main method in base class

Command Line: java Test
The above code compiles and prints "Hello".
How do you explain the behaviour of the above code?
Is it because even though main is not inherited by
class "Test", it is available to it and the JVM can
determine what to do?
Do you have a precise explanation?

hi rajsim,
all public members of base class are accessible & visible in the derived class( unless they are overridden by the derived class).
so in this case public static void main(string s[])
is available in the derived class. so the JVM executes it.
regards
deekasha

Hi Deekasha,
Thanks for explaining. But the thing that is puzzling me is this:
change
public static void main
to
private static void main
It still works. I think this behaviour has something to do
with how the JVM executes the program.

[This message has been edited by rajsim (edited July 10, 2000).]

That is wired! I could not find anything in the Java specification to justify that. I believe that for the certification's meters this should not execute. I would suspect that the derived class has no "physical" access to the private methods of parent class, so the JVM or the compiler does something really interesting there.

Originally posted by rajsim:
Hi Deekasha,
Thanks for explaining. But the thing that is puzzling me is this:
change
[b]public static void main
to
private static void main
It still works. I think this behaviour has something to do
with how the JVM executes the program.

[This message has been edited by rajsim (edited July 10, 2000).][/B]

This is very interesting!
It seems like the main method is just the entry point to the application. If you make it private in the base class, it is not accessible to the derived classes, but it is still available to the JVM. If you provide another main method in the derived class, public or private, that is the one that gets executed.
Example:
class abc{
int i = 017;
private static void main(String args[]){
System.out.println("Hello World!!" + i);
}
}
public class def extends abc{
int i = 20;
private static void main(String args[]){
System.out.println("Extended Hello World!!");
}
}
Here the main method from def is executed.
Savithri

Any other explanations pals??

Hi all

Just now i executed the program

For me the JVM cooly reports .......
Main method not public

mine is java version "1.4.2_07"

may be any version conflict........???

what i feel ..
when the classes are loaded if the JVM finds the method signature as
public static void main(String[] a) its executes it ..immaterial of where it is declared..coz


but if any of the method defination changes..i.e public to private


no output...

correct me if iam wrong ...

hi srikanth

u had missed static keyword in main method in the second block of code

add static and check

I executed the above code.The program compiled successfully but printed Main method not public in the console.My jdk version is 1.4.2_05.

Hi..

Since 1.4...main method has to be coderanch...


In the above program....the main method is treated as just another method..

and hence the program compiles...

But when you run the program...the environment...necessarily..and will look

for public static void main(String argument[])..

as the starting point..

which it doesnt find in this case...and so ...gives you the error..

Hope you got it..

"rajsim"

Please click on the My Profile link above and change your display name to match JavaRanch's Naming Policy of using your real first and real last names.

Thanks

Mark

Wow, talk about waking the dead. This thread is 5 years old.

Please do not wake up old threads. Just create a new one, and if you have to you can link to the old one.

Closing this thread.

Mark