private
visibility allows a variable to only be accessed by its class. They are often used in conjunction with public
getters and setters.
class SomeClass {
private int variable;
public int getVariable() {
return variable;
}
public void setVariable(int variable) {
this.variable = variable;
}
}
public class SomeOtherClass {
public static void main(String[] args) {
SomeClass sc = new SomeClass();
// These statement won't compile because SomeClass#variable is private:
sc.variable = 7;
System.out.println(sc.variable);
// Instead, you should use the public getter and setter:
sc.setVariable(7);
System.out.println(sc.getVariable());
}
}