What is the difference between field, variable, attribute, and property in Java POJOs?
When referring to internal private variables of Java POJOs that have getters/setters, I've used the following terms:
- field
- variable
- attribute
- property
Is there any difference between the above? If so, what is the correct term to use? Is there a different term to use when this entity is persisted?
Answer
From here: http://docs.oracle.com/javase/tutorial/information/glossary.html
field
- A data member of a class. Unless specified otherwise, a field is not static.
property
- Characteristics of an object that users can set, such as the color of a window.
attribute
- Not listed in the above glossary
variable
- An item of data named by an identifier. Each variable has a type, such as int or Object, and a scope. See also class variable, instance variable, local variable.