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What's the benefit (if there's any) of using interface only with static method? [duplicate]

I was learning through interfaces when I noticed that you can now define static and default methods in an interface.
public interface interfacesample2 {
public static void method() {
System.out.println("hello world");
}
public default void menthod3() {
System.out.println("default print");
}
}
Kindly explain the difference of the two and also if there's an example of when we would use this would be nice. A little confused on Interfaces.

Differences between static and default methods in Java 8:
1) Default methods can be overriden in implementing class, while static cannot.
2) Static method belongs only to Interface class, so you can only invoke static method on Interface class, not on class implementing this Interface, see:
public interface MyInterface {
default void defaultMethod(){
System.out.println("Default");
}
static void staticMethod(){
System.out.println("Static");
}
}
public class MyClass implements MyInterface {
public static void main(String[] args) {
MyClass.staticMethod(); //not valid - static method may be invoked on containing interface class only
MyInterface.staticMethod(); //valid
}
}
3) Both class and interface can have static methods with same names, and neither overrides other!
public class MyClass implements MyInterface {
public static void main(String[] args) {
//both are valid and have different behaviour
MyClass.staticMethod();
MyInterface.staticMethod();
}
static void staticMethod(){
System.out.println("another static..");
}
}

A static method is a method that applies to the class 'namespace', so to speak. So a static method foo of interface Interface is accessed by Interface.foo(). Note that the function call does not apply to any particular instance of the interface.
A default implementation bar on the other hand, is called by
Interface x = new ConcreteClass();
x.bar();
A static interface method cannot know about the this variable, but a default implementation can.

1. explain the difference of the two
Static interface methods are like static class methods(here they belong to Interface only). Where as the default interface methods provide default implementation of interface methods (which implementing classes may override)
But remember in case a class is implementing more than one interface with same default method signature then the implementing class needs to override the default method
You can find a simple example below (can DIY for different cases)
public class Test {
public static void main(String[] args) {
// Accessing the static member
I1.hello();
// Anonymous class Not overriding the default method
I1 t = new I1() {
#Override
public void test() {
System.out.println("Anonymous test");
}
};
t.test();
t.hello("uvw");
// Referring to class instance with overridden default method
I1 t1 = new Test2();
t1.test();
t1.hello("xyz");
}
}
interface I1 {
void test();
//static method
static void hello() {
System.out.println("hello from Interface I1");
}
// default need not to be implemented by implementing class
default void hello(String name) {
System.out.println("Hello " + name);
}
}
class Test2 implements I1 {
#Override
public void test() {
System.out.println("testing 1234...");
}
#Override
public void hello(String name) {
System.out.println("bonjour" + name);
}
}
2. when we would use this would be nice.
That depends on your problem statement. I would say Default methods are useful, if you need same implementation for a method in your specification in all the classes in that contract, Or it may be used like Adapter classes.
here is a good read: https://softwareengineering.stackexchange.com/questions/233053/why-were-default-and-static-methods-added-to-interfaces-in-java-8-when-we-alread
also below oracle doc explains default & static methods for evolving existing interfaces:
Users who have classes that implement interfaces enhanced with new
default or static methods do not have to modify or recompile them to
accommodate the additional methods.
http://docs.oracle.com/javase/tutorial/java/IandI/nogrow.html

Here is my view:
static method in interface:
You can call it directly (InterfacetA.staticMethod())
Sub-class will not be able to override.
Sub-class may have method with same name as staticMethod
default method in interface:
You can not call it directly.
Sub-class will be able to override it
Advantage:
static Method: You don't need to create separate class for utility method.
default Method: Provide the common functionality in default method.

This link has some useful insights, have listed few of them here.
default & static methods have bridged down the differences between interfaces and abstract classes.
Interface default methods:
It helps in avoiding utility classes, such as all the Collections class method can be provided in the interfaces itself.
It helps in extending interfaces without having the fear of breaking implementation classes.
Interface static methods:
They are part of interface, we can’t use it for implementation class objects.
It helps in providing security by not allowing implementation classes to override them.
Like to quote another useful reference.

