OOPS/JAVA : Unit 3 -Base class Object
by hkesavaraju on Apr.02, 2010, under Java
In java, all classes use inheritance. If the parent class is not specified, all classes in java are derived from a single root class called Object. The derived assumes Object as its parent class in this case. The following program named FirstProgram illustrates this:
class FirstProgram extends Object
{
//…..
}
The class Object provides minimum functionality that is common to all objects. These include the following methods.
(i) equals(Object ob): It determines whether the argument string obj is same as the receiver. This method is often overridden to change the equality test for different classes.
(ii) getClass(): It returns the class of the receiver or object of type class.
(iii) hashCode(): It returns hash value for the object. This method should also be overridden when equals() is changed.
(iv) toString(): It converts object into a string value. This method is also often overridden.
