Why isn’t the pointer notion used in Java?

The majority of research believe that pointers are one of the most important aspects that allow programmers to introduce problems into their programs. When Java was designed, the goal was to build a language that was simple to learn and free of the flaws that plagued C++. It’s not like in C/C++, where we have to use destructors to control memory. For memory management in Java, an automatic garbage collector is used. Actually, all Java references are pointers, so pointers are the sole way to retrieve data in the language. This blog may help you to know about why java doesn’t support pointers. Join Java Training in Chennai at FITA Academy for the best training with Placement Assistance.

The following are some of the reasons why Java does not allow pointers:

1. Memory access via pointer arithmetic: Memory access using pointer arithmetic is inherently dangerous. Java includes a complex security feature that prevents pointer arithmetic for the same reason. The Virtual Machine would be unable to ensure that code containing pointer arithmetic is secure without expensive runtime testing.
2. Security: Java effectively adds another degree of abstraction to the developer by not allowing references. Because pointers point to memory locations or are used for memory management, using them directly compromises their security; thus, removing pointer support makes Java more secure. Java Online Course will enhance your programming skills in Java.
3. Passing an argument by reference: By supplying a reference, you can modify the value of a variable in the caller’s scope. Although Java doesn’t have this capability, it’s a somewhat uncommon use case that can be easily solved using alternative approaches. This is akin to changing a field in an object scope that both the caller and the call can see.
4. Manual memory management: pointers can be used to manually control and allocate memory blocks. This is beneficial for some larger programs, such as games and device drivers, but it is just not worth the effort for general-purpose Object-Oriented development. Java, on the other hand, has an excellent automatic garbage collection (GC) system that handles memory management.

Conclusion:

Overall, Java lacks pointers (in the sense of C/C++) since it does not require them for general-purpose OOP programming. Furthermore, adding pointers to Java would compromise the language’s security and robustness while also increasing its complexity. I hope this blog may clear the query why pointers are not used in java. To learn more about Java Pointers, join Java Training in Coimbatore at FITA Academy.