As per Java14 JLS doc:
Default Method:
It is an instance method declared in an interface with the default
modifier
It can be accessed only by the instance of the implementing class
only
Its body is always represented by a block, which provides a default
implementation or behaviour for any implementing class without
overriding the method
It can never be static or private
Static Method:
It can be invoked by interface without reference to a particular
object, just like class static methods
Static method can be private
The implementing class can not access static method
Lets understand it with the help of below example code:
public interface MyInterface {
private void privateMethod() {
System.out.println("Hi, this is privateMethod");
}
private static void staticPrivateMethod() {
System.out.println("Hi, this is staticPrivateMethod");
}
static void staticMethod() {
//privateMethod(); // Non-static method cannot be referenced from a static contex
System.out.println("Hi, this is staticMethod");
staticPrivateMethod();
}
default void defaultMethod() {
System.out.println("Hi, this is defaultMethod");
}
}
public class MyInterfaceImpl implements MyInterface{
public static void main(String[] args) {
MyInterface.staticMethod();
// myInterface.staticMethod(); // Not allowed
MyInterface myInterface = new MyInterfaceImpl();
myInterface.defaultMethod();
// MyInterface.defaultMethod(); // Not allowed
}
}

According to Oracle's Javadocs: http://docs.oracle.com/javase/tutorial/java/IandI/defaultmethods.html
Default methods enable you to add new functionality to the interfaces of your libraries and ensure binary compatibility with code written for older versions of those interfaces.
A static method is a method that is associated with the class in which it is defined rather than with any object. Every instance of the class shares its static methods.
Normally, static method in interface is used as Helper methods while default method are used as a default implementation for classes that implements that interface.
Example:
interface IDemo {
//this method can be called directly from anywhere this interface is visible
static int convertStrToInt(String numStr) {
return Integer.parseInt(numStr);
}
//getNum will be implemented in a class
int getNum();
default String numAsStr() {
//this.getNum will call the class's implementation
return Integer.toString(this.getNum());
}
}

Interface default methods:
It helps in avoiding utility classes, such as all the Collections class method can be provided in the interfaces itself.
It helps in extending interfaces without having the fear of breaking implementation classes.
Interface static methods:
They are part of interface, we can’t use it for implementation class objects.
It helps in providing security by not allowing implementation classes to override them.
Now how static method providing security. Let's see an example.
interface MyInterface {
/*
* This is a default method so we need not to implement this method in the implementation classes
*/
default void newMethod() {
System.out.println("Newly added default method in Interface");
}
/*
* This is a static method. Static method in interface is similar to default method except that we cannot override them in the implementation classes. Similar to default methods, we need to implement these methods in implementation classes so we can safely add them to the existing interfaces.
*/
static void anotherNewMethod() {
System.out.println("Newly added static method in Interface");
}
/*
* Already existing public and abstract method We must need to implement this method in implementation classes.
*/
void existingMethod(String str);
}
public class Example implements MyInterface {
// implementing abstract method
public void existingMethod(String str) {
System.out.println("String is: " + str);
}
public void newMethod() {
System.out.println("Newly added default method in Class");
}
static void anotherNewMethod() {
System.out.println("Newly added static method in Class");
}
public static void main(String[] args) {
Example obj = new Example();
// calling the default method of class
obj.newMethod();
// calling the static method of class
obj.anotherNewMethod();
// calling the static method of interface
MyInterface.anotherNewMethod();
// calling the abstract method of interface
obj.existingMethod("Java 8 is easy to learn");
}
}
Here obj.newMethod(); printing class implementation logic, means we can change the logic of that method inside implementation class.
But obj.anotherNewMethod(); printing class implementation logic ,but not changed interface implementation. So if any encryption-decryption logic written inside that method you can't change.

