Host Support for Packages

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Each Java host determines:

How packages, compilation units, and sub-packages are created and stored,
Which top-level package names are in scope in a particular compilation, and
Which packages are accessible

The packages may be stored:

In a local file system, or:
In a distributed file system, or:
In some form of database

On Microsoft Windows and on Unix systems, they are typically stored in a directory hierarchy that matches the naming hierarchy. This typically means that a package is a directory containing .class files and/or subdirectories. The subdirectories are sub-packages of that package.

Note: Remember:

Package and class names are case-sensitive!
Somehow, the package directory must be accessible through the CLASSPATH environment variable.

This page was last modified on 02 October, 2007