When to use get/set Methods in java [duplicate]

Question

I want to know when to use get and set methods(getName,setName ) in my class and when simple classVariable.name = "" instead а = classVariable.getName()

Here is example of class using set and get methods

public class ClassExampe {      String name;     String course;      public String getName ( )     {         return name;     }      public void setName (String studentName)     {         name = studentName;                }      public String getCourse ( )     {         return course;     }      public void setCourse (String studentCourse)     {         course = studentCourse;     } } 

Thanks

Answer 1

Using Getters / Setters vs using Fields

As a rule of thumb:

use the variables directly from the same class (actually from the same .java file, so inner classes are ok too), use Getters / Setters from other classes.

Answer 2

The simple rule is: never use direct access (except, of course, when referring to them from inside the class).

• field access can't be proxied
• you may want to have some event notification
• you may want to guard against race conditions
• expression languages support setters and getters
• theoretically this breaks encapsulation. (If we are pedantic, setter and getter for all fields also breaks encapsulation though)
• you may want to perform some extra logic inside the setter or getter, but that is rarely advisable, since consumers expect this to follow the convention - i.e. being a simple getter/setter.
• you can specify only a setter or only a getter, thus achieving read-only, or write-only access.

Even if this does not happen that you need any of these, it is not unlikely. And if you start with field access, it will be harder to change.