Raw Types and Legacy Code : Generics Basics « Generics « Java Tutorial






To handle the transition to generics, Java allows a generic class to be used without any type arguments. This creates a raw type for the class.

// Demonstrate a raw type.
class Gen<T> { 
  T ob;
   
  Gen(T o) { 
    ob = o; 
  } 
 
  T getob() { 
    return ob; 
  } 
} 
 
public class MainClass { 
  public static void main(String args[]) { 
    Gen<Integer> iOb = new Gen<Integer>(88); 
    Gen<String> strOb = new Gen<String>("Generics Test"); 
 
    Gen raw = new Gen(new Double(98.6));

    // Cast here is necessary because type is unknown.
    double d = (Double) raw.getob();
    System.out.println("value: " + d);

    strOb = raw; // OK, but potentially wrong
    String str = strOb.getob();  
  
  // This assignment also overrides type safety.
  raw = iOb; // OK, but potentially wrong
  d = (Double) raw.getob(); 
    
  } 
}
Exception in thread "main" value: 98.6
java.lang.ClassCastException: java.lang.Double
  at MainClass.main(MainClass.java:26)








12.1.Generics Basics
12.1.1.Life without Generics
12.1.2.What Are Generics? A Simple Generics Example
12.1.3.Generics Work Only with Objects
12.1.4.A Generic Class with Two Type Parameters
12.1.5.Introducing Generic Types
12.1.6.Working with generic List
12.1.7.Nested generic type
12.1.8.A generic type can accept more than one type variables.
12.1.9.Raw Types and Legacy Code