Welcome to the Treehouse Community

Want to collaborate on code errors? Have bugs you need feedback on? Looking for an extra set of eyes on your latest project? Get support with fellow developers, designers, and programmers of all backgrounds and skill levels here with the Treehouse Community! While you're at it, check out some resources Treehouse students have shared here.

Looking to learn something new?

Treehouse offers a seven day free trial for new students. Get access to thousands of hours of content and join thousands of Treehouse students and alumni in the community today.

Start your free trial

Java Java Objects Meet Objects Final

Posted by Andrei Li
Andrei Li
34,475 Points

You can declare a final variable and later initialize it. How is that possible? What is an example of that?

So, my logic is that if it's final it should be final. What command do we use later initialize that variable? And what are the cases when we cannont assign a new literal to a variable? Thank you for a help!

2 Answers

Pedro Cabral
Pedro Cabral
33,586 Points

Your logic is correct final is final BUT only from the moment a value gets assigned. And that moment can be in place:

public static final int MY_VAR = 3;

or later with something like:

public static final int MY_VAR;

and then inside the constructor for example:

MY_VAR = someConstructorArgValue;

In the top example it gets assigned straight away, in the bottom it gets assigned later on, BUT in both cases they can no longer be changed.

Hope it helped

Andrei Li
Andrei Li
34,475 Points
Andrei Li
Andrei Li
34,475 Points

Thank you, Pedro!