Class and object initialization in Java
Classes and objects in Java must be initialized before they are used. You've previously learned that class fields are initialized to default values when classes are loaded, and that objects are initialized via constructors—but there is still more to initialization. This tutorial introduces all of Java's features for initializing classes and objects.
What you'll learn in this Java tutorial
- How to initialize a Java class
- How to work with class initialization blocks
- How to initialize Java objects
Download the source code for example applications in this tutorial. Created by Jeff Friesen for JavaWorld.
How to initialize a Java class
Before we explore Java's support for class initialization, let's recap the steps of initializing a Java class. Consider Listing 1.