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Why does my TimerTask.cancel() returns an NPE ? (JAVA)

I'm coding an assignment and currently everything's working fine. I'm not going to post the whole thing but the essential classes being called and referenced.
Basically, my problem is that I have a GameTimer class to start a Timer in my Game:
public class GameTimer {
GameViewController gvc = GameFrame.gameViewController;
public static boolean isRunning = false;
public int seconds = 0;
public Timer timer = null;
public TimerTask task = null;
public GameTimer () {
timer = new Timer();
}
public void start() {
task = new TimerTask() {
#Override
public void run() {
gvc.updateTime(seconds);
seconds++;
}
};
timer.scheduleAtFixedRate(task, 1000, 1000);
System.out.println("Task was started");
isRunning = true;
}
public void stop() {
task.cancel();
timer.cancel();
timer.purge();
isRunning = false;
}
public void restart() {
stop();
start();
}
}
And basically I have different modes that extends a GameModel and references my GameTimer instance in my GameModel class :
public class GameModel {
public GameTimer game_timer = new GameTimer();
//... Rest of instances and classes
}
public class Mode1 extends GameModel {
public Mode1() {
if(!gamer_timer.isRunning)
game_timer.start();
else
game_timer.restart();
}
//.....Rest of methods
}
public class Mode2 extends GameModel {
public Mode2() {
if(!gamer_timer.isRunning)
game_timer.start();
else
game_timer.restart();
}
//.....Rest of methods
}
Basically, my game is a GUI and i have a drop-down box from which I select my modes. My game instantly loads Mode1 when it runs, but when I choose Mode2, it returns a NullPointerException on my
task.cancel();
I've read on some other posts that you have to cancel the TimerTask before the Timer, but whether I put timer cancel before the task cancel
task.cancel
timer.cancel()
it still gives me the same NullPointerException
Here's the error:
Exception in thread "AWT-EventQueue-0" Mode2
java.lang.NullPointerException
at GameTimer.stop(GameTimer.java:32) // task.cancel()
at GameTimer.restart(GameTimer.java:39)
at Mode2.<init>(Mode2.java:15)
Can you help me just figure out why is the task not cancelling.

Why is isRunning static?
Mode1 sets it to true. Mode2 is created and it should read false for isRunning but instead it reads true (class variable = only one used) so instead of calling start( ) it calls restart( ) and gets the NPE because it was never started and so can't be stopped.

I didn't clearly read your explanation line by line but what I can say by seeing your code is that,
Here inside restart() method you are calling stop() first and start() second
public void restart() {
stop();
start();
}
Inside the start() method you are initializing your task object like here
public void start() {
task = new TimerTask()
But as per your code this seems second priority of your code, stop() is called at first, But at that time task was not initialized. I suggest you to rearrange this as per your needs and initialize task anywhere you feel comfortable but be sure you initialized before using.

Thanks for your help. I found the solution. Mode1 is being initialized as I run the game
new Mode1 ();
and the same Mode2. It would initilized when I choose Mode2 in my game. However, because I'm reinitializing the same gameModel over my program, the isRunning would always be false at first because in my GameModel, you see me create a new instance of my GameTimer everytime. So basically, the state of the timer would never be set to true.
I've found the problem to my code but I have figured a solution yet so I will post the solution as soon I am done with it. Thank you for helping

Reseting a timer if particular condition is met?

I have an event listener which detects when the mouse is being moved in a certain pane of my program. From this, I want to be able to perform some action if the mouse stays idle for too long.
I have looked all over earlier today, to try and find an explanation and example which details how to start, stop/cancel and reset a timer but have been bombarded with different ways to try and do this, which has left me quite confused.
I'm following a timer example from here and implementing for my own situation
When this code below is run, it will output "A" every time the mouse stops. This is incorrect, as if I stop the mouse, move it quickly then stop it again, 2 sets of "A" are produced.
This carries on for however many times the stop is produced.
I believe I am missing a 'reset timer' function that will called when the mouse changes to a moving state.
How can I implement this?/Is that even the problem?
public class SomeClass{
//...some fancy code...
if (! isNowMoving) {
System.out.println("Mouse stopped!");
//Start Timer
new PrintingA(5);
} else if (isNowMoving){
System.out.println("MouseMoving");
//cancel timer & reset ready to start
}
public class PrintingA {
Timer timer;
public PrintingA(int seconds) {
timer = new Timer();
timer.schedule(new PrintingTask(), seconds * 1000);
}
class PrintingTask extends TimerTask{
#Override
public void run() {
System.out.println("A");
timer.cancel();
}
}
}
}