we cannot execute Interfacesample2.menthod3(); because it is not static method. In order to execute method3() we need an instance of Interfacesample2 interface.
Please find the following practical example:
public class Java8Tester {
public static void main(String args[]){
// Interfacesample2.menthod3(); Cannot make a static reference to the non-static method menthod3 from the type Interfacesample2
new Interfacesample2(){ }.menthod3();// so in order to call default method we need an instance of interface
Interfacesample2.method(); // it
}
}
interface Interfacesample2 {
public static void method() {
System.out.println("hello world");
}
public default void menthod3() {
System.out.println("default print");
}
}

Starting Java 8 interface can also have static method. Like static method of a class, static method of an interface can be called using Interface name.
Example
public interface Calculator {
int add(int a, int b);
int subtract(int a, int b);
default int multiply(int a, int b) {
throw new RuntimeException("Operation not supported. Upgrade to UltimateCalculator");
}
static void display(String value) {
System.out.println(value);
}
}
Difference between static and default method of interface is default method supports inheritance but static method does not. Default method can be overridden in inheriting interface.
Here is good read about interface default method and static method. Interface Default Method in Java 8

All good answers here. I would like to add another practical usage of the static function in the interface. The tip is coming from the book - Effective Java, 3rd Edition by Joshua Bloch in Chapter2: Creating and Destroying Object.
Static functions can be used for static factory methods.
Static factory method are methods which return an object. They work like constructor. In specific cases, static factory method provides more readable code than using constructor.
Quoting from the book - Effective Java, 3rd Edition by Joshua Bloch
Prior to Java 8, interfaces couldn’t have static methods. By
convention, static factory methods for an interface named Type were
put in a noninstantiable companion class (Item 4) named Types.
Author gives an example of Collections where such static factory method is implemented. Checking on the code, Josh Bloch can be seen as first author of Collections class. Although Collections is a class and not interface. But the concept still applies.
For example, the Java Collections Framework has forty-five utility
implementations of its interfaces, providing unmodifiable collections,
synchronized collections, and the like. Nearly all of these
implementations are exported via static factory methods in one
noninstantiable class (java.util.Collections). The classes of the
returned objects are all nonpublic.
Further he explains that API is not only smaller, it helps with the code readability and API ease..
It is not just the bulk of the API that is reduced but the conceptual
weight: the number and difficulty of the concepts that programmers
must master in order to use the API. The programmer knows that the
returned object has precisely the API specified by its interface, so
there is no need to read additional class documentation for the
implementation class.
Here is one of the static method from java.util.Collections class:
public static <T> Collection<T> unmodifiableCollection(Collection<? extends T> c) {
return new UnmodifiableCollection<>(c);
}

Static Interface Method:
It is a static method which belongs to the interface only. We can
write implementation of this method in interface itself.
Static method can invoke only on interface class not on class.
Interface and implementing class , both can have static method with the same name without overriding each other.
It can be used as a utility method
Default Method:
It is a method with default keyword and class can override this method.
It can be invoked on interface as well as class.
We can override the default method in implementing class.
It can be used to provide common functionality in all implementing classes.
There is a link with detailed explanation. For detailed example: Default method vs static method in an interface in Java?

Should I implement all the methods present in an abstract class?

Below is the code snippet:
public abstract class MyAbstractClass {
public abstract void a();
public abstract void b();
}
public class Foo extends MyAbstractClass {
public void a() {
System.out.println("hello");
}
public void b(){
System.out.println("bye");
}
}
public class Bar extends MyAbstractClass {
public void a() {
System.out.println("hello");
}
public void delta() {
System.out.println("gamma");
}
}
There are couple of questions that I have:
Q-1 :- Should I implement ALL the methods in abstract class?
Q-2 :- Can the implementing class have its own methods?

