InnerClass troubles

Hey,
Im trying to use a variable from an inner/nested class in an outer class. My code is:

Code :

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import java.awt.*;
import javax.swing.*;
import java.io.File;
import java.awt.event.ActionListener;
import java.awt.event.ActionEvent;
import javax.swing.filechooser.FileFilter;
public class FileChooser {
 
    public static void main(String[] args) {
        GridLayout myLayout = new GridLayout(2, 1);
        final JFrame mainFrame = new JFrame( "Yes No Dino");
        mainFrame.setSize(400,200);        
        JPanel myPanel = new JPanel();
        myPanel.setLayout(myLayout);
 
        JButton selectFile = new JButton ("Click to choose your file");
        JButton outputFile = new JButton ("Click to open your file");
 
        final JFileChooser fc = new JFileChooser();
 
        ActionListener chooseFile = new ActionListener(){
   public void actionPerformed(ActionEvent e){
 
 
       // Show open dialog; this method does not return until the dialog is closed
       fc.showOpenDialog(mainFrame);
       File selFile = fc.getSelectedFile();
 
    }
};
 
        System.out.println(selFile);
 
        myPanel.add(selectFile);
        selectFile.addActionListener(chooseFile);
        mainFrame.getContentPane().add(myPanel);
        mainFrame.setVisible(true);
 
 
    }
}

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But for some reason it says "cannot find symbol- variable selFile" when i try to print it out. How do i use variables from inner classes in outer classes

Inner Classes have access to Outer Class instance varaiables. Reverse is not true, i.e., Outer class doesn't have access to inner class variables.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by geminionweb

Inner Classes have access to Outer Class instance varaiables. Reverse is not true, i.e., Outer class doesn't have access to inner class variables.

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Outer classes do have access to inner class variables, providing you have a reference to an instance of the inner class, the variable you are accessing is an instance variable with the appropriate visibility. In the above posted code, this is not the case - the selFile variable does not have scope outside the actionPerformed method.

So, how would i access a variable from the innerclass, or make a reference to the instance (im not quite sure what that is). Is there a method for a string that allows me to set it as something else?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by pottsiex5

So, how would i access a variable from the innerclass, or make a reference to the instance (im not quite sure what that is). Is there a method for a string that allows me to set it as something else?

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There are quite a few ways to accomplish this, most (and the ones I would encourage) involve an Object Oriented approach. One way: have your FileChooser class extend JFrame, and use this class to create your JFrame. This allows you to have instance variables within the FileChooser class that can be set by inner classes. Your ActionListener would than be an inner class of FileChooser, in which case it has access to the FileChooser instance variables so it can set these as appropriate.