We overload constructors to give options on how to initialize an object.
Public Person()
{
name=""
age=""
gender=""
}
...if you override
Public Person(String name, int age, String gender)
{
this.name=name
this.age=age
this.gender=gender
}
Now upon coding time, if you need to initialize it with parameters you have two choices:
Now if you ask me what's the use?
well, since you are creating a class, you are encapsulating. you want as much to limit the use of your internal properties.
e.g.
private name
private birthyear
public Person(String name, Int age)
{
this.name=name
this.birthyear= yearNow-age
}
public Person(String name, Int birthdate)
{
this.name=name
this.birthdate=birthdate
}
You make sure that everytime a Person() is initialized, birthday property has a value either from age or birthdate.
I know the example is absurd but there are lots of complex example for this, I do overloading of constructors most of the time. from creating connection objects, to creating business process objects, since they differ in their needs.
Problem that often occur is code duplication. It's up to you to make a way to minimize/avoid duplication of code. usually I do this
public Person(String name, Int age)
{
Person(name, yearNow-age)
}
public Person(String name, Int birthyear)
{
this.name=name
this.birthyear=birthyear
Person();
}
Hope this gives an idea.
Yes, you can have more than one constructor with a different set of parameters.
Constructor overloading, just like any function's overloading, is where more than one configuration of parameters exists for the function. Based on the number and type of the parameters, different versions of the function can be resolved by the linker. This is typically used in the constructor as the default constructor (no parameters), the copy constructor (one reference parameter of the same type as the class), and the conversion constructor (any other combination of parameters).
Overloading a constructor means typing in multiple versions of the constructor, each having a different argument list, like the following examples: class Car { Car() { } Car(String s) { } } The preceding Car class has two overloaded constructors, one that takes a string, and one with no arguments. Because there's no code in the no-arg version, it's actually identical to the default constructor the compiler supplies, but remember-since there's already a constructor in this class (the one that takes a string), the compiler won't supply a default constructor. If you want a no-arg constructor to overload the with-args version you already have, you're going to have to type it yourself, just as in the Car example. Overloading a constructor is typically used to provide alternate ways for clients to instantiate objects of your class. For example, if a client knows the Car name, they can pass that to a Car constructor that takes a string. But if they don't know the name, the client can call the no-arg constructor and that constructor can supply a default name
You can overload instance methods and constructors (ref. Prog. Logic)
If you don't type a constructor into your class code, a default constructor will be automatically generated by the compiler. The default constructor is ALWAYS a no-arg constructor. (Obviously the compiler has no clue what all arguments you might want for your class. So it takes the safe way out with a no argument constructor) A no-arg constructor is not necessarily the default (i.e., compiler-supplied) constructor, although the default constructor is always a no-arg constructor. The default constructor is the one the compiler provides! While the default constructor is always a no-arg constructor, you're free to put in your own no-arg constructor.
Yes, you can have more than one constructor with a different set of parameters.
A constructor is just a special form of a method. You can overload constructors in the exact same way as you can overload any other method.
A copy constructor usually refers to a constructor which takes an object, and returns a copy of that object. I can think of no way to overload the constructor without changing its functionality.
The same way you overload any function -- you provide a new signature for it. The signature is determined by the number and type of parameters it accepts, and whether they are const or not. Every class has a public default constructor if no other constructor is declared . Also every class has a public copy constructor whether you declare one or not. So every constructor you do declare is, in fact, an overloaded constructor. Example: class myClass { public: myClass():myInt(0){} // default ctor (no parameters) myClass(const myClass & copy){myint = copy.myInt;} // copy ctor myClass(int newInt):myInt(newInt){} // overloaded ctor private: int myint; };
Constructor overloading, just like any function's overloading, is where more than one configuration of parameters exists for the function. Based on the number and type of the parameters, different versions of the function can be resolved by the linker. This is typically used in the constructor as the default constructor (no parameters), the copy constructor (one reference parameter of the same type as the class), and the conversion constructor (any other combination of parameters).
Overloading a constructor means typing in multiple versions of the constructor, each having a different argument list, like the following examples: class Car { Car() { } Car(String s) { } } The preceding Car class has two overloaded constructors, one that takes a string, and one with no arguments. Because there's no code in the no-arg version, it's actually identical to the default constructor the compiler supplies, but remember-since there's already a constructor in this class (the one that takes a string), the compiler won't supply a default constructor. If you want a no-arg constructor to overload the with-args version you already have, you're going to have to type it yourself, just as in the Car example. Overloading a constructor is typically used to provide alternate ways for clients to instantiate objects of your class. For example, if a client knows the Car name, they can pass that to a Car constructor that takes a string. But if they don't know the name, the client can call the no-arg constructor and that constructor can supply a default name
You can overload instance methods and constructors (ref. Prog. Logic)
The first thing to note about constructor overloading is that Java creates a no argument constructor for you if and only if you have not typed a constructor yourself. Every class has a constructor even abstract ones (default no argument constructor). Abstract constructors are always executed. To overload a constructor you can do the following: class Test { String name; Test(String n) { name = n; System.out.println("Constructing Test Object named: " + name); } } In the case above we are overloading the default no argument constructor with a constructor that takes a String parameter. You can write you own no argument constructor as follows: class Test { Test() { System.out.println("Constructing Test Object"); } } To override our own no argument constructor we do this: class Test { Test() { // our no argument constructor System.out.println("Constructing Test Object"); } String name; Test(String n) { // overloading our no argument constructor with this // constructor that take a String parameter name = n; System.out.println("Constructing Test Object named: " + name); } }
If you don't type a constructor into your class code, a default constructor will be automatically generated by the compiler. The default constructor is ALWAYS a no-arg constructor. (Obviously the compiler has no clue what all arguments you might want for your class. So it takes the safe way out with a no argument constructor) A no-arg constructor is not necessarily the default (i.e., compiler-supplied) constructor, although the default constructor is always a no-arg constructor. The default constructor is the one the compiler provides! While the default constructor is always a no-arg constructor, you're free to put in your own no-arg constructor.
Overloading a constructor means typing in multiple versions of the constructor, each having a different argument list, like the following examples: class Car { Car() { } Car(String s) { } } The preceding Car class has two overloaded constructors, one that takes a string, and one with no arguments. Because there's no code in the no-arg version, it's actually identical to the default constructor the compiler supplies, but remember-since there's already a constructor in this class (the one that takes a string), the compiler won't supply a default constructor. If you want a no-arg constructor to overload the with-args version you already have, you're going to have to type it yourself, just as in the Car example. Overloading a constructor is typically used to provide alternate ways for clients to instantiate objects of your class. For example, if a client knows the Car name, they can pass that to a Car constructor that takes a string. But if they don't know the name, the client can call the no-arg constructor and that constructor can supply a default name.
An empty constructor takes no arguments and calls the default constructor
A constructor should be overloaded when there is a parameter with default value that is commonly used, or if it is possible that not all the information for creating the instance will be gathered all at once. As an example, say there is a class that describes bank accounts. Assuming I can choose to deposit or not deposit money under my name upon creating an account, there is a chance for a meaningful overload. One constructor could take in the name of the account owner and the initial balance as parameters; the overloaded constructor could just take the name as a parameter while setting the initial balance to zero.