garbage collection

[aruna ver]

hi
in the following code
1. class myclass
2.{
3. public static void main(String [] args){
4. object c1 = new object();
5. object c2 = new object();
6. c2=c1
7. c1=null;
8. c2=null
9.
}}

where can gc be ivoked at the earliest? is it after line 7 or 8 ?i feel after line 7 but answer given is 8

[John Paverd]

The strict answer to the question is that the garbage collector could be invoked at any time by the JVM.
I think that the question should be: What is the first line after which an object created in main is eligible for garbage collection? (I'm also assuming that object is a valid class defined elsewhere.)
The answer I would give is "After line 6", because after line 6, the object created in line 5 is no longer referenced.
However, the object created in line 4 will only be eligible for garbage collection after line 8, when both variables no longer refer to it.
[ February 24, 2003: Message edited by: John Paverd ]

[Jessica Sant]

"arunabhanu"-
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