Annotations in Java

Question

I was wondering what exactly anotations are used for in Java, I have a basic understanding of it. However my true question is, what does annotions mean when their in a comment? For example: /** @param **/. Does it have any effect in the code itself?

Thank you.

Answer 1

I was wondering what exactly anotations are used for in Java

They are used for all sorts of things. It is not possible to give an "exact" answer, because the use-cases for annotations are (literally) infinite. And besides, you have probably seen a few use-cases already. (Google for examples, if you want to find more ...)

However my true question is, what does annotions mean when their in a comment?

When they are in comments, they are not annotations. In this case, they are javadoc tags ... which are used when generating the javadoc documentation for the code,

For example: /** @param **/. Does it have any effect in the code itself?

It has no effect on the code itself. A Java compiler ignores anything in Java comments. (Of course, it is possible to write a compiler for a Java-derived language that pays attention stuff in comments. But that ain't Java.)

Answer 2

It is used when the JavaDoc is created for a specific class, because its in a comment block the compiler doesn't look at it, and it isn't used.