Exceptions:

An OO Way for Handling

Errors

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 Introduction
 Rarely does a program runs successfully at its
very first attempt.
 It is common to make mistakes while
developing as well as typing a program.
 Such mistakes are categorised as:
 syntax errors - compilation errors.
 semantic errors– leads to programs producing
unexpected outputs.
 runtime errors – most often lead to abnormal
termination of programs or even cause the system
to crash.

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 Common Runtime Errors
 Dividing a number by zero.
 Accessing an element that is out of bounds of an array.
 Trying to store incompatible data elements.
 Using negative value as array size.
 Trying to convert from string data to a specific data
value (e.g., converting string “abc” to integer value).
 File errors:
 opening a file in “read mode” that does not exist or no read
permission
 Opening a file in “write/update mode” which has “read only”
permission.
 Corrupting memory: - common with pointers
 Any more ….

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 Without Error Handling – Example 1

class NoErrorHandling{
public static void main(String[] args){
int a,b;
a = 7;
b = 0;
Program does not reach here
System.out.println(“Result is “ + a/b);
System.out.println(“Program reached this line”);
}
}
No compilation errors. While running it reports an error and stops without
executing further statements:
java.lang.ArithmeticException: / by zero at Error2.main(Error2.java:10)
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 Traditional way of Error Handling -
Example 2
class WithErrorHandling{
public static void main(String[] args){
int a,b;
a = 7; b = 0;
if (b != 0){
System.out.println(“Result is “ + a/b);
}
Program reaches here
else{
System.out.println(“ B is zero);
}
System.out.println(“Program is complete”);
}
}
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 Error Handling
 Any program can find itself in unusual
circumstances – Error Conditions.

 A “good” program should be able to

handle these conditions gracefully.

 Java provides a mechanism to handle

these error condition - exceptions

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 Exceptions
 An exception is a condition that is caused
by a runtime error in the program.

 Provide a mechanism to signal errors

directly without using flags.

 Allow errors to be handled in one central

part of the code without cluttering code.

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Exceptions and their Handling
 When the JVM encounters an error such as
divide by zero, it creates an exception object and
throws it – as a notification that an error has
occurred.
 If the exception object is not caught and handled
properly, the interpreter will display an error and
terminate the program.
 If we want the program to continue with
execution of the remaining code, then we should
try to catch the exception object thrown by the
error condition and then take appropriate
corrective actions. This task is known as
exception handling.
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9
10
 Common Java Exceptions
 ArithmeticException
 ArrayIndexOutOfBoundException
 FileNotFoundException
 IOException – general I/O failure
 NullPointerException – referencing a null object
 OutOfMemoryException
 SecurityException – when applet tries to perform an
action not allowed by the browser’s security setting.
 StackOverflowException
 StringIndexOutOfBoundException

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 Exceptions in Java

 A method can signal an error condition by

throwing an exception – throws
 The calling method can transfer control to
a exception handler by catching an
exception - try, catch
 Clean up can be done by - finally

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Exception Handling Mechanism
try Block

Statements that causes

an exception

Throws
exception
Object

catch Block

Statements that
handle the exception

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Syntax of Exception Handling Code

…
…
try {
// statements
}
catch( Exception-Type e)
{
// statements to process exception
}
..
..

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 With Exception Handling - Example 3

class WithExceptionHandling{
public static void main(String[] args){
int a,b; float r;
a = 7; b = 0;
try{
r = a/b;
System.out.println(“Result is “ + r);
Program Reaches here
}
catch(ArithmeticException e){
System.out.println(“ B is zero);
}
System.out.println(“Program reached this line”);
}
} 15
 Finding a Sum of Integer Values
Passed as Command Line Parameters
// ComLineSum.java: adding command line parameters
class ComLineSum
{
public static void main(String args[])
{
int InvalidCount = 0;
int number, sum = 0;

for( int i = 0; i < args.length; i++)

{
try {
number = Integer.parseInt(args[i]);
}
catch(NumberFormatException e)
{
InvalidCount++;
System.out.println("Invalid Number: "+args[i]);
continue;//skip the remaining part of loop
}
sum += number;
}
System.out.println("Number of Invalid Arguments = "+InvalidCount);
System.out.println("Number of Valid Arguments = "+(args.length-InvalidCount));
System.out.println("Sum of Valid Arguments = "+sum);
}
}

