What you call this

Question

If i have 2 seprate classes in two different packages
package in;
public class Animal {
public Animal() {
//accessible only throw inhertance or throw the dot operator if the accessing class is in the same package
protected void eat()
System.out.println("animal");
package out;
public class Horse extends in.Animal {
public Horse() {
* Override the protected method eat
protected void eat()
System.out.println("horse");
package in;
import out.Horse;
public class BarnHorse
public BarnHorse()
Animal a=new Horse();
//calling polymorphiclly the eat method in the horse class
a.eat();
the code compiles fine and calles the Horse version of eat and outputs "horse" although the calling class shouldn't know anything about the Horse eat version.

Answer 1

SunFred wrote:
GONO wrote:
the eat() in the horse class is protected this means that only classes inside the package or classes that inherits the horse class could access this methodWrong. protected means only the class itself and subclasses. "Classes inside the package" is the default access modifier.No, he was right.
Protected is the declaring class, subclasses of the declaring class, and classes in the same package as the declaring class. Else the code woudn't have compiled.
[JLS 6.6.1 Determining Accessibility|http://java.sun.com/docs/books/jls/third_edition/html/names.html#6.6.1]:
Otherwise, if the member or constructor is declared protected, then access is permitted only when one of the following is true:
Access to the member or constructor occurs from within the package containing the class in which the protected member or constructor is declared.
Access is correct as described in �6.6.2.