Editing JavaLanguage (section)

====Finalize====
Before an object gets garbage-collected, the garbage collector gives the object an opportunity to clean up after itself through a call to the object's finalize method. This process is known as ''finalization. ''The finalize method must be declared as follows and it is good practice to apply the following pattern:

 protected void finalize() throws Throwable
 {
   try
   {
     <statements>
   }
   finally
   {
     super.finalize();
   }
 }

There is a great difference between the C++ dtor and the finalize() method in java. The dtor is called when an object is deleted. The finalize() method is called by the garbage collector, so it might be called never. Finalize() methods are not chained automatically but have to be chained explicitly. There the last statement should be <code>super.finalize();</code>.

In einem standard java program finalize is not called for the object with the main method (logisch
but Java 1.1 had added a static method called runFinalizerOnExit() in the system class that will guarantee the the finalize method is called before java shuts down. Remember that you do not know when it is called.