Can I pass a primitive type by reference in Java?

Question

I would like to call a method which could potentially take on different versions, i.e. the same method for input parameters that are of type:

• boolean
• byte

Answer 1

Yes, please be more specific about what you want to achieve. From your description I suggest you have a look at Java generics where you could write something like this:

class SomeClass  {
  GenericType val;  

  void setValue(GenericType val) {
     this.val = val;
  }

  GenericType getValue() {
     return val;
  }

  public static void main(String[] args) {
    SomeClass myObj = new SomeClass();
    myObj.setValue(5);
    System.out.println(myObj.getValue());

    SomeClass myObj2 = new SomeClass();
    myObj2.setValue("hello?!");
    System.out.println(myObj2.getValue());

  }

}