Externalizable

Externalizable

java.io

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Java 1.1

serializable

This interface defines the methods that must be implemented by an object that wants complete control over the way it is serialized. The writeExternal( ) and readExternal( ) methods should be implemented to write and read object data in some arbitrary format, using the methods of the DataOutput and DataInput interfaces. Externalizable objects must serialize their own fields and are also responsible for serializing the fields of their superclasses. Most objects do not need to define a custom output format and can use the Serializable interface instead of Externalizable for serialization.

Figure 9-13. java.io.Externalizable

 public interface  Externalizable  extends Serializable {  // Public Instance Methods  void  readExternal  (ObjectInput  in  ) throws IOException, ClassNotFoundException;        void  writeExternal  (ObjectOutput  out  ) throws IOException;   }