I'm not sure this can be useful for your requirement, Timer is a facility for threads to schedule tasks for future execution in a background thread. Tasks may be scheduled for one-time execution, or for repeated execution at regular intervals. Read java document : java.util.Timer
I perfer to have a thread for IdleMonitor and use Apache Stopwatch to monitor idle time.
import org.apache.commons.lang3.time.StopWatch;
public class IdleMonitor implements Runnable {
StopWatch stopWatch;
private final Object monitorObj = new Object();
private boolean isActive;
private long waitTime = 6000; //in milliseconds, put appropriate time to wait
public IdleMonitor() {
isActive = true;
stopWatch = new StopWatch();
}
public void reset() { // call this during MouseMoving event
synchronized (monitorObj) {
stopWatch.reset();
monitorObj.notify();
}
}
public void finish() { // finish idle mointor operation once your operation ends, this will stop the thread
isActive = false;
reset();
}
public void start() { // start monitoring
Thread t = new Thread(IdleMonitor.this);
t.start();
}
#Override
public void run() {
synchronized (monitorObj) {
stopWatch.start();
while (isActive) {
try {
monitorObj.wait(waitTime);
} catch (InterruptedException ex) {
}
long idleTime = stopWatch.getTime();
System.out.println("Idle time " + idleTime);
// do something if idle time beyond your expected idle time.
// you could set isActive=false; if you want to stop monitoring
}
}
}
}
}

Is there a code to check if a timer is running?

I have a game where I am scheduling a timer. I have this CoresManager file:
package com.rs.cores;
import java.util.Timer;
import java.util.concurrent.ExecutorService;
import java.util.concurrent.Executors;
import java.util.concurrent.ScheduledExecutorService;
public final class CoresManager {
protected static volatile boolean shutdown;
public static WorldThread worldThread;
public static ExecutorService serverWorkerChannelExecutor;
public static ExecutorService serverBossChannelExecutor;
public static Timer fastExecutor;
public static ScheduledExecutorService slowExecutor;
public static int serverWorkersCount;
public static void init() {
worldThread = new WorldThread();
int availableProcessors = Runtime.getRuntime().availableProcessors();
serverWorkersCount = availableProcessors >= 6 ? availableProcessors - (availableProcessors >= 12 ? 7 : 5) : 1;
serverWorkerChannelExecutor = availableProcessors >= 6 ? Executors
.newFixedThreadPool(availableProcessors - (availableProcessors >= 12 ? 7 : 5),
new DecoderThreadFactory()) : Executors.newSingleThreadExecutor(new DecoderThreadFactory());
serverBossChannelExecutor = Executors
.newSingleThreadExecutor(new DecoderThreadFactory());
fastExecutor = new Timer("Fast Executor");
slowExecutor = availableProcessors >= 6 ? Executors.newScheduledThreadPool(availableProcessors >= 12 ? 4 : 2,
new SlowThreadFactory()) : Executors
.newSingleThreadScheduledExecutor(new SlowThreadFactory());
worldThread.start();
}
public static void shutdown() {
serverWorkerChannelExecutor.shutdown();
serverBossChannelExecutor.shutdown();
fastExecutor.cancel();
slowExecutor.shutdown();
shutdown = true;
}
private CoresManager() {
}
}
I am using this inside the game:
private void startTimer() {
CoresManager.fastExecutor.scheduleAtFixedRate(new TimerTask() {
#Override
public void run() {
if (timer == 0 || timer < 1) {
player.sm("Your timer has ended! The NPCs will no longer spawn.");
timer = 0;
this.cancel();
exitInstance();
return;
}
timer--;
timerchecker = true;
seconds = timer % 60;
player.setTimer(timer);
minutes = TimeUnit.SECONDS.toMinutes(timer);
}
}, 0, 1000);
}
The CoresManager Timer stops running if the player logs out AND the server gets rebooted. To make it run again, I added a code to make it do startTimer() again once you log back in. However, since the timer still runs if the server didn't log out, the timer starts running twice. The Timer starts getting subtracted by 2, or more, depending on how many times you log out and in. I figure that it would fix if there was a code to determine if the timer is already running. Is there a way to do this? Please help!

I don't see anything in the documentation that provides for checking the status on a TimerTask object (http://docs.oracle.com/javase/1.5.0/docs/api/java/util/TimerTask.html) so one option would be to extend TimerTask and create your own class. Instead of using an anonymous TimerTask, you could create something along the lines of:
public class CoresTimerTask extends TimerTask {
private boolean hasStarted = false;
#Overrides
public void run() {
this.hasStarted = true;
//rest of run logic here...
}
public boolean hasRunStarted() {
return this.hasStarted;
}
}
and just maintain a reference to this CoresTimerTask object, which you then pass into startTimer(). You can then later check this object via hasRunStarted.

public long scheduledExecutionTime()
Returns the scheduled execution time of the most recent actual execution of this task. (If this method is invoked while task execution is in progress, the return value is the scheduled execution time of the ongoing task The return value is undefined if the task has yet to commence its first execution.
This method is typically not used in conjunction with fixed-delay execution repeating tasks, as their scheduled execution times are allowed to drift over time, and so are not terribly significant.
first thing periodically running tasks need set/reset state flag
second (when i look at examples) it is better to seal this type of class
but if someone insist to have such methods
public abstract class NonInterruptableTask extends TimerTask {
protected boolean isDone = false;
public boolean isDone() {return isDone;}
protected abstract void doTaskWork();
#Override
public void run() {
isDone = false;
doTaskWork();
isDone = true;
}
}
usage:
TimerTask myTask = new NonInterruptableTask() {
#Override
public void doTaskWork() {
//job here
}
};

you could also declare a boolean state called like "timerstate" or whatever and make it by default to be false. whenever you start a timer you could change this boolean to true and you'd be able to keep track of the timer.
public boolean timerstate;
public Timer t1;
// some code goes here to do whatever you want
if(timerstate == true) {
t1.cancel();
t1.purge();
t1 = new Timer();
} else{
t1.schedule(new TimerTask() {
#Override
public void run() {
timerstate = true;
//rest of code for the timer goes here
}
}
}

