signature

 

  A method’s signature is defined as its number, type, and order of parameters.

 

  Return types don’t count in the signature for overloading purposes.  For overriding, return types do count, and they must match.

 

  Exceptions thrown don’t count in the signature.

 

  Modifiers like static don’t count in the signature.

 

  Defining identical methods but with different return types is seen as a duplicate overloading error (duplicate methods) by the compiler.