Java Package Private

Java package private

Created By: chatGPT

In Java, package-private is a default access modifier that allows classes, methods, and variables to be accessible only within their own package. This means that other classes in the same package can access these members, but classes in different packages cannot. If you don't specify any access modifier, the member is package-private by default.

class MyClass {
    void display() {
        System.out.println("Hello, Package-Private!");
    }
}

To understand package-private better, let’s create two classes in the same package and one in a different package. The first class will have a package-private method called showMessage(). Then, we'll create a second class in the same package to access this method, and a third class in a different package to try accessing it, which will fail.

package com.example;

class PackagePrivateClass {
    void showMessage() {
        System.out.println("Package-Private Method Accessed!");
    }
}

class SamePackage {
    public static void main(String[] args) {
        PackagePrivateClass obj = new PackagePrivateClass();
        obj.showMessage(); // This works
    }
}

// In a different package, this would fail
package com.another;

import com.example.PackagePrivateClass;

class DifferentPackage {
    public static void main(String[] args) {
        PackagePrivateClass obj = new PackagePrivateClass();
        // obj.showMessage(); // This will cause a compile-time error
    }
}

Important Note: If you want to restrict access even further, you can use the private modifier, which restricts access to the containing class only. Conversely, if you want classes from other packages to access a member, you can use the public modifier.

class AnotherClass {
    // This method is private and accessible only within AnotherClass
    private void myPrivateMethod() {
        System.out.println("I am private!");
    }

    public void myPublicMethod() {
        System.out.println("I am public!");
    }
}