The Java Language Specification, Third Edition

8.1.1 Class Modifiers CLASSES
176
If two or more class modifiers appear in a class declaration, then it is customary,
though not required, that they appear in the order consistent with that shown
above in the production for ClassModifier.
8.1.1.1 abstract Classes
An abstract class is a class that is incomplete, or to be considered incomplete.
Normal classes may have abstract methods (§8.4.3.1, §9.4), that is methods
that are declared but not yet implemented, only if they are abstract classes.
If a normal class that is not abstract contains an abstract method, then a compile-time
error occurs.
Enum types (§8.9) must not be declared abstract; doing so will result in a
compile-time error. It is a compile-time error for an enum type E to have an
abstract method m as a member unless E has one or more enum constants, and all
of E’s enum constants have class bodies that provide concrete implementations of
m. It is a compile-time error for the class body of an enum constant to declare an
abstract method.
A class C has abstract methods if any of the following is true:
• C explicitly contains a declaration of an abstract method (§8.4.3).
• Any of C’s superclasses has an abstract method and C neither declares nor
inherits a method that implements (§8.4.8.1) it.
• A direct superinterface (§8.1.5) of C declares or inherits a method (which is
therefore necessarily abstract) and C neither declares nor inherits a method
that implements it.
In the example:
DRAFT
abstract class Point {
int x = 1, y = 1;
void move(int dx, int dy) {
x += dx;
y += dy;
alert();
}
abstract void alert();
}
abstract class ColoredPoint extends Point {
int color;
}