In Swift, private methods are those that can be accessed only within the class or struct they are defined in. Private methods provide enhanced encapsulation and data hiding so that implementation details of a class or struct can be kept hidden from the outside world. Below is an example on how to use private methods in Swift:
class Student {
private var name: String
private var age: Int
init(name: String, age: Int) {
self.name = name
self.age = age
}
func printDetails() {
// Accessing private method within class
self.printAge()
}
private func printAge() {
print("Age: \(self.age)")
}
}
let student = Student(name: "John", age: 20)
student.printDetails()
// Output: Age: 20
// Attempting to access private method outside the class will result in a compile-time error
// student.printAge() // This will throw a compiler error
In the example above, we define a Student class with two private properties: name and age. We also define two methods: printDetails() and printAge(). printDetails() is a public method that can be accessed outside the class and it calls the private printAge() method within the Student class. The printAge() method, on the other hand, is marked as private and can only be accessed within the class.
When we create an instance of Student and call printDetails(), it successfully calls the private printAge() method and prints the age of the student. But if we try to call printAge() from outside the class, we get a compiler error as it is a private method and cannot be accessed from outside the class.