In Java generics, wildcards are used to relax the type constraints of generic types. The extends wildcard ( extends Type>) denotes an upper bounded wildcard, allowing any type that is a subclass of Type. Conversely, the super wildcard ( super Type>) denotes a lower bounded wildcard, allowing any type that is a superclass of Type.
Option A:
java
public List super IOException> getListSuper() {
return new ArrayList();
}
Here, List super IOException> represents a list that can hold IOException objects and objects of its supertypes. Since Exception is a superclass of IOException, ArrayList is compatible with List super IOException>. Therefore, this method compiles successfully.
Option B:
java
public List extends IOException> getListExtends() {
return new ArrayList();
}
In this case, List extends IOException> represents a list that can hold objects of IOException and its subclasses. Since FileNotFoundException is a subclass of IOException, ArrayList is compatible with List extends IOException>. Thus, this method compiles successfully.
Option C:
java
public List extends IOException> getListExtends() {
return new ArrayList();
}
Here, List extends IOException> expects a list of IOException or its subclasses. However, Exception is a superclass of IOException, not a subclass. Therefore, ArrayList is not compatible with List extends IOException>, and this method will not compile.
Option D:
java
public List super IOException> getListSuper() {
return new ArrayList();
}
In this scenario, List super IOException> expects a list that can hold IOException objects and objects of its supertypes. Since FileNotFoundException is a subclass of IOException, ArrayList is not compatible with List super IOException>, and this method will not compile.
Therefore, the methods in options A and B compile successfully, while those in options C and D do not.