External Interfaces/API

Simplifying Java Class Names

Your MATLAB commands can refer to any Java class by its fully qualified name, which includes its package name. For example, the following are fully qualified names:

• java.lang.String
• java.util.Enumeration

A fully qualified name can be rather long, making commands and functions, such as constructors, cumbersome to edit and to read. You can refer to classes by the class name alone (without a package name) if you, first, import the fully qualified name into MATLAB.

The import command has the following forms.

• import pkg_name.*               % Import all classes in package
  import pkg_name1.* pkg_name2.*  % Import multiple packages
  import class_name               % Import one class
  import                          % Display current import list
  L = import                      % Return current import list
  

MATLAB adds all classes that you import to a list called the import list. You can see what classes are on that list by typing import, without any arguments. Your code can refer to any class on the list by class name alone.

When called from a function, import adds the specified classes to the import list in effect for that function. When invoked at the command prompt, import uses the base import list for your MATLAB environment.

For example, suppose a function contains the following statements.

• import java.lang.String
  import java.util.* java.awt.*
  import java.util.Enumeration
  

Code that follows the import statements above can now refer to the String, Frame, and Enumeration classes without using the package names.

• str = String('hello');     % Create java.lang.String object
  frm = Frame;               % Create java.awt.Frame object
  methods Enumeration        % List java.util.Enumeration methods
  

To clear the list of imported Java classes, invoke the command

• clear import
  

Loading Java Class Definitions

Creating and Using Java Objects