Package org.springframework.context

This package builds on the beans package to add support for message sources and for the Observer design pattern, and the ability for application objects to obtain resources using a consistent API.

See:
Description

Interface Summary

ApplicationContext	Central interface to provide configuration for an application.
ApplicationContextAware	Interface to be implemented by any object that wishes to be notified of the ApplicationContext that it runs in.
ApplicationEventPublisher	Interface that encapsulates event publication functionality.
ApplicationEventPublisherAware	Interface to be implemented by any object that wishes to be notified of the ApplicationEventPublisher (typically the ApplicationContext) that it runs in.
ApplicationListener	Interface to be implemented by application event listeners.
ConfigurableApplicationContext	SPI interface to be implemented by most if not all application contexts.
HierarchicalMessageSource	Sub-interface of MessageSource to be implemented by objects that can resolve messages hierarchically.
Lifecycle	Interface defining methods for start/stop lifecycle control.
MessageSource	Strategy interface for resolving messages, with support for the parameterization and internationalization of such messages.
MessageSourceAware	Interface to be implemented by any object that wishes to be notified of the MessageSource (typically the ApplicationContext) that it runs in.
MessageSourceResolvable	Interface for objects that are suitable for message resolution in a MessageSource.
ResourceLoaderAware	Interface to be implemented by any object that wishes to be notified of the ResourceLoader (typically the ApplicationContext) that it runs in.

Class Summary

ApplicationEvent

Class to be extended by all application events.

Exception Summary

ApplicationContextException	Exception thrown during application context initialization.
NoSuchMessageException	Exception thrown when a message can't be resolved.

Package org.springframework.context Description

This package builds on the beans package to add support for message sources and for the Observer design pattern, and the ability for application objects to obtain resources using a consistent API.

There is no necessity for Spring applications to depend on ApplicationContext or even BeanFactory functionality explicitly. One of the strengths of the Spring architecture is that application objects can often be configured without any dependency on Spring-specific APIs.