Java 2™ Programmer Exam Cram™ 2 (Exam CX-310-035)

Static Nested Classes

A static nested class is declared inside another class and is declared with the static modifier. Like static methods, a static nested class can only refer directly to static variables and methods. It can refer to instance variables and methods only when given a reference to an object of the enclosing class type. The following code is a rough outline of the way a static class is declared:

class NormalClass {
   // static methods and variables
   static class NestedClass {
       // methods and variables of NestedClass
     }
   // instance methods and variables of NormalClass
}

A Static Nested Class Example

Most of the examples of static nested classes we have seen have been a little forced, but we have found a more realistic (and fun) example, ...