Overwrite String variable contents if variable is blank

Question

I am having trouble with a piece of my program, shown here:

String degree1 = degree.getText();

if(degree1 == ""){
   degree1 = "Undergrad";}

I want the program to get the text in a textField into a variable, and if that field is blank, to change the contents of the variable to 'Undergrad'

Whenever I test my program, it returns a blank instead of 'Undergrad'

Compare `String` values with `String`'s `equals` method, not with the `==` operator. — rgettman, Nov 25 '13 at 20:54
Oh damn, I did not see the string comparison question when I was looking for a similar question. Sorry guys, and thanks for the help. — Bribe Guntails, Nov 25 '13 at 20:59

score 0 · Accepted Answer · answered Nov 25 '13 at 20:55

It is because you are using == for string comparison. Use if ("".equals(degree1)) instead.

Operator == compares references, i.e. it returns true for the same object only. If 2 objects are equal but not identical == returns false. This is why class Object contains method equals() that can (and typically should) be overridden by subclasses.

score 0 · Answer 2 · answered Nov 25 '13 at 20:55

0

In Java strings are compared using equals method of String class not == operator

answered Nov 25 '13 at 20:55

Artur

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Overwrite String variable contents if variable is blank

2 Answers2