Cannot find symbol error when compiling in different packages

Question

Hey all,
I'm trying to divide my project into a sensible hierarchy. This is what I want:
MyProject
MyProject/src ................................. where all the source files are (no further directories)
MyProject/classes
MyProject/classes/Main.class
MyProject/classes/classes2 ................ sorry for not being creative XD
MyProject/classes/classes2/Age.classNow, Age uses Main, and this is where the trouble is. I'm using javac directly to compile Age, and this is how I'm doing it:
//from MyProject
javac -cp classes src/Age.javaAnd I get this error:
bla bla bla...cannot find symbol
symbol  : variable Main
location: class classes2.Age
          years = (byte)(Main.year - m.getYear());
                         ^Main is already compiled and in place.
Also, this is how Age.java starts:
package classes2;
public class Age
{...etcI'm using JCreator as an IDE (and using it's own build function, the same error occurs, which is why I tried directly compiling the file).
Why can't javac find Main.class? I tried searching Google, but my particular problem didn't seem to crop up.
Hope I provided enough information, and ask if more is needed.
Many thanks :)

Answer 1

If Main is not in a package (which it appears not to be), then it cannot be referenced by any class that is in a package. If Main is in a package, then you'll need to refer to it by it's fully-qualified name (or import it as such) if it's not in the same package as the class that's referring to it, and Main.class will have to be in a directory that corresponds to its package.
Also, though the compiler may not require it, your source code directory structure should match your package hierarchy.