Thread: how to import/ access classes created in one package in another package

my working directory is e:\ajava. in package p1 i create two classes c1 and c2. net beans creates three files e:\ajava\p1\src\p1, e:\ajava\p1\src\c1, e:\ajava\p1\src\c2. package runs without a hitch. i create another package p2 under e:\ajava. i want to use class c1 in p2. pray what on earth should be my import statement in the p2 source code after the first statement 'package p2'. another related querry what should i include in my class path so as to gain access to c1 and c2 in source code of p2. thanks in advance. ydandurkar

Since ajava is the workspace directory, use:

import p1.*; //to import both c1 and c2, or
import p1.c1;
import p1.c2;

Aceix.

dear aceix, tried this many times. it does not work.

Just a short paragraph, but I find it quite hard to read due to lack of capitalisation. Please review Capitalization | Punctuation Rules and write with proper capitalisation.

Rewriting the first part of the post,

"My working directory is e:\ajava. In package p1 I create two classes, c1 and c2. NetBeans creates three files:

1. e:\ajava\p1\src\p1
2. e:\ajava\p1\src\c1
3. e:\ajava\p1\src\c2

Package runs without a hitch."

This doesn't sound right. NetBeans is project-based. Its directory structure is thus

working_dir\project_name\src\package_name\class_name.java

(This is at least the way it is with my copy of NetBeans 7.4.)

Therefore based on the above there is a project called "p1", as well as a package (confusingly) called "p1". Classes c1 and c2 are located in the default package, and not in package p1.

Continuing on this,

"I create another package p2 under e:\ajava."

Is "p2" a package or a project?

If the resultant directory structure is "e:\ajava\p2\src", then p2 is a project.

If the directory structure is "e:\ajava\p1\src\p2", then p2 is a package within project p1.

The answer to the questions on import statement and classpath depends on the clarification of "p2".

dear jashburn, thanks a lot for your detailed comments. sorry for the delay in responding. i was away on assignment. hence i am responding before i reconcile to your remarks. i shall come back to you.

Dear Jashburn, I shall be more accurate this time and avoid simplification efforts.

From NetBeans 7.4 menu File-New Project I created a project with Project Name peft1 and Project Location e:\ajava. It created package peft1 and class Peft1. I added two more classes Point and Edge to package peft1. So I have Projects tab in the IDE showing me peft1-Source Packages-peft1 containing three files Edge.java, Peft1.java, Point.java. And I can also see these three files in the folder E:\ajava\peft1\src\peft1. program works.

Now I create another project peft2 with Project Name peft2 and Project Location e:\ajava. I wish to use classes Point and Edge created in project and/or package. The first statement in this is 'package peft2;' I am not able to import Point and and Edge classes in peft1. what should be my import statement?

I have got around the problem by adding project peft1 to Libraries in project peft2 using Add Project menu. peft1-dist/peft1.jar appears along with JDK 1.7 (Default) in Libraries. Then I can simply write 'import peft1.* and use class Point. But this is not what importing is supposed to mean. At least that is my understanding right now. Request clarify.

I hope I have been clear. ydandurkar

Your question is clear this time. Well done.

What you've done by importing project peft1 into project peft2 as a library is actually the right thing to do. This is because Netbeans allows multiple projects to be worked on at the same time without letting code in each of the projects interfere with each other. You can effectively treat code in each of the projects as separate applications.

Java import statements by default work within a project. In order for it to work across projects, you have to import the other project as a library before code in the other project (peft2) becomes visible to this project (peft1).

Note that you can have multiple packages within a project. This means there's nothing stopping you from creating package peft2 inside project peft1. Code under package peft1 can then access code under package peft2 using the import statement as both packages now belong to the same application (by virtue of being in the same project.)

I think the main source of confusion here is, as I've mentioned before, both project and package having the same name, e.g., peft1. Projects are Netbeans artifacts, whereas packages are Java artifacts. If you write your Java code using a plain text editor, the concept of "projects" does not exist.

I don't know why would package peft1 be created when you create project peft1. Maybe it's a Netbeans setting that causes this to happen. In my copy of Netbeans when I create a new project, it will only contain the default (no name) package. I will then have to manually create any other packages myself, and to avoid the confusion, I wouldn't create a package that has the same name as the project.

Dear Jashburn, thanks a lot.
You have been a real guru. Very precise and a very fast advise.
I have a lot to learn from you. Thanks again.
yd andurkar