Static method used in a class

Question

I have a static method(addItem) in a class, why do we need to wrap the addItem(..) uses with static parenthesis? why do we need the static word? TNX

public class Something{

 static {

        addItem(new DummyItem("1", "A"));
        addItem(new DummyItem("2", "B"));
        addItem(new DummyItem("3", "C"));
    }

    private static void addItem(DummyItem item) {
       ......
    }


}

Answer 1

The static block

static {
    ....
}

defines a static initializer. The block of code is run exactly once, when the class is initialized. You can call static methods in any method, not just in static intializers. So for example you could also write

public void foo() {
    Something.addItem(new DummyItem("1", "A"));
}

This code would be called whenever the method foo() was called.