Does Java have dynamic variables for class members?
- by Arvanem
Hi folks,
I am wondering whether it is possible to make dynamic variables in Java. In other words, variables that change depending on my instructions. 
FYI, I am making a trading program. A given merchant will have an array of items for sale for various prices. 
The dynamism I am calling for comes in because each category of items for sale has its own properties. For example, a book item has two properties: int pages, and boolean hardCover.  In contrast, a bookmark item has one property, String pattern. 
Here are skeleton snippets of code so you can see what I am trying to do:
public class Merchants extends /* certain parent class */ {
        // only 10 items for sale to begin with
        Stock[] itemsForSale = new Stock[10]; 
        // Array holding Merchants
        public static Merchants[] merchantsArray = new Merchants[maxArrayLength];
        // method to fill array of stock goes here
}
and 
public class Stock {
    int stockPrice;
    int stockQuantity;
    String stockType; // e.g. book and bookmark
    // Dynamic variables here, but they should only be invoked depending on stockType
    int pages;
    boolean hardCover;
    String pattern;
}