Is there an equivalent in Java to typedefs in C/C++?

We can find that Java and C/C programming languages ​​have many similarities in syntax and functionality. However, some features such as "typedef" are omitted in Java. If you are coming from a C/C background you must have heard of the “typedef” keyword and often wondered if there is anything equivalent to typedef in Java? Simply put, Java does not provide a direct equivalent to typedef. The creators of Java replaced this functionality with classes. In fact, classes do even more than typedefs do.

Replace C/C typedef in Java?

Before exploring the answer to the given question, let’s discuss what typedef is in C/C and how to use it in a program.

typedef in C/C

In C/C, "typedef" stands for type definition, which is a way to define custom names for predefined data types. This can make our code more readable and expressive, especially when dealing with complex types such as pointers or structures.

grammar

typedef nameOfdatatype newNameofDatatype;

Example

typedef float new_float;

Example

The following example illustrates how to use "typedef" in a C program.

#include <iostream>
using namespace std;
int main() {
   cout << "Example of typedef in C++!!" << endl; 
   typedef float new_float; // using typedef keyword 
   new_float marksPer = 80.08; // initializing typedef datatype
   // printing the result
   cout << "Percentage: " << marksPer << endl; 
   return 0;
}

Output

Example of typedef in C++!!
Percentage: 80.08

Replacement of typedef in Java

As mentioned before, Java does not have any direct method or method similar to C/C typedef. However, there is a possible way to achieve its functionality by using Java's classes and objects.

Classes and Objects

Classes and objects exist at the core of the Java programming language. The basic purpose of classes is to define new data types that contain user-defined variables and methods. Once defined, this new data type can be used to create objects of that type. Objects can be defined as instances of classes. A class does not occupy any memory when it is created, only objects of the class occupy memory. One of the benefits of using classes over typedefs is that classes provide the freedom to change the representation over time.

From the above discussion, we can clearly conclude that classes and objects can complete all operations that "typedef" can complete. Perhaps, we are unfairly comparing classes and objects to typedefs because they provide more functionality than typedefs.

Class syntax

class nameOfClass {
   // your code here
}

Object syntax

nameOfclass nameOfinstance = new nameOfclass(); 

Example

The following examples illustrate how to use classes and objects in Java programs.

public class Class1 { // defining a class
   // member variable
   double marks = 78.3;
   // member method
   void shw() {
      System.out.println("Given Marks: " + marks);
   } 
   public static void main(String []args) {
      System.out.println("Example of class and object");
      // creating object of the class
      Class1 obj = new Class1();
      // calling the method using object
      obj.shw();
   }
}

Output

Example of class and object
Given Marks: 78.3

in conclusion

In this article, we first learned the basics of "typedef", which is used to assign new names to predefined data types. We then tried to find possible ways to perform similar tasks in Java. There is no direct equivalent in Java to C/C's typedefs, but we can use classes as its alternative because it provides a lot of functionality, including the functionality provided by typedefs.

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