When you extend an Interface or an Abstract class you are creating a contract of sorts with that superclass. In the contract you are saying:
"I will implement all unimplemented methods in my superclass"
If you do not, implement all the unimplemented methods, then you are breaking your contract. A way to not break your contract is make your subclass Abstract as well as a way of saying
"I have not implemented all the classes in my contract, I am going to
have my subclasses implement them".
For your class bar right now, you must implement b() or make bar an Abstract class or you are not fulfilling your contract with MyAbstractClass
The basic idea is:
Interface: None of my methods are implemented. A subclass must implement all my methods in order to implement me. (Note: I believe default interfaces have been added to Java 8 which may change this a bit)
Example:
public interface myInterface
{
//My subclasses must implement this to fulfill their contract with me
public void methodA();
//My subclasses must implement this to fulfill their contract with me
public void methodB();
}
Abstract: I may implement some of my methods, but I will also leave methods as abstract so that my subclasses must implement because they can implement those classes to suit their needs better than I can.
Example:
public abstract class myAbstractClass
{
//My subclasses must implement this to fulfill their contract with me
public abstract void methodC();
public void helloWorld()
{
System.out.println("Hello World");
}
}
Abstract classes can also extend interfaces so they can implement some of their methods. But they can also leave some of the methods unimplemented so the subclass can implement them. If you leave an interface method unimplemented, there is not need to declare it abstract, it is already in the contract.
Example:
public abstract class myAbstractClass2 implement myInterface
{
#Override
public void methodA()
{
// this fulfills part of the contract with myInterface.
// my subclasses will not need to implement this unless they want to override
// my implementation.
}
//My subclasses must implement this to fulfill their contract with me
public abstract void methodD();
}
So in essence, an abstract class doesn't have as strict a contract with it's superclass because it can delegate its methods to its subclasses.
Regular Class: (I use regular to mean non-interface, and non-abstract). I must implement all unimplemented methods from all of my superclasses. These classes have a binding contract.
Example:
public class mySubClass extends myAbstractClass2
{
#Override
public void methodB()
{
//must be implemented to fulfill contract with myInterface
}
#Override
public void methodD()
{
//must be implemented to fulfill contract with myAbstractClass2
}
public void myMethod()
{
//This is a method specifically for mySubClass.
}
}

Q-1:- Should I implement all methods in abstract class?
Yes, you must implement all abstract methods.
Q-2 :- Can the implementing class have its own methods?
Yes, you can declare own (more specfic) methods.

You not only should, but have to implement all abstract methods (if the subclass is non-abstract). Otherwise an object of that subclass wouldn't know what to do if that method was called!
The only way to prevent this is if the subclass is also declared abstract, so that it cannot be instantiated in the first place.

You don't have to implement all methods of an abstract class. But you must implement all abstract methods of it.
In fact extending an abstract class has no difference then extending a normal class. It's not like implementing interfaces. Since you're extending you are creating a subclass thus you can add as many methods and attributes as you need.

Ya definately implementing class can define its own method as well and if are not implementing all the methods of your abstract class in the derived class then mark this derived class also as Abstract
but at the end of chain you have to make one concrete class which implements all the method that was not implement in abstract sub-parent

public interface I{
public void m();
}
public abstract class A1 implements I{
//No need to implement m() here - since this is abstract
}
public class B1 extends A1{
public void m(){
//This is required, since A1 did not implement m().
}
}
public abstract class A11 extends A1{
//Again No need to implement m() here - since this is abstract
public abstract void newA11Method()
}
public class B11 extends A11{
//This class needs to implement m() and newA11Method()
}

Yes, the implementing class need only implement the methods labeled as abstract in the abstract class.

Yes you must implement all the methods present in an abstract class. As the purpose of abstract class is purely to create a template for the functions whose implementation is decided by the class implementing them. So if you don't implement them, then you are breaking the concept of abstract class.
To answer your second question, yes you can create any number of your own methods irrespective of the abstract class you are extending.

