[java] How do getters and setters work?

1. The best getters / setters are smart.

Here's a javascript example from mozilla:

var o = { a:0 } // `o` is now a basic object

Object.defineProperty(o, "b", { 
    get: function () { 
        return this.a + 1; 
    } 
});

console.log(o.b) // Runs the getter, which yields a + 1 (which is 1)

I've used these A LOT because they are awesome. I would use it when getting fancy with my coding + animation. For example, make a setter that deals with an Number which displays that number on your webpage. When the setter is used it animates the old number to the new number using a tweener. If the initial number is 0 and you set it to 10 then you would see the numbers flip quickly from 0 to 10 over, let's say, half a second. Users love this stuff and it's fun to create.

2. Getters / setters in php

Example from sof

<?php
class MyClass {
  private $firstField;
  private $secondField;

  public function __get($property) {
    if (property_exists($this, $property)) {
      return $this->$property;
    }
  }

  public function __set($property, $value) {
    if (property_exists($this, $property)) {
      $this->$property = $value;
    }

    return $this;
  }
}
?>

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