Java relational operators

Question

In Java, what interface(class) should a class implement(extend) in order to allow two instances of the class to be comparable through relational operators like "<" or ">="?

score 11 · Accepted Answer · answered Jun 21 '11 at 13:20

11

This is not possible in Java.

If you want objects of your class to be comparable, implement Comparable.

answered Jun 21 '11 at 13:20

Björn Pollex

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Im just curious, but could he override the compare to with what ever factors he wants to compare them, and do something like obj1.compareTo(obj2) > 0 which means (obj1 > obj2)??? – RMT Jun 21 '11 at 13:22
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Thanks. I was just trying to do something more readable than `compareTo()` – Tiago Veloso Jun 21 '11 at 13:22
@RMT: That is exactly what implementing `Comparable` does. – Björn Pollex Jun 21 '11 at 13:23
I think they should add this possibility in the future. – Tiago Veloso Jun 21 '11 at 13:32

score 4 · Answer 2 · answered Jun 21 '11 at 13:20

4

Java does not support operator overloading, so you're out of luck. Implementing java.lang.Comparable or providing a java.util.Comparator is what you're supposed to do.

answered Jun 21 '11 at 13:20

Christian Schwartz

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Java relational operators

2 Answers2