Are there any Java method ordering conventions?

java methods conventions
fredley picture fredley · Jan 12, 2011 · Viewed 104.2k times · Source

I've got a large-ish class (40 or so methods) that is part of a package I will be submitting as course-work. Currently, the methods are pretty jumbled up in terms of utility public/private etc. and I want to order them in a sensible way. Is there a standard way of doing this? E.g. normally fields are listed before methods, the constructor(s) are listed before other methods, and getters/setters last; what about the remaining methods?

Answer

Jon Skeet picture Jon Skeet · Jan 12, 2011

Some conventions list all the public methods first, and then all the private ones - that means it's easy to separate the API from the implementation, even when there's no interface involved, if you see what I mean.

Another idea is to group related methods together - this makes it easier to spot seams where you could split your existing large class into several smaller, more targeted ones.

Related questions

Is Java "pass-by-reference" or "pass-by-value"?

I always thought Java uses pass-by-reference. However, I've seen a couple of blog posts (for example, this blog) that claim that it isn't (the blog post says that Java uses pass-by-value). I don't think I understand the distinction they're making. …

Read More
Does Java support default parameter values?

I came across some Java code that had the following structure: public MyParameterizedFunction(String param1, int param2) { this(param1, param2, false); } public MyParameterizedFunction(String param1, int param2, boolean param3) { //use all three parameters here } I know that in C++ I …

Read More
What does 'public static void' mean in Java?

What does public static void mean in Java? I'm in the process of learning. In all the examples in the book I'm working from public static void comes before any method that is being used or created. What does this …

Read More