Question

I have written a sample code to practise Spring Bean Injection using setter methods.
But in my output I get a memory address instead of the value I need (in List Element list as 1st element).

I think this is due to some error in ref bean=”address1″ declaration.

Appreciate if you can please help me in correcing this error

This is the output I get

List Elements: [com.springtutorial.Address@1b6101e, Clash of Kings, Storm of Swords, Feast for Crows, Dance with Dragons]
Address :Winterfell

This is the Bean Class Code

<bean id="javaCollection" class="com.springtutorial.JavaCollection">
    <property name="addressList">
        <list>
            <ref bean="address1"/>
            <value>Clash of Kings</value>
            <value>Storm of Swords</value>
            <value>Feast for Crows</value>
            <value>Dance with Dragons</value>
        </list>
    </property>

</bean>

<bean id="address1" class="com.springtutorial.Address">
    <property name="address" value="Winterfell"/>
</bean>

This the Address Class Code

public class Address {

String address;

public String getAddress() {
    System.out.println("Address :"+address);
    return address;
}

public void setAddress(String address) {
    this.address = address;
}

Java Collection class `public class JavaCollection {

List addressList;

public List getAddressList() {
    System.out.println("List Elements: " + addressList);
    return addressList;
}

public void setAddressList(List addressList) {
    this.addressList = addressList;
}

}

`

Main class is like this

public static void main(String[] args) {

    ApplicationContext ctx = new ClassPathXmlApplicationContext("Beans.xml");
    JavaCollection jc = (JavaCollection) ctx.getBean("javaCollection");
    Address obj = (Address) ctx.getBean("address1");

    jc.getAddressList();
    jc.getAddressSet();
    jc.getAddressMap();
    jc.getAddressProp();

    obj.getAddress();
}`

Answer 1

Thats because you missed to override the toString() method in Address, hence you are getting the default Output witch is the object identifier.

public String toString() {

    String stringX = //build String
    return stringX;
}

Note: optionaly you can add the @Override – at the top of the methods.
This has the following benefits:

• The compiler checks that you are really overriding a method.
• Other Programmers can easily see that you are overrding a method.

Even so it may be a bit redundent for a commonenly overriden method such as toString().

Other important methods that should commonly be overriden (but usually are forgotten) equals and toHashCode. It is important to override these for a variety of reasons explained here.