GroovyBeans are JavaBeans but using a much simpler syntax.
Here's an example:
import java.util.Date class Customer { // properties Integer id String name Date dob // sample code static void main(args) { customer = new Customer(id:1, name:"Gromit", dob:new Date()) println("Hello ${customer.name}") } }
Hello Gromit
Notice how the properties look just like public fields. You can also set named properties in a bean constructor in Groovy. In Groovy, fields and properties have been merged so that they act and look the same. So, the Groovy code above is equivalent to the following Java code:
import java.util.Date; public class Customer { // properties private Integer id; private String name; private Date dob; public Integer getId() { return this.id; } public String getName() { return this.name; } public Date getDob() { return this.dob; } public void setId(Integer id) { this.id = id; } public void setName(String name) { this.name = name; } public void setDob(Date dob) { this.dob = dob; } // sample code public static void main(String[] args) { Customer customer = new Customer(); customer.setId(1); customer.setName("Gromit"); customer.setDob(new Date()); println("Hello " + customer.getName()); } }
When Groovy is compiled to bytecode, the following rules are used.
So, for example, you could create a read only property or a public read-only property with a protected setter like this:
class Foo { // read only property private String name public String getName() { return name } // read only property with protected setter Integer amount protected void setAmount(Integer amount) { this.amount = amount } // dynamically typed property cheese }