Java Reference
In-Depth Information
ization code block executes. Similarly, anyone accessing a static field is
guaranteed that the field has been initialized.
What if a static initializer in class
X
invokes a method in
Y
, but
Y
's static
initializers invoke a method in
X
to set up
its
static values? This cyc-
lic static initialization cannot be reliably detected during compilation be-
cause the code for
Y
may not be written when
X
is compiled. If cycles
happen,
X
's static initializers will have been executed only to the point
where
Y
's method was invoked. When
Y
, in turn, invokes the
X
meth-
od, that method runs with the rest of the static initializers yet to be ex-
ecuted. Any static fields in
X
that haven't had their initializers executed
will still have their default values (
false
,
'/u0000'
, zero, or
null
depend-
ing on their type).
