Java instanceOf() Generics

In Java, generics are majorly used for providing a method for the creation of classes and methods which are capable of working with any type of data including the type safety.

When generics are utilized in Java, the type of an object is often checked during the runtime execution. This is the main purpose of the instanceOf() operator in Java. Let's understand about this in detail with the help of few example programs.

Java instanceOf()

The main purpose of the instanceOf() operator in Java is to check whether an object is the instance of a specific type or not. In Java, type erasure can be defined as a process which is used for removing the information during the compilation and making it unavailable during the runtime execution.

The usage of instanceOf() method in Java must be followed by caution as it might indicate that the code has not been fully taken advantage of the type information that is provided by generics. In various cases, the preferable designed classes and methods are made in such way that they allow us to directly work with the types of generics.

Let us understand about instanceOf() operation in Java in detail with the help of Java example programs.

Example 1:

Filename: Zoo.java

Output:

-------- It's a Dog! Fetching the ball Woof! Woof! -------- It's a Cat! Purring contentedly Meow! -------- It's a Parrot! Mimicking human speech Squawk! Squawk! -------- It's a Snake! Slithering on the ground Hiss! 

Example 2:

Filename: Shape.java

Output:

-------- It's a Circle! Circle with radius: 5.0 Area: 78.53981633974483 -------- It's a Rectangle! Rectangle with length: 4.0 and width: 6.0 Area: 24.0 -------- It's a Triangle! Triangle with base: 3.0 and height: 8.0 Area: 12.0 -------- It's a Three-Dimensional Shape! Area: 113.09733552923255 -------- It's a Three-Dimensional Shape! Area: 96.0 

This is the required explanation about the instanceOf() generics operator in Java.