From developing websites to top-notch applications, Java plays a key role!
There are certain essential topics that every java aspirant should know. One such topic is; inheritance in java.
This is a crucial java topic which comes under object oriented programming. Just like a child inherits traits from his parents, inheritance in programming is a concept where one class acquires the properties of the other class.
The concept of inheritance can use the parent class methods alongside their properties that are inherited from the existing class.
Though when it comes to the types of inheritance, you can study single inheritance, multiple inheritance, hybrid inheritance in Java among others!
Do you want to know about these inheritances in-depth?
If yes, you are on the right blog post!
What is Inheritance?
Inheritance forms a key concept in the highly popular java language. It is touted as the mechanism where the property of one class is acquired from that of the other class.
It is a critical feature of object-oriented programming wherein the properties of one object are acquired by its parent. There will be the reusability of codes when the sub classes are derived from their parent or super class.
Different terms used in inheritance
If you are getting inside inheritance, you can take help of different terms to be well-equipped with its knowledge:
Class: Class is defined as the collection of objects with common properties
Sub-class : This class is generally inherited from the base class. It is also known as the child class.
Base Class: Also called the super class, this class has derived some inherited features. It is also known as the parent class
Reusability: It can reuse the repeated codes in a program. This will be the mechanism to reuse the existing codes while creating any new class
Why use java inheritance?
There are several reasons as why the concept of inheritance is applied in java programming:
- The capability of inheritance to easily express varied relationships will ensure its closeness or proximity with the real-life problems
- In the idea of reusability, it has classes which derive the new class from an existing one to add some new features without the modification of the parent class. There will not be any need to rewrite your parent class in order to inherit it
- One reason behind the logic is its transitive nature. As if the class A is inheriting the properties of another sub-class B, this property will be of transitive nature
Types of Inheritance in Java
There are mainly five types of inheritances when it comes to java. This classification is done on the basis of superclass and related classes. Though, there is also the multiple inheritance which is not supported by classes but uses inferences instead of it.
Single level inheritance
As suggested by the name, this type of inheritance occurs in java with only a single class. In such an inheritance, there will be only one class that gets derived from the parent class.
As in this kind of inheritance, the properties are derived only from the base class, the reusability of the codes are facilitated with some additional features of the classes.
Let’s look at the figure below:
Class A
↓
Class B
There are two classes given; class A and class B. In this type of inheritance, class B will inherit all the properties from class A in the said fashion.
Multi level inheritance
In this type of inheritance, there is involvement of two or more than two classes. One class can inherit features from the parent class and its newly created sub-class will become the base class from the other class.
In this category, there will be the involvement of the multiple base classes. The inherited features from the multiple classes will be derived from its base class and from the other newly derived class.
Class A
↓
Class B
↓
Class C
As shown in the above figure, class B is derived from the class A which is further creating the class C
Hierarchical Inheritance
In this type of inheritance, there are several subclasses which have inherited from the one class and are known as the hierarchical inheritance.
Thi kind of inheritance is generally the combination of one or more than one type of inheritance in the data. Though, it is different from the multilevel inheritance as certain multiple classes in this case are derived from the superclass.
The newly derived classes may have derived from one subclass. All these newly derived classes may inherit the features or methods from one superclass. The process will also facilitate your code’s reusability alongside dynamic polymorphism which is an overriding method.
Other than the above-mentioned types of inheritance, there are also multiple inheritance and the hybrid inheritance which are not supported by the classes and will be achieved only with the help of interfaces.
Multiple inheritance
It is a kind of inheritance in which the subclass may inherit the features of more than one parent class. Though, this type of inheritance should not be confused with the mult-level inheritance as in this case
This newly derived class will inherit all the features from its superclass. Though, in java, this kind of inheritance is basically achieved with the help of inferences.
Hybrid Inheritance
Hybrid inheritance is an inheritance which is the combination of both single and multiple inheritance. This kind of inheritance can only be achieved through inferences. It is generally the combination of simple, multiple or hierarchical inheritance.
Decision Making Statement in Java
Another essential programming concept is the Decision Making Statements in java
. These statements help you to decide the order of executing a certain level of statements in the program. You can set a given condition to tell the compiler on what particular action need to be taken if that condition is met or satisfied.
Wrapping up
From single level inheritance to multiple inheritance to hybrid inheritance in Java, we have learned about certain types of inheritances.
Keep filling your information with such good techniques and ace in computer fundamentals!