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 Sample Runs

$> java ComLineSum 1 2

Number of Invalid Arguments = 0
Number of Valid Arguments = 2
Sum of Valid Arguments = 3

$> java ComLineSum 1 2 abc

Invalid Number: abc
Number of Invalid Arguments = 1
Number of Valid Arguments = 2
Sum of Valid Arguments = 3

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 Multiple Catch Statements
 If a try block is likely to raise more than one type of exceptions, then
multiple catch blocks can be defined as follows:
…
…
try {
// statements
}
catch( Exception-Type1 e)
{
// statements to process exception 1
}
..
..
catch( Exception-TypeN e)
{
// statements to process exception N
}
…

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 finally block
 Java supports definition of another block called finally. It may be added
immediately after the try block or after the last catch block:
…
try {
// statements
}
catch( Exception-Type1 e)
{
// statements to process exception 1
}
..
..
finally {
….
}
 When a finally is defined, it is executed regardless of whether or not an
exception is thrown. Therefore, it is also used to perform certain house
keeping operations such as closing files and releasing system resources.

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Catching and Propagating Exceptions

 Exceptions raised in try block can be

caught and then they can be thrown
again/propagated after performing some
operations. This can be done by using the
keyword “throw” as follows:
 throw exception-object;
 OR
 throw new Throwable_Subclass;

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 With Exception Handling - Example 4

class WithExceptionCatchThrow{
public static void main(String[] args){
int a,b; float r; a = 7; b = 0;
try{
r = a/b;
System.out.println(“Result is “ + r);
Program Does Not
}
reach here catch(ArithmeticException e){
when exception occurs System.out.println(“ B is zero);
throw e;
}
System.out.println(“Program is complete”);
}
} 21
 With Exception Handling - Example 5
class WithExceptionCatchThrowFinally{
public static void main(String[] args){
int a,b; float r; a = 7; b = 0;
try{
r = a/b;
System.out.println(“Result is “ + r);
}
Program reaches here catch(ArithmeticException e){
System.out.println(“ B is zero);
throw e;
}
finally{
System.out.println(“Program is complete”);
}
}
}
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 User-Defined Exceptions
 Problem Statement :
 Consider the example of the Circle class
 Circle class had the following constructor
public Circle(double centreX, double centreY,
double radius){
x = centreX; y = centreY; r = radius;
}

 How would we ensure that the radius is not zero or

negative?

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 Defining your own exceptions
import java.lang.Exception;
class InvalidRadiusException extends Exception {

private double r;

public InvalidRadiusException(double radius){

r = radius;
}
public void printError(){
System.out.println("Radius [" + r + "] is not valid");
}
}

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 Throwing the exception
class Circle {
double x, y, r;

public Circle (double centreX, double centreY,

double radius ) throws InvalidRadiusException {
if (r <= 0 ) {
throw new InvalidRadiusException(radius);
}
else {
x = centreX ; y = centreY; r = radius;
}
}
}

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 Catching the exception

class CircleTest {
public static void main(String[] args){
try{
Circle c1 = new Circle(10, 10, -1);
System.out.println("Circle created");
}
catch(InvalidRadiusException e)
{
e.printError();
}
}
}

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User-Defined Exceptions in standard
format
class MyException extends Exception
{
MyException(String message)
{
super(message); // pass to superclass if parameter is not handled by used defined exception
}
}
class TestMyException {
…
try {
..
throw new MyException(“This is error message”);
}
catch(MyException e)
{
System.out.println(“Message is: “+e.getMessage());
}
}
}
Get Message is a method defined in a standard
Exception class.
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 Summary
 A good programs does not produce unexpected
results.
 It is always a good practice to check for
potential problem spots in programs and guard
against program failures.
 Exceptions are mainly used to deal with runtime
errors.
 Exceptions also aid in debugging programs.
 Exception handling mechanisms can effectively
used to locate the type and place of errors.

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 Summary

 Try block, code that could have exceptions /

errors
 Catch block(s), specify code to handle various
types of exceptions. First block to have
appropriate type of exception is invoked.
 If no ‘local’ catch found, exception propagates
up the method call stack, all the way to main()
 Any execution of try, normal completion, or
catch then transfers control on to finally block

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