Java Practices -> Constructors in general

Constructors in general

Constructors:

if super or this are called, they can only be called on the first line of the constructor
an exception can be thrown if a parameter is invalid
you should ensure that the constructed object is in a valid state
constructors should never call an overridable method (an overridable method is one which is neither private, static, nor final)
constructors are never synchronized
constructors can create thread objects, but the thread should not be started within a constructor
constructors shouldn't pass a this reference to other objects
constructors can be private, in order to restrict construction

Note that a conventional distinction is made in Java between the "default constructor" and a "no-argument constructor":

the default constructor is the constructor provided by the system in the absence of any constructor provided by the programmer. Once a programmer supplies any constructor whatsoever, the default constructor is no longer supplied.
a no-argument constructor, on the other hand, is a constructor provided by the programmer which takes no arguments.

This distinction is necessary because the behavior of the two kinds of constructor are unrelated: a default constructor has a fixed behavior defined by Java, while the behavior of a no-argument constructor is defined by the application programmer.

Example

Resto is an immutable class, since its state cannot change after construction. Note that:

all validation is performed in its constructor
almost all of its javadoc is concerned with stating precisely what is to be passed to the constructor


package hirondelle.fish.main.resto;

import hirondelle.web4j.model.ModelCtorException;
import hirondelle.web4j.model.ModelUtil;
import hirondelle.web4j.model.Id;
import hirondelle.web4j.security.SafeText;
import hirondelle.web4j.model.Decimal;
import static hirondelle.web4j.model.Decimal.ZERO;
import hirondelle.web4j.model.Check;
import hirondelle.web4j.model.Validator;
import static hirondelle.web4j.util.Consts.FAILS;

/** Model Object for a Restaurant. */
public final class Resto {

  /**
   Full constructor.
    
   @param aId underlying database internal identifier (optional) 1..50 characters
   @param aName of the restaurant (required), 2..50 characters
   @param aLocation street address of the restaurant (optional), 2..50 characters
   @param aPrice of the fish and chips meal (optional) $0.00..$100.00
   @param aComment on the restaurant in general (optional) 2..50 characters
  */
  public Resto(
    Id aId, SafeText aName, SafeText aLocation, Decimal aPrice, SafeText aComment
  ) throws ModelCtorException {
    fId = aId;
    fName = aName;
    fLocation = aLocation;
    fPrice = aPrice;
    fComment = aComment;
    validateState();
  }
  
  public Id getId() { return fId; }
  public SafeText getName() {  return fName; }
  public SafeText getLocation() {  return fLocation;  }
  public Decimal getPrice() { return fPrice; }
  public SafeText getComment() {  return fComment; }

  @Override public String toString(){
    return ModelUtil.toStringFor(this);
  }
  
  @Override public  boolean equals(Object aThat){
    Boolean result = ModelUtil.quickEquals(this, aThat);
    if (result ==  null) {
      Resto that = (Resto) aThat;
      result = ModelUtil.equalsFor(
        this.getSignificantFields(), that.getSignificantFields()
      );
    }
    return result;
  }
  
  @Override public int hashCode(){
    if (fHashCode == 0){
      fHashCode = ModelUtil.hashCodeFor(getSignificantFields());
    }
    return fHashCode;
  }
  
  // PRIVATE 
  private final Id fId;
  private final SafeText fName;
  private final SafeText fLocation;
  private final Decimal fPrice;
  private final SafeText fComment;
  private int fHashCode;
  
  private static final Decimal HUNDRED = Decimal.from("100");

  private void validateState() throws ModelCtorException {
    ModelCtorException ex = new ModelCtorException();
    if (FAILS == Check.optional(fId, Check.range(1,50))) {
      ex.add("Id is optional, 1..50 chars.");
    }
    if (FAILS == Check.required(fName, Check.range(2,50))) {
      ex.add("Restaurant Name is required, 2..50 chars.");
    }
    if (FAILS == Check.optional(fLocation, Check.range(2,50))) {
      ex.add("Location is optional, 2..50 chars.");
    }
    Validator[] priceChecks = {Check.range(ZERO, HUNDRED), Check.numDecimalsAlways(2)};
    if (FAILS == Check.optional(fPrice, priceChecks)) {
      ex.add("Price is optional, 0.00 to 100.00.");
    }
    if (FAILS == Check.optional(fComment, Check.range(2,50))) {
      ex.add("Comment is optional, 2..50 chars.");
    }
    if ( ! ex.isEmpty() ) throw ex;
  }
  
  private Object[] getSignificantFields(){
    return new Object[] {fName, fLocation, fPrice, fComment};
  }
}