top level class access modifier woes

[Tom House]

I don't understand why it 'doesn't make sense' to modify a top level class with the protected access modifier.

why does it make sense for classes to be accessible to other classes in the same package only (default) but not to other classes in the same package and subclasses in other packages (protected)?

can somebody please explain?

[Murali Kakarla]

Yes I also face this dilemma whenever I read this statement. Can some one please explain?

Murali...
SCJP5

[Sandeep Bhandari]

Originally posted by Tom House:
I don't understand why it 'doesn't make sense' to modify a top level class with the protected access modifier.

why does it make sense for classes to be accessible to other classes in the same package only (default) but not to other classes in the same package and subclasses in other packages (protected)?

can somebody please explain?

Be careful with that statement.
but not to other classes in the same package and subclasses in other packages (protected)?

Ok suppose Java allows top level class to be protected. What will you use it for. It becomes public access modifier only.

If suppose you make a class as protected then only the classes that subclass this class will be able to use it which in turn means that this class has to be public so that any class in any other package can see it and hence subclass it.

Think deeply man, its a thin difference!!!

[Tom House]

Originally posted by Sandeep Bhandari:
[QB]
Ok suppose Java allows top level class to be protected. What will you use it for. It becomes public access modifier only.

If suppose you make a class as protected then only the classes that subclass this class will be able to use it which in turn means that this class has to be public so that any class in any other package can see it and hence subclass it.
QB]

whoa whoa whoa - wait a minute.... if a top level class was protected and subclassed by another protected (or public or default) class in another package, then why couldn't the classes in that other package access the subclass? Isn't that a design decision that would have to be made if protected top level classes were allowed?

on a related topic - how much wood could a woodchuck .......?

[Tom House]

Originally posted by Tom House:


whoa whoa whoa - wait a minute.... if a top level class was protected and subclassed by another protected (or public or default) class in another package, then why couldn't the classes in that other package access the subclass? Isn't that a design decision that would have to be made if protected top level classes were allowed?

ok - wait, a light might be donning here. if a protected class was subclassed into a new package then the subclass would be able to access it but nothing else would be able to access the subclass because the original class maintains it's protected status from it's original package - is that right?

What about a protected class with only private members? that could work right?