Question about "Getting in Touch with your Inner Class "

[Ravi Anamalay]

Hi All,
I'm new to this site and Java and apologise if this isn't the correct forum to post this.
In the article "Getting in Touch with your Inner Class ", I refer to a line of code that the author says can be used to "instantiate both the outer class and inner class at the same time":
Inner i = new Outer().new Inner();
My question is :
Does this really work ? I've tried this and get a compile error:
TestMe.java:33: Class Inner not found in type declaration.
Inner i = new Outer().new Inner();
^
1 error
Is this related to the version of Java I'm using ?
Thanks in advance.
Ravi..

[Thomas Paul]

It should be Outer.Inner i = new Outer().new Inner();

[Marilyn de Queiroz]

It depends on where you instantiate it.

class Outer
{
    private int size ;
    private String thoughts = "My outer thoughts";
    class Inner
    {
        String innerThoughts = "My inner thoughts";
        void doStuff()
        {
            // inner object has its own "this" 
            System.out.println( innerThoughts );
            // and it also has a kind of "outer this"
            // even for private data of outer class
            System.out.println( thoughts );
        }
    }
    
    public static void main( String args[] )
    {
        // In this example, you don't even keep a     
        // reference to the outer object... only 
        // the inner object, 'i'. The inner object
        // 'i' still knows its outer object... 
        // its "outer this".
        [B]Inner i = new Outer().new Inner();[/B]
        i.doStuff();
    }
    
}
  

[ April 23, 2003: Message edited by: Marilyn de Queiroz ]

[Marilyn de Queiroz]

By the way, Ravi, your display name does not conform to the JavaRanch Naming Policy. Although that does not matter in this forum, if you post in the other forums, you will be requested to change it. Thanks.

[Ravi Anamalay]

Hi Marilyn,
I've changed my display name - I should show up as "Ravi Varman" and not "Ravi A". Sorry about that - I should have read the naming policy more carefully.
Secondly, thanks for clearing up the question I had about instantiating inner classes.

[Marilyn de Queiroz]

Thanks, Ravi, and you're welcome.