Yes, When you are implementing an Interface you will have to implement all its methods. That is the purpose of defining an Interface. And yes, you can have your own methods in the class where you implement an Interface.

Yes, when you extends abstract you should give implementation for all abstract methods which are presents in abstract class. Othrewise you should make it implementation class as abtract class.

You must implement all the abstract methods you have in the abstract class. But you can directly use the concrete methods that are implemented.
For more information please refer to the :
https://www.javatpoint.com/abstract-class-in-java

Same method with different return types in abstract class and interface

Just extending the question..
Same method in abstract class and interface
Suppose a class implements an interface and extends an abstract class and both have the same method (name+signature), but different return types. Now when i override the method it compiles only when i make the return type same as that of the interface declaration.
Also, what would happen if the method is declared as private or final in the abstract class or the interface?
**On a side note. Mr. Einstein stuck to this question for an abominable amount of time during an interview. Is there a popular scenario where we do this or he was just showing off?

If the method in abstract class is abstract too, you will have to provide its implementation in the first concrete class it extends. Additionally, you will have to provide implementation of interface. If both the methods differ only in return type, the concrete class will have overloaded methods which differ only in return type. And we can't have overloaded methods which differ only in return type, hence the error.
interface io {
public void show();
}
abstract class Demo {
abstract int show();
}
class Test extends Demo implements io {
void show () { //Overloaded method based on return type, Error
}
int show() { //Error
return 1;
}
public static void main (String args[]) {
}
}

No, same method names and parameters, but different return types is not possible in Java. The underlying Java type system is not able* to determine differences between calls to the methods at runtime.
(*I am sure someone will prove me wrong, but most likely the solution is considered bad style anyways.)
Regarding private/final: Since you have to implement those methods, neither the interface method nor the abstract method can be final. Interface methods are public by default. The abstract method can't be private, since it must be visible in the implementing class, otherwise you can never fulfill the method implementation, because your implementing class can't "see" the method.

With Interfaces the methods are abstract and public by default ,
so they cant have any other access specifier and they cant be final
With abstract class , abstract methods can have any access specifier other than private and because they are abstract they cant be final
While overriding , the method signature has to be same ; and covariant(subclass of the declared return type) return types are allowed

A class cannot implement two interfaces that have methods with same name but different return type. It will give compile time error.
Methods inside interface are by default public abstract they don't have any other specifier.
interface A
{
public void a();
}
interface B
{
public int a();
}
class C implements A,B
{
public void a() // error
{
//implementation
}
public int a() // error
{
//implementation
}
public static void main(String args[])
{
}
}

Interface and Abstract class ad method overriding

Here is the code:
interface hi
{
public void meth1();
}
abstract class Hullo
{
public abstract void meth1();
}
public class Hello extends Hullo implements hi
{
public void meth1(){}
}
Question:The code compiles and everything. I wanted to know the meth1() in class Hello is overriding which meth1()?
The ont in the interface or the one in the abstract class and why?

The answer is short: Both.....
In fact, to be correct: You are overriding none of them, you are implementing them both, with one method.

Generally we override a existing method which already has some definition. I mean we are adding a extra bit of feature in child class compared to super class. Since both methods are abstract, so we can say that we implementing the unimplemented method.
You can take the reference of creating threads in Java where we prefer to implement Runnable interface compared to extending Thread class.

Absolutely correct question.
Here both the interface and abstract class have same method.
You have one class name is hello and extends abstract class and implement interface its true and you override meth1 method on hello class its fine and its compile correctly and not given any error but her you can't identify which class method is override like abstract class or interface.
This is runtime polymorphism you can't create object of abstract class and interface but you can create reference variable of that. Here solution is you can't identify that on compile time its actual override at runtime.
interface hi
{
public void meth1();
}
abstract class Hullo
{
public abstract void meth1();
}
public class Hello extends Hullo implements hi
{
public void meth1(){
System.out.println("hello");
}
hi h= new Hello();
h.meth1();//its means interface method is override. and its decide when we call method.
hullo hu= new Hello();
hu.meth1();//its means abstract class method is override.
}

not implementing all of the methods of interface. is it possible?

