Interface in Java
. Interface
. Example of Interface
. Multiple inheritance by Interface
. Why multiple inheritance is supported in Interface while it is not supported in case of
class.
. Marker Interface
. Nested Interface
An interface in Java is a blueprint of a class. It has static constants
and abstract methods.
The interface in Java is a mechanism to achieve abstraction. There
can be only abstract methods in the Java interface, not method
body. It is used to achieve abstraction and multiple inheritance in
Java.
In other words, you can say that interfaces can have abstract
methods and variables. It cannot have a method body.
Java Interface also represents the IS-A relationship.
It cannot be instantiated just like the abstract class.
Why use Java interface?
There are mainly three reasons to use interface. They are given
below.
o It is used to achieve abstraction.
o By interface, we can support the functionality of multiple
inheritance.
o It can be used to achieve loose coupling.
How to declare an interface?
An interface is declared by using the interface keyword.
It provides total abstraction; means all the methods in an
interface are declared with the empty body, and all the fields are
public, static and final by default.
A class that implements an interface must implement all the
methods declared in the interface.
Syntax:
interface <interface_name>
{
// declare constant fields
// declare methods that abstract
// by default.
}
Internal addition by the compiler
The Java compiler adds public and abstract keywords before the
interface method. Moreover, it adds public, static and final keywords
before data members.
The relationship between classes and interfaces
As shown in the figure given below, a class extends another class,
an interface extends another interface, but a class implements an
interface.
Java Interface Example
In this example, the Printable interface has only one method, and its
implementation is provided in the A6 class.
interface printable
{
void print();
}
class A6 implements printable
{
public void print()
{
[Link]("Hello");
}
public static void main(String args[])
{
A6 obj = new A6();
[Link]();
}
}
Output:
Hello
Java Interface Example: Drawable
In this example, the Drawable interface has only one method. Its
implementation is provided by Rectangle and Circle classes. In a
real scenario, an interface is defined by someone else, but its
implementation is provided by different implementation providers.
Moreover, it is used by someone else. The implementation part is
hidden by the user who uses the interface.
File: [Link]
//Interface declaration: by first user
interface Drawable
{
void draw();
}
//Implementation: by second user
class Rectangle implements Drawable
{
public void draw()
{
[Link]("drawing rectangle");
}
}
class Circle implements Drawable
{
public void draw()
{
[Link]("drawing circle");
}
}
//Using interface: by third user
class TestInterface1{
public static void main(String args[])
{
Drawable d=new Circle();
[Link]();
}
}
Output:
drawing circle
Multiple inheritance in Java by interface
If a class implements multiple interfaces, or an interface extends
multiple interfaces, it is known as multiple inheritance.
interface Printable
{
void print();
}
interface Showable
{
void show();
}
class A7 implements Printable,Showable
{
public void print()
{
[Link]("Hello");
}
public void show()
{
[Link]("Welcome");
}
public static void main(String args[])
{
A7 obj = new A7();
[Link]();
[Link]();
}
}
Output:Hello
Welcome
Q) Multiple inheritance is not supported through class in java,
but it is possible by an interface, why?
Multiple inheritance is not supported in the case of class because of
ambiguity. However, it is supported in case of an interface because
there is no ambiguity. It is because its implementation is provided
by the implementation class. For example:
interface Printable
{
void print();
}
interface Showable
{
void print();
}
class TestInterface3 implements Printable, Showable
{
public void print(
{
[Link]("Hello");
}
public static void main(String args[])
{
TestInterface3 obj = new TestInterface3();
[Link]();
}
}
Output:
Hello
As you can see in the above example, Printable and Showable
interface have same methods but its implementation is provided by
class TestTnterface1, so there is no ambiguity.
Interface inheritance
A class implements an interface, but one interface extends another
interface.
interface Printable
{
void print();
}
interface Showable extends Printable
{
void show();
}
class TestInterface4 implements Showable
{
public void print(){[Link]("Hello");
}
public void show()
{
[Link]("Welcome");
}
public static void main(String args[])
{
TestInterface4 obj = new TestInterface4();
[Link]();
[Link]();
}
}
Output:
Hello
Welcome
Default Method in Interface
Since Java 8, we can have method body in interface. But we need to
make it default method. Let's see an example:
File: [Link]
interface Drawable
{
void draw();
default void msg()
{
[Link]("default method");}
}
class Rectangle implements Drawable
{
public void draw()
{
[Link]("drawing rectangle");
}
}
class TestInterfaceDefault
{
public static void main(String args[])
{
Drawable d=new Rectangle();
[Link]();
[Link]();
}
}
Output:
drawing rectangle
default method