Using Package Protected Scope

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In Java if you don’t provide an access modifier the default scope for variables is package-protected level. This means that classes can access the variables of other classes within the same package as if those variables were publicly available.

package foo.bar

public class ExampleClass {
    double exampleNumber;
    String exampleString;

    public ExampleClass() {
        exampleNumber = 3;
        exampleString = "Test String";
    }
    //No getters or setters
}

package foo.bar

public class AnotherClass {
    ExampleClass clazz = new ExampleClass();

    System.out.println("Example Number: " + clazz.exampleNumber);
    //Prints Example Number: 3
    System.out.println("Example String: " + clazz.exampleString);
    //Prints Example String: Test String
}

This method will not work for a class in another package:

package baz.foo

public class ThisShouldNotWork {
    ExampleClass clazz = new ExampleClass();

    System.out.println("Example Number: " + clazz.exampleNumber);
    //Throws an exception
    System.out.println("Example String: " + clazz.exampleString);
    //Throws an exception
}

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