Synthetic Class in Java

Question

What is a synthetic class in Java? Why should it be used? How can I use it?

Answer 1

If I get it right, a synthetic class is one generated on the fly, without having to give it an explicit name. For example:

//...
Thread myThread = new Thread() {
         public void run() {
           // do something ...
         }
       };
myThread.start();
//...

This creates a synthetic subclass of Thread and overrides its run() method, then instantiates it and starts it.