static inner class.

[ashok khetan]

hi,
one query---Is it illegal to associate a static class reference with a reference of its enclosing class?( e.g. in the following code)
code:
_____________
public class top {
static class inner {
void show() {
System.out.println("show() in inner");
}
}
public static void main(String []args) {
inner i = new top().new inner();
i.show();
}
}
_____________

[Angela Narain]

No, you donot need to instantiate the outer class.
The static class can be invoked directly. For eg, if
Inner class is an static (top-level nested class ) and Outer
is a outer class then we just need to do the following :

Outer.Inner inner = new Outer.Inner();

[vipin bhatia]

No it is just like reffering to any static member of a class, for example in
class Temp
{
static i;
}
Here i can be reffered as Temp.i or temp.i where Temp temp = new Temp.

Originally posted by ashok khetan:
hi,
one query---Is it illegal to associate a static class reference with a reference of its enclosing class?( e.g. in the following code)
code:
_____________
public class top {
static class inner {
void show() {
System.out.println("show() in inner");
}
}
public static void main(String []args) {
inner i = new top().new inner();
i.show();
}
}
_____________

[anurag dwivedi]

Ashok,
It is not illegal, though not required to instantiate an outer class to access a static inner class.
I guess im not wrong.
Anurag

[Anonymous]

Anurag is right...

public class top {
    static class inner {
        void show() {
        System.out.println("show() in inner");
        }
    }
public static void main(String []args) {
    inner i = new inner(); // also compiles and runs with "top.inner i = new top().new inner();"
    i.show();
    }
}

Shyam
[This message has been edited by Shyamsundar Gururaj (edited September 12, 2001).]