Computer Programming 2

Module 2: Java Basic structure, Identifiers, Data types and Operators

Basic structure of a Java program

Line 1 public class HelloWorld {

Line 2 public static void main(String[] args) {
Line 3 //Prints "Hello, World"
Line 4 System.out.println("Hello, World");
Line 5 }
Line 6 }

Basic structure explained

Line 1: This creates a class called HelloWorld.

All class names must start with a capital letter, must use PascalCase.
The public word means that it is accessible from any other classes.

Line 2: When the main method is declared public, it means that it can also be used by
code outside of its class, due to which the main method is declared public.
The word static used when we want to access a method without creating its
object, as we call the main method, before creating any class objects.
The word void indicates that a method does not return a value. main() is declared
as void because it does not return a value.
main is a method; this is a starting point of a Java program.
It is an array where each element of it is a string, which has been named as
"args". If your Java program is run through the console, you can pass the input
parameter, and main() method takes it as input.

Line 3: The compiler ignores comment block. Comment can be used anywhere in the
program to add info about the program or code block, which will be helpful for
developers to understand the existing code in the future easily.

Line 4: This statement is used to print text on the screen as output, where the system is
a predefined class, and out is an object of the PrintWriter class defined in the
system. The method println prints the text on the screen with a new line. You
can also use print() method instead of println() method. All Java statement
ends with a semicolon.
 Here are the most important points to note about the Java programs:

 You have to keep in mind that, Java code is case sensitive.

 To write a Java program, you must have to define class first.
 The name of the class in Java (which holds the main method) is the name of
the Java program, and the same name will be given in the filename. As mentioned
above in the sample program; the name of the class is "HelloWorld" in which the main
method is, then this file will be named "HelloWorld.Java".

Identifiers

Identifiers are tokens that represent names of variables, methods, classes, and other
user-defined program elements.

All Java variables must be identified with unique names.

These unique names are called identifiers.

Identifiers can be short names (like x and y) or more descriptive names (age, sum,
totalVolume).

Note:
It is recommended to use descriptive names in order to create understandable
and maintainable code.

The general rules for constructing names for an identifier (unique identifiers) are:

 Identifiers must begin with either a letter, an underscore “_”, or a dollar sign “$”.
Letters may be lower or upper case. Subsequent characters may use numbers 0 to 9.

 Identifiers cannot use Java keywords like class, public, void, etc.

Java Identifiers Best Practices

 For names of classes, capitalize the first letter of the identifier.

Example: AnExampleOfClassName

 For names of methods and variables, the identifier should start with a lower-case
letter.
Example: anExampleOfMethodName
  For constants use all capitals and separate words with underscores.
Example: EXAMPLE_OF_A_CONSTANT

 Avoid using underscores at the start of the identifier such as _read or _write.

A variable is an item of data used to store the state of objects.

A variable has a:

 Data type
The data type determines the type of value that the variable can hold.

 Name
The variable name must follow rules for identifiers.

Data Types

A data type is an attribute of data which tells the compiler or interpreter how the
programmer intends to use the data.

Data types are divided into two groups:

 Primitive data types

 Non-primitive data types

Data type Size Description

byte 1 byte Stores whole numbers from -128 to 127
short 2 bytes Stores whole numbers from -32,768 to 32,767
int 4 bytes Stores whole numbers from
-2,147,483,648 to 2,147,483,647
long 8 bytes Stores whole numbers from
-9,223,372,036,854,775,808 to 9,223,372,036,854,775,807
float 4 bytes Stores fractional numbers. Sufficient for storing
6 to 7 decimal digits
double 8 bytes Stores fractional numbers. Sufficient for storing
15 decimal digits
boolean 1 bit Stores true or false values
char 2 bytes Stores a single character/letter or ASCII values
Primitive Data Types
Primitive data type specifies the size and type of variable values, and it has no
additional methods.

o Integer types
Stores whole numbers, positive or negative (such as 123 or -456), without
decimals. Valid types are byte, short, int and long. Which type you should use,
depends on the numeric value.

 Byte
The byte data type can store whole numbers from -128 to 127.
This can be used instead of int or other integer types to save memory
when you are certain that the value will be within -128 and 127.

 Short
The short data type can store whole numbers from -32,768 to
32,767.