Is there any way to NOT implement all of the methods of an interface in an inheriting class?

The only way around this is to declare your class as abstract and leave it to a subclass to implement the missing methods. But ultimately, someone in the chain has to implement it to meet the interface contract. If you truly do not need a particular method, you can implement it and then either return or throw some variety of NotImplementedException, whichever is more appropriate in your case.
The Interface could also specify some methods as 'default' and provide the corresponding method implementation within the Interface definition (https://docs.oracle.com/javase/tutorial/java/IandI/defaultmethods.html). These 'default' methods need not be mentioned while implementing the Interface.

The point of an interface is to guarantee that an object will outwardly behave as the interface specifies that it will
If you don't implement all methods of your interface, than you destroy the entire purpose of an interface.

We can override all the interface methods in abstract parent class and in child class override those methods only which is required by that particular child class.
Interface
public interface MyInterface{
void method1();
void method2();
void method3();
}
Abstract Parent class
public abstract class Parent implements MyInterface{
#Override
public void method1(){
}
#Override
public void method2(){
}
#Override
public void method3(){
}
}
In your Child classes
public class Child1 extends Parent{
#Override
public void method1(){
}
}
public class Child2 extends Parent{
#Override
public void method2(){
}
}

I asked myself the same question, and then learned about Adapters. It solved my problem, maybe it can solve yours. This explains it very well : https://blogs.oracle.com/CoreJavaTechTips/entry/listeners_vs_adapters

You can do that in Java8. Java 8 introduces “Default Method” or (Defender methods) new feature, which allows a developer to add new methods to the Interfaces without breaking the existing implementation of these interfaces.
It provides flexibility to allow Interface define implementation which will use as default in the situation where a concrete Class fails to provide an implementation for that method.
interface OldInterface {
public void existingMethod();
default public void DefaultMethod() {
System.out.println("New default method" + " is added in interface");
}
}
//following class compiles successfully in JDK 8
public class ClassImpl implements OldInterface {
#Override
public void existingMethod() {
System.out.println("normal method");
}
public static void main(String[] args) {
ClassImpl obj = new ClassImpl ();
// print “New default method add in interface”
obj.DefaultMethod();
}
}

Define that class as an abstract class. However, you must implement those unimplemented methods when you want to create an instance of it (either by using a subclass or an anonymous class).

It is possible and it is easy. I coded an example.
All you have to do is inherit from a class that does implement the method. If you don't mind a class that is not instantiable, then you can also define an abstract class.

If you want an instantiable class, it is not possible. You may try to define an abstract class, though.

If you try to implement an interface and you find yourself in a situation where there is no need to implement all of them then, this is a code smell. It indicates a bad design and it violates Liskov substitution principle. Often this happens because of using fat interface.
Also sometimes this happens because you are trying to implement an interface from an external dependency. In this case, I always look inside the source code to see if there is any implementation of that interface which I can either use it directly or subclass it and override methods to my needs.

We can use Adapter classes ,which reduces complexcity by not making mandatory to implement all the methods present in the interface
Adapter class is a simple java class that implements an interface with only EMPTY implementation .
Instead of implementing interface if we extends Adapter class ,we provide implementation only for require method
ex--- instead of implementing Servlet(I) if we extends GenericServlet(AC) then we provide implementation for Service()method we are not require to provide implementation for remaining meyhod..
Generic class Acts as ADAPTER class for Servlet(I).

yes possible below shown is the way
interface Test {
void m() throws NullPointerException;
}
class Parent {
// Parent class doesn't implements Test interface
public void m() {
System.out.println("Inside Parent m()");
}
}
class Child extends Parent implements Test {
}
public class Program {
public static void main(String args[]) {
Child s = new Child();
s.m();
}
}