Method declaration

[geeta rai]

Is it necessary for a method to declare return type in its declaration? If not then what would be the difference between the method and the constructor of a class, the method name being the same as the class name.
Thanks.

[AnkurKumar Gupta]

hi geeta,
well for your query it is very much required in Java to declare the return type of the method in its declaration. Therefore it is mandatory, otherwise compiler would flag an error.
This is different from C where the default return type is int.
But in java there is nothing like this.
Hope this will solve your query

[Ko Ko Naing]

Originally posted by geeta rai:
Is it necessary for a method to declare return type in its declaration? If not then what would be the difference between the method and the constructor of a class, the method name being the same as the class name.
Thanks.

Oh well, I believe that in Java there is no such thing as method declaration... There is only method itself and we can call from anywhere in the class...
For return type, u can use "void" to return nothing and you may want to return from the method by using

 return ; 

Hope this helps..

[Gian Franco]

Hi Geeta,
If the method name in question differs from the classname simply
by the case of its letters it won't be a constructor, you will
therefore get a "invalid method declaration, return type required"
compile error when no return type is specified.
The constructor (which is named identically like the class)
is the only method with no return type.
Gian Franco

[Ko Ko Naing]

Originally posted by Gian Franco Casula:
The constructor (which is named identically like the class)
is the only method with no return type.

I think the constructor should not be called method...
Method should be called as method and constructor should be called as constructor... Constructor is not the method with no return type, buddy...
Should methods with no return type be with "void" keyword?
Just try to clarify some important point....

[Gian Franco]

I respect your opinion
but in the litterature I'm currently
studying at one point the constructor
is called a (special) method
(B. Eckel's Thinking in Java).
thanks for it pointing out,
Gian Franco