Comments

In Java, comments are used to explain code, make it more readable, or to temporarily disable certain parts of the code for debugging purposes. Comments are ignored by the Java compiler and do not affect the execution of the program.

Types of Comments in Java

Single-line Comments

These are used for brief explanations or to comment out a single line of code. They start with //.

// This is a single-line comment
int x = 10;  // Declaring variable x

Multi-line Comments

These are used for longer explanations that span multiple lines. They start with /* and end with */.

/*
 This is a multi-line comment
 that spans more than one line.
*/
int y = 20;

Javadoc Comments

These are special multi-line comments used to document Java classes, methods, constructors, and fields. They begin with /** and end with */. Javadoc comments can be processed by the Javadoc tool to generate HTML documentation.

Best Practices for Comments

• Keep comments concise and relevant.
• Use comments to explain why something is done, not what is done (the code itself should be self-explanatory for the latter).
• Update comments when code changes to prevent mismatches.