"Access of undefined property" errors when the property is actually defined - actionscript-3

Question

Answered my own question: I can't declare any variables out in the open like that in my class. They have to be declared in a function, in this case, initialize();
I have a class called "Sushi"
package {
public class Sushi {
private var cName: String; // This is the name of the sushi.
private var cBio: String; // This is the description of the sushi.
private var cWeight: Number; // This is the weight modifier of the sushi (please keep it between 0.1 and 2.0).
//public var cSprite: MovieClip; // This is the sushi's graphic.
private var cResist: Number; // This is the sushi's resistance modifier.
public function setName(n:String): void {
cName = n;
}
public function setBio(b:String): void {
cBio = b;
}
public function setWeight(w:Number): void {
cWeight = w;
}
public function setResist(r:Number): void {
cResist = r;
}
public function getName(): String {
return cName;
}
public function setCurrentChar(): void {
MainClass.curChar = this;
}
}
}
...and a main class. My main class creates two Sushi objects: test1 and test2.
private var test1 = new Sushi();
test1.setName("Test1");
private var test2 = new Sushi();
test2.setName("Test2");
Whenever I run it, I get the errors "Access of undefined property test1" and the same for test2. What am I doing wrong and how can I learn from my mistake?

Answer 1

Because you declared your members as private, they are not accessible outside the scope of the class.
In classes there are access modifiers which control scope. For example:
internal — visible to references inside the same package
private — visible to references in the same class
protected — visible to references in the same class and derived classes
public — visible to references everywhere
static — specifies that a property belongs to the class, as opposed to instances of the class
In your example Sushi class, because you declared those members as private they can only be seen by the Sushi class.
package {
public class Sushi {
private var cName:String;
public function setName(n:String): void {
cName = n;
}
}
}
However, you could declare the member as public:
package {
public class Sushi {
public var cName:String;
}
}
When declared as public, you can now access them like:
var sushi:Sushi = new Sushi();
suschi.name = "Kappa Maki";
Your workaround is what's regarded as a property, in which a getter and setter are defined for a variable.
For example, here _price is property only the Sushi class has access to; however, it exposes two public methods to get or set the price value:
package {
public class Sushi {
private var _price:Number;
public function get price():Number {
return _price;
}
public function set price(value:Number):void {
_price = value;
}
}
}
This object-oriented programming concept is known as encapsulation, and helps to hide internal complexities of your class.
By removing the setter, you can create a read-only property:
package {
public class Sushi {
private var _price:Number = 7.99;
public function get price():Number {
return _price;
}
}
}
Now, you can retrieve get the price; however, you cannot set it.
var sushi:Sushi = new Sushi();
trace("price is: $" + sushi.price); // traces: price is: $7.99
If you try to set the property, your compiler will throw an error:
var sushi:Sushi = new Sushi();
sushi.price = 1.99; // throws error: Property price is read-only.
Per their initialization, you can set their default value inline to their definition, as in:
package {
public class Sushi {
public var cName:String = "Kappa Maki";
}
}
Alternatively, you can set their initial values in the class constructor which is executed when you declare a new instance:
package {
public class Sushi {
public var cName:String;
public function Sushi {
cName = "Kappa Maki";
}
}
}