Yes Roger, this sounds better to me.
Maybe even easier:
"There is no guarantee that this effort will recycle any particular
number of unused objects, reclaim any particular amount of space, or
complete before the method returns (or ever)."
So, hypothetically, the effort triggered by System.gc() may never
complete although the method will eventually return. Is this what was
meant to be said?
Is it necessary to have this (or ever) at the end? What's the purpose of
it? If the method returns before the attempt completes, there's no way
to track the attempt to its completion and doesn't matter if it
eventually completes or not. The completion is already out of bounds for
this method when it says: "there is not guarantee that the attempt
completes before the method returns"...
Regards, Peter
On 5/30/19 4:42 PM, Roger Riggs wrote:
Hi,
Though I see your point about gc() eventually returns, the spec
typically does not
guarantee than any method eventually returns. That's more a quality
of service attribute.
The sentence refers to the effort to reclaim space, not the method call.
Would it clarify the case to add a qualification to the end of the
sentence:
" before the method returns or ever."
As a whole:
* Runs the garbage collector in the Java Virtual Machine.
* <p>
* Calling this method suggests that the Java Virtual Machine
* expend effort toward recycling unused objects in order to
* make the memory they currently occupy available for reuse
* by the Java Virtual Machine.
* When control returns from the method call, the Java Virtual Machine
* has made a best effort to reclaim space from all unused objects.
* There is no guarantee that this effort will recycle any particular
* number of unused objects, reclaim any particular amount of space,
* or complete at any particular time, if at all <b>before the
method returns or ever</b>.
Thanks, Roger
On 05/30/2019 06:27 AM, Roman Kennke wrote:
Any other comments on:
"* Runs the garbage collector in the Java Virtual Machine.
* <p>
* Calling this method suggests that the Java Virtual Machine
* expend effort toward recycling unused objects in order to
* make the memory they currently occupy available for reuse
* by the Java Virtual Machine.
The following two statements...
1st:
* When control returns from the method call, the Java Virtual Machine
* has made a best effort to reclaim space from all discarded objects.
2nd:
* There is no guarantee that this effort will recycle any particular
* number of unused objects, reclaim any particular amount of space,
* *or complete* at any particular time, if *at all*.
"
...makes one think that it is OK (by the spec) for System.gc() to never
complete.
Could it rather be specified that System.gc() eventually completes?
+1 I was thinking the same.
I think the intention is that GC may never actually complete, but
System.gc() must be guaranteed to eventually return.
Roman
