Java annotation: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 20:35, 2 October 2006

Revision as of 18:30, 18 November 2006

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In [[programming]], a '''Java annotation''' is a way of adding [[metadata]] to Java [[source code]] that is available to the programmer at [[run-time]]. Many times it is used as an alternative to XML technology.

Java annotations can be added to program elements such as classes, methods, fields, parameters, local variables, and packages. Unlike tags added to Java documentation and processed with tools such as [[XDoclet]], Java annotations are completely accessible to the programmer while the software is running using [[reflection (programming)|reflection]].