How to create a "Setter" in Java

Question

I am unsure how to create a setter method in java.
Everything that I found on the internet either shows how to "generate" one in eclipse or doesn't include what I am looking for.

I am looking for a simple answer in plain terms, if that is possible.
I understand what a setter-method does, but am unsure about the syntax and specific code.

Thank you for your time.

Also, if you generate it with Eclipse, just follow the same syntax to write it. It's as simple as that. — dguay, Nov 19 '15 at 14:10
I'm assuming that you are thinking of getters and setters from a C# perspective where there is actual built in syntax for them. Java doesn't have that. In Java a getter and setter is simply a function with the signature `Object getObject()` and `void setObject(Object object)`. Otherwise they aren't any different from other functions in java,besides using the get/set naming convention. The reasoning behind the naming convention is to allow applications to easily find the accessor functions by means of reflection. — Daren Coffey, Nov 19 '15 at 14:20

score 3 · Answer 1 · answered Nov 19 '15 at 14:08

3

I'm assuming you mean a setter method as in set an object?

private String yourString;

public void setYourString(String yourString) {
    this.yourString = yourString;
}

This is basic code though so you probably mean something else?

Let me know.

answered Nov 19 '15 at 14:08

vguzzi

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score 2 · Answer 2 · answered Nov 19 '15 at 14:10

A small code for getter and setter

public class Test {

    String s;

    public String getS() {
        return s;
    }

    public void setS(String s) {
        this.s = s;
    }

}

Advantage of setter is that a setter can do sanity checks and throw IllegalArgumentException.

score 2 · Accepted Answer · answered Nov 19 '15 at 14:11

A setter is a method which sets a value for one of your parameters. E.g. many people say it's not nice to have a public variable in a class:

public class SomeClass {
     public int someInt = 0;
}

now you can access the variable someInt directly:

SomeClass foo = new SomeClass();
foo.someInt = 13;

You should rather do something like that:

public class SomeClass {
    private int someInt = 0;

    // Getter
    public int getSomeInt() {
        return someInt;
    }

    // Setter
    public void setSomeInt(int someIntNew) {
        someInt = someIntNew;
    }
}

and access it through:

SomeClass foo = new SomeClass();
foo.setSomeInt(13);

All this is just convention... You could name your setter-method however you want! But getters and setters are a good (and readable) way to define access to your class varaibles as you like it (if you want to make it read-only you could just write the getter, if you don't wan't anybody to read the value you could only write the setter, you could make them protected, etc...)

Thank you! This is exactly what I was looking for. It is simple and clear. I apologize for the late response but I decided to take a little break and work on another program in the hope to get a fresh look on this one when I returned. — matt, Dec 03 '15 at 19:16

How to create a "Setter" in Java

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