A phantom reference is one of the strengths or levels of 'non strong' reference defined in the Java programming language; the others being weak and soft.
An object is phantomly referenced after it has been finalized, but before its allocated memory has been reclaimed.
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Famous quotes containing the words phantom and/or reference:
“It was a favor for which to be forever silent to be shown this vision. The earth beneath had become such a flitting thing of lights and shadows as the clouds had been before. It was not merely veiled to me, but it had passed away like the phantom of a shadow, skias onar, and this new platform was gained. As I had climbed above storm and cloud, so by successive days journeys I might reach the region of eternal day, beyond the tapering shadow of the earth.”
—Henry David Thoreau (18171862)
“If we define a sign as an exact reference, it must include symbol because a symbol is an exact reference too. The difference seems to be that a sign is an exact reference to something definite and a symbol an exact reference to something indefinite.”
—William York Tindall (19031981)