Java Interview Frequently Asked Questions & Answers (S1P1)

What is the difference between an Interface and an Abstract class?

          An abstract class can have instance methods that implement a default behavior. An Interface can only declare constants and instance methods, but cannot implement default behavior and all methods are implicitly abstract. An interface has all public members and no implementation. An abstract class is a class which may have the usual flavors of class members (private, protected, etc.), but has some abstract methods.

What is the purpose of garbage collection in Java, and when is it used?

          The purpose of garbage collection is to identify and discard objects that are no longer needed by a program so that their resources can be reclaimed and reused. A Java object is subject to garbage collection when it becomes unreachable to the program in which it is used.

Describe synchronization in respect to multithreading.

          With respect to multithreading, synchronization is the capability to control the access of multiple threads to shared resources. Without synchronization, it is possible for one thread to modify a shared variable while another thread is in the process of using or updating same shared variable. This usually leads to significant errors.

Explain different way of using thread?

          The thread could be implemented by using runable interface or by inheriting from the Thread class. The former is more advantageous, because when you are going for multiple inheritance, the only interface can help.

What are pass by reference and pass by value?

          Pass By Reference means the passing the address itself rather than passing the value. Pass by Value means passing a copy of the value to be passed.

What is HashMap and Map?

          Map is Interface and Hashmap is class that implements that.

Difference between HashMap and HashTable?

          The HashMap class is roughly equivalent to Hashtable, except that it is unsynchronized and permits nulls. (HashMap allows null values as key and value whereas Hashtable does not allow). HashMap does not guarantee that the order of the map will remain constant over time. HashMap is unsynchronized and Hashtable is synchronized.

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