TimerTask class has to run only once in java

I have a class that runs for every 10 secs, but when I execute it more than once, multiple timers are started. If one timer is already running, I want the other timer calls to be ignored. I want only one timer to be running at a given point of time. Please help.
My code:
import java.util.Timer;
import java.util.TimerTask;
public class Test1 extends TimerTask{
#Override
public void run() {
System.out.println("In run method");
}
public static void main(String args[]) {
System.out.println("In main method");
Timer timer= new Timer();
timer.schedule(new Test1(), 10000,10000);
}
}

I want the 1st timer to be running always. Other timers calls should not be triggered at all.
Try with Singleton patten that allows only single instance of the class.
Sample code:
public class Test extends TimerTask {
private static Test instance = new Test();
private Test() {}
public static Test getInstance() {
return instance;
}
#Override
public void run() {
System.out.println("In run method");
}
}
Now if you try to start another Task on the same instance it will result in below exception:
java.lang.IllegalStateException: Task already scheduled or cancelled
at java.util.Timer.sched(Unknown Source)
at java.util.Timer.schedule(Unknown Source)

Why don't you try something like setting a bool true if you start a timer and only let the other Timers start if it's true or false, depends on how you set them
sth like:
boolean checkTimer = false;
//Start a Timer and set checkTimer = true
if(checkTimer == true)
{
//Start your other timers here
}
else
{
//Write message that timer is already running
}

Running code when all threads are finished processing

Quick note: Java and Android noob here, I'm open to you telling me I'm stupid (as long as you tell me why.)
I have an android application which requires me start multiple threads originating from various classes and only advance to the next activity once all threads have done their job. I also want to add a "failsafe" timeout in case one the the threads takes too long (HTTP request taking too long or something.)
I searched Stack Overflow and found a post saying that I should create a class to keep a running total of open threads and then use a timer to poll for when all the threads are completed.
I think I've created a working class to do this for me, it's untested as of yet but has no errors showing in eclipse.
Is this a correct implementation? Are there any APIs that I should be made aware of (such as classes in the Java or Android APIs that could be used in place of the abstract classes at the bottom of the class?)
package com.dmp.geofix.libs;
import java.util.ArrayList;
import java.util.Iterator;
import java.util.Timer;
import java.util.TimerTask;
public class ThreadMonitor {
private Timer timer = null;
private TimerTask timerTask = null;
private OnSuccess onSuccess = null;
private OnError onError = null;
private static ArrayList<Thread> threads;
private final int POLL_OPEN_THREADS = 100;
private final int TIMEOUT = 10000;
public ThreadMonitor() {
timerTask = new PollThreadsTask();
}
public ThreadMonitor(OnSuccess s) {
timerTask = new PollThreadsTask();
onSuccess = s;
}
public ThreadMonitor(OnError e) {
timerTask = new PollThreadsTask();
onError = e;
}
public ThreadMonitor(OnSuccess s, OnError e) {
timerTask = new PollThreadsTask();
onSuccess = s;
onError = e;
}
public void start() {
Iterator<Thread> i = threads.iterator();
while (i.hasNext()) {
i.next().start();
}
timer = new Timer();
timer.schedule(timerTask, 0, POLL_OPEN_THREADS);
}
public void finish() {
Iterator<Thread> i = threads.iterator();
while (i.hasNext()) {
i.next().interrupt();
}
threads.clear();
timer.cancel();
}
public void addThread(Thread t) {
threads.add(t);
}
public void removeThread(Thread t) {
threads.remove(t);
t.interrupt();
}
class PollThreadsTask extends TimerTask {
private int timeElapsed = 0;
#Override
public void run() {
timeElapsed += POLL_OPEN_THREADS;
if (timeElapsed <= TIMEOUT) {
if (threads.isEmpty() == false) {
if (onSuccess != null) {
onSuccess.run();
}
}
} else {
if (onError != null) {
onError.run();
}
finish();
}
}
}
public abstract class OnSuccess {
public abstract void run();
}
public abstract class OnError {
public abstract void run();
}
}

Take a look at Thread.join

Check java.util.concurrent package .
specifically Future, FutureTask and ExecutorService
FutureTask allows to get the status of the operation under execution with methid isDone()
I hope this helps

All the threads should be implementing callable and they should be future tasks.
Start all of them with countdownlatch/CyclicBarrier to ensure all of them start at same time

If you intend for the application to exit after running the code, you might want to have a look at Runtime.getRuntime().addShutdownHook(Thread) to specify a thread to be executed when the application is exiting.