Java 17
the cool new features since Java 11
Copyright © Seán Kennedy
Java 17
• Java 17 is a Long Term Support (LTS) release.
• https://openjdk.org/projects/jdk/17/
• Topics:
• sealed classes.
• records.
• switch expressions and pattern matching.
• text blocks
• Assignment
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Sealed classes
• Inheritance enables any class to inherit from any other class.
• Making a class final prevents any class from inheriting from
that class i.e. the final class cannot become a super type at all.
• What if you wanted your class to be available for
inheritance but only to certain classes?
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Sealed classes
• Sealed classes enable us to control the scope of inheritance
by enabling us to specify a classes’ subtypes.
• Also works with interfaces (we can define what classes
implement the interface).
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Records
• Records are a special type of class that help avoid
boilerplate code. They are considered “data carriers”.
• Records are immutable and are final by default.
• You cannot extend your custom record because records
already (implicitly) extend from the Record class. This is
similar to enums (which implicitly extend from Enum).
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Records
• Records can have both static fields and static methods.
• Records can have instance methods.
• Records cannot have instance fields. All the instance fields
are listed as “components” in the record declaration.
• Records can implement interfaces.
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Records
• Records are specified using a record declaration where you
specify the “components” of the record.
• Implicitly generated are:
• canonical constructor
• toString() - the string representation of all the record class's
components, with their names.
• equals() and hashCode() - which specify that two record classes are
equal if they are of the same type and contain equal component values
• public accessor methods with the same name as the components.
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Records
• You can override all the default implementations. This
includes the canonical constructor (perhaps for data
validation).
• Compact constructor is a concise variation of the
canonical constructor and is specific to records. 8
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Pattern-matching switch statements
• The switch statement has undergone several changes over the
years.
• switch expressions were introduced as a “preview feature” in
Java 12 and became permanent in Java 14.
• a “preview feature” is a feature that is designed and implemented
but not yet permanent (and may never be); it allows a large
developer audience to test out the feature before committing
to it.
• yield statement introduced in Java 13 to support switch
expressions.
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Pattern-matching switch statements
• This is a “preview feature” in Java 17.
• Preview features are, by default disabled so you must
explicitly enable them.
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Text Blocks
• A text block is a String object and as a result, shares the same
properties as String objects (immutable and interned).
• you can call String methods on a text block.
• A text block begins with three double-quote characters
followed by newline i.e.
• text blocks cannot be put on one line
• the text of a text block cannot follow the
• Example:
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Text Blocks
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Text Blocks
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Text Blocks
• In String literals, embedded quotes must be escaped. This is
not the case with text blocks.
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Text Blocks
• Depending on where you place the closing delimiter (the three
double quotes), determines whether or not you have a closing “\n”.
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Text Blocks
• Spacing is determined by the closing delimiter position or the
first non-space character, whichever is encountered first.
• All spaces (known as incidental spaces) leading up to that
position, are stripped from all lines in the text block.
• Note that, the above algorithm only works, if the closing
delimiter is on a line of it’s own.
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