 Int
The int data type can store whole numbers from -2,147,483,648 to
2,147,483,647. In general, the int data type is the preferred data type
when we create variables with a numeric value.

 Long
The long data type can store whole numbers from
9,223,372,036,854,775,808 to 9,223,372,036,854,775,807. This is used
when int is not large enough to store the value.

o Floating point types

Represents numbers with a fractional part, containing one or more
decimals. There are two types: float and double.

 Float
The float data type can store fractional numbers from 3.4e−038 to
3.4e+038.

 Double
The double data type can store fractional numbers from 1.7e−308
to 1.7e+308.
 Use float or double?

The precision of a floating point value indicates how many digits

the value can have after the decimal point. The precision of float is only
six or seven decimal digits, while double variables have a precision of
about 15 digits. Therefore it is safer to use double for most calculations.

o Boolean
A boolean data type is declared with the boolean keyword and can only
take the values true or false.

o Characters
The char data type is used to store a single character. The character
must be surrounded by single quotes, like 'A' or 'c':

Non-Primitive Data Types

Non-primitive data types are called reference types because they refer to objects.

The main difference between primitive and non-primitive data types are:

 Primitive types are predefined (already defined) in Java. Non-primitive

types are created by the programmer and is not defined by Java
(except for String).

 Non-primitive types can be used to call methods to perform certain

operations, while primitive types cannot.

 A primitive type has always a value, while non-primitive types can be

null.

 A primitive type starts with a lowercase letter, while non-primitive

types starts with an uppercase letter.

 The size of a primitive type depends on the data type, while non-
primitive types have all the same size.

Examples of non-primitive types are Strings, Arrays, Classes, Interface, etc.

o Strings
The String data type is used to store a sequence of characters (text).
String values must be surrounded by double quotes.
Expressions

An expression is a statement that can convey a value. Some of the most common
expressions are mathematical, such as in the following source code example:

int number = 4;
int anotherNumber = number;
int product = number * anotherNumber;

All three of these statements can be considered expressions - they convey values that
can be assigned to variables. The first assigns the literal 4 to the variable number. The second
assigns the value of the number variable to the anotherNumber variable. The multiplication
operator (*) is used to multiply the number integer and anotherNumber integer, and the
expression produces the result of the multiplication. This result is stored in the product integer
variable.

Operators

An operator is a symbol that tells the compiler to perform specific mathematical or logical
manipulations. Java is rich in built-in operators and provide the following types of operators:

1. Unary Operators
2. Arithmetic operators
3. Assignment operators
4. Relational operators
5. Logical operators

Unary Operators

Unary operators are used with only one operand. For example, ++ is a unary
operator that increases the value of a variable by 1.

Operator Name Description

+ Unary plus Convert the operand into a number
- Unary minus Inverts the sign of an expression
++ Increment operator Increments value by 1
-- Decrement operator Decrements value by 1
Arithmetic Operators

Arithmetic operators are used to perform common mathematical operations.

Operator Name Description

+ Addition Adds together two values
- Subtraction Subtracts one value from another
* Multiplication Multiplies two values
/ Division Divides one value by another
% Modulus Returns the division remainder

Assignment Operators

Assignment operators are used to assign values to variables.

Operator Example Equivalent to

= a = b; a = b;
+= a += b; a = a + b;
-= a -= b; a = a - b;
*= a *= b; a = a * b;
/= a /= b; a = a / b;
%= a %= b; a = a % b;

Note: a and b variables were used to save space.

Relational Operators

A relational operator is used to check the relationship between two operands.

Operator Meaning Example

== Is Equal To 3 == 5 gives us false
!= Not Equal To 3 != 5 gives us true
> Greater Than 3 > 5 gives us false
< Less Than 3 < 5 gives us true
>= Greater Than or Equal To 3 >= 5 give us false
<= Less Than or Equal To 3 <= 5 gives us true
 Logical Operators

Logical operators are used to check whether an expression is true or false. If the
expression is true, it returns 1 whereas if the expression is false, it returns 0.

Operator Example Meaning

! !expression Logical NOT.
True only if the operand is
false.
&& expression1 && expression2 Logical AND.
True only if all the operands
are true.
|| expression1 || expression2 Logical OR.
True if at least one of the
operands is true.

References:

https://www.w3schools.com
https://www.javatpoint.com
https://www.geeksforgeeks.org