Java - Object state does not change after method call

Viewed 51168

Beginner java question, but I cannot understand how call-by-Value ( or Reference ) is working in the example below -

How come the String value is not modified after it exits the method while my custom String Object is. ? Same with other classes like Date..

public class StringMadness {

public static void main(String[] args) {
    String s = "Native String";
    CustomStringObject cs = new CustomStringObject();
    System.out.println("Custom String Before: " + cs.str);
    hello(cs);
    System.out.println("Custom String After: " + cs.str);

    System.out.println("Native String Before: " + s);
    hello(s);
    System.out.println("Native String After: " + s);
}

private static void hello(String t) {
    t = "hello " + t;
}

private static void hello(CustomStringObject o) {
    o.str = "hello " + o.str;
  }
}

class CustomStringObject {

String str = "Custom String";
}
5 Answers
Related