How should I structure a Java application, where do I put my classes?

Question

First of all, I know how to build a Java application. But I have always been puzzled about where to put my classes. There are proponents for organizing the packages in a str

Answer 1

One thing I've done in the past - if I'm extending a class I'll try and follow their conventions. For example, when working with the Spring Framework, I'll have my MVC Controller classes in a package called com.mydomain.myapp.web.servlet.mvc If I'm not extending something I just go with what is simplest. com.mydomain.domain for Domain Objects (although if you have a ton of domain objects this package could get a bit unwieldy). For domain specific constants, I actually put them as public constants in the most related class. For example, if I have a "Member" class and have a maximum member name length constant, I put it in the Member class. Some shops make a separate Constants class but I don't see the value in lumping unrelated numbers and strings into a single class. I've seen some other shops try to solve this problem by creating SEPARATE Constants classes, but that just seems like a waste of time and the result is too confusing. Using this setup, a large project with multiple developers will be duplicating constants all over the place.