JSliderCustomLabel extends JPanel {
    public JSliderCustomLabel() {
        initializeUI();
    }

    public static void showFrame() {
        JPanel panel = new JSliderCustomLabel();

        JFrame frame = new JFrame("JSlider Custom Label");
        frame.setDefaultCloseOperation(WindowConstants.EXIT_ON_CLOSE);
        frame.setContentPane(panel);
        frame.pack();
        frame.setVisible(true);
    }

    public static void main(String[] args) {
        SwingUtilities.invokeLater(JSliderCustomLabel::showFrame);
    }

    private void initializeUI() {
        setLayout(new BorderLayout());
        setPreferredSize(new Dimension(500, 200));

        JSlider slider = new JSlider(JSlider.VERTICAL, 0, 40, 0);
        slider.setMinorTickSpacing(1);
        slider.setMajorTickSpacing(5);
        slider.setPaintTicks(true);

        Hashtable<Integer, JLabel> labels = new Hashtable<>();
        labels.put(0, new JLabel("Freezing"));
        labels.put(15, new JLabel("Cold"));
        labels.put(25, new JLabel("Warm"));
        labels.put(35, new JLabel("Hot"));
        slider.setLabelTable(labels);

        slider.setPaintLabels(true);

        add(slider, BorderLayout.CENTER);
    }
}

The screen capture of the example above is:

JSlider with Custom Labels Demo

How do I reverse JSlider’s value-range?

On a normal JSlider the value range displayed left-to-right on a horizontal JSlider and bottom-to-top on vertical JSlider. To reverse the slider values from their normal order you can use the setInverted() method of the JSlider instance. Passing a true boolean value into this method call reverse the values order.

package org.kodejava.swing;

import javax.swing.*;
import java.awt.*;

public class JSliderInvertedDemo extends JPanel {
    public JSliderInvertedDemo() {
        initializeUI();
    }

    public static void showFrame() {
        JPanel panel = new JSliderInvertedDemo();

        JFrame frame = new JFrame("Inverted JSlider");
        frame.setDefaultCloseOperation(WindowConstants.EXIT_ON_CLOSE);
        frame.setContentPane(panel);
        frame.pack();
        frame.setVisible(true);
    }

    public static void main(String[] args) {
        SwingUtilities.invokeLater(JSliderInvertedDemo::showFrame);
    }

    private void initializeUI() {
        setLayout(new BorderLayout());
        setPreferredSize(new Dimension(500, 200));

        JSlider slider = new JSlider(JSlider.HORIZONTAL, 0, 20, 10);
        slider.setMinorTickSpacing(1);
        slider.setMajorTickSpacing(5);
        slider.setPaintLabels(true);
        slider.setPaintTicks(true);

        // Reverse the value-range of a JSlider. On a normal
        // horizontal JSlider the maximum value is on the right
        // side. Specifying inverted to true makes the maximum
        // value placed on the left side.
        slider.setInverted(true);

        add(slider, BorderLayout.CENTER);
    }
}

The result of the code snippet above is:

Inverted JSlider Demo