Problem

Identify the problems in the code sample below. Fix the errors so that the code works correctly.

public class Triangle
{
   int base;
   int height;

   public static int getArea()
   {
      return ( this.base * this.height / 2 );
   }
}

public static void main()
{
   Triangle tri = new Triangle();
   int area;

   area = tri.getArea();
}

SideSectionTitle

Taken from http://www.flickr.com/photos/daniello/565304023/

An image or By Students section

Solution

The problem with this code is that it attempts to use instance variables in a static method. To fix it, you must pass the arguments in as parameters.

Code

Solution Code

public class Triangle
{
   int base;
   int height;

   public static int getArea( int height, int base )
   {
      return ( base * height / 2 );
   }
}

public static void main()
{
   Triangle tri = new Triangle();
   int area;

   area = Triangle.getArea( tri.getBase(), tri.getHeight() );
}