Java equivalent of PHP's variable-variables?

[XmisterIS]

Hi to those of you familiar with PHP,

Here's some example code in PHP:

class MyClass
{
  public function foo($a, $b)
  {
    //Do something with $a and $b.
  }

  public function bar($x, $y)
  {
    //Do something completely different with $x, $y.
  }

  public function fred($q, $r)
  {
    //Do something else
  }

  public function ... //etc (lots of functions).
}

function dynamic($method)
{
  $mc = new MyClass;

  if (method_exists($mc, $method))
    $mc->$method("apple", "pear");
  else
    echo "Oops!\n";
}

So, I'd like to be able to do this in Java without a huge if block that tediously goes through: if method == "foo" then call foo, else if method == "bar" then call bar, etc, etc ... *yawn*!

Can someone tell me how to do this please?

Many thanks in advance.

[masijade]

Google "reflection".

[Tolls]

And before doing that ensure that this is what you want to do, and you're not simply using your PHP knowledge and attempting to convert what you would do in PHP directly into Java.

[masijade]

I was hoping that, after investigating reflection and reading the warnings and such contained in the API docs and tutorials, that the OP would realise, himself, how inherently "dangerous" that sort of thing is and decide that its not really what he wanted and that he should solve his "problem" in an OO manner rather than a "scripting" manner. But, more likely, he'd just whine and complain about why it is so "hard" to do in Java.

[Tolls]

I'd have thought you'd have had that hope crushed out of you by now...

[XmisterIS]

I was hoping that, after investigating reflection and reading the warnings and such contained in the API docs and tutorials, that the OP would realise, himself, how inherently "dangerous" that sort of thing is and decide that its not really what he wanted and that he should solve his "problem" in an OO manner rather than a "scripting" manner. But, more likely, he'd just whine and complain about why it is so "hard" to do in Java.

Actually, I found the documentation to be very enlightening and interesting reading. Thank you for your original reply ... but please don't make assumptions about me without knowing anything about me! Many thanks.

[masijade]

Like I said "more likely", as that is what 99% percent of all people do who come and say "how do I do 'x' as I do in 'y'". Considering that it is "more likely".

[XmisterIS]

I love you too :p

I've ended up not needing reflection, I figured out how to do it with objects. :)