Module 2: String Handling

Module 2
String Handling

String Handling :The String Constructors, String Length, Special String Operations, Character
Extraction, String Comparison, Searching Strings, Modifying a String, Data Conversion Using
valueOf( ), Changing the Case of Characters Within a String, joining strings, Additional String
Methods, StringBuffer , StringBuilder

1. What are the different types of String Constructors available in Java?

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The String class supports several constructors.
a. To create an empty String
the default constructor is used.
Ex: String s = new String();

.
will create an instance of String with no characters in it.

ex:
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b. To create a String initialized by an array of characters, use the constructor
shown here:
String(char chars[ ])
char chars[] = { 'a', 'b', 'c' };
String s = new String(chars);
This constructor initializes s with the string “abc”.
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c. To specify a subrange of a character array as an initializer using the following
constructor:
String(char chars[ ], int startIndex, int numChars)

Here, startIndex specifies the index at which the subrange begins, and
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numChars specifies the number of characters to use. Here is an

example:
char chars[] = { 'a', 'b', 'c', 'd', 'e', 'f' };
String s = new String(chars, 2, 3);
This initializes s with the characters cde.
d. To construct a String object that contains the same character sequence as
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another String object using this constructor:

String(String strObj)
Here, strObj is a String object.

class MakeString
{
public static void main(String args[])
{
char c[] = {'J', 'a', 'v', 'a'};
String s1 = new String(c);

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 Module 2: String Handling

String s2 = new
String(s1);
System.out.println(s1);
System.out.println(s2);
}
}
The output from this program is as follows:
Java
Java

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As you can see, s1 and s2 contain the same string.

e. To Construct string using byte array:

Even though Java’s char type uses 16 bits to represent the basic Unicode
character set, the typical format for strings on the Internet uses arrays of

.
8-bit bytesconstructed from the ASCII character set. Because 8-bit ASCII

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strings are common, the String class provides constructors that initialize a
string when given a byte array.
Ex: String(byte asciiChars[ ])
String(byte asciiChars[ ], int startIndex, int numChars)

The following program illustrates these

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constructors:class SubStringCons
{
public static void main(String args[])
{
byte ascii[] = {65, 66, 67, 68, 69, 70 };
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String s1 = new String(ascii);

System.out.println(s1);
String s2 = new String(ascii, 2, 3);
System.out.println(s2);
}
}
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This program generates the following output:

ABCD
EF
CDE

f. To construct a String from a StringBuffer by using the constructor

shownhere:
Ex: String(StringBuffer strBufObj)

g. Constructing string using Unicode character set and is shown

here:String(int codePoints[ ], int startIndex, int
numChars)

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 Module 2: String Handling

codePoints is an array that contains Unicode code points.

h. Constructing string that supports the new StringBuilder

class.Ex : String(StringBuilder strBuildObj)

Note:
String can be constructed by using string
literals.String s1=”Hello World”

in
String concatenation can be done using + operator. With other data type also.

String Length
1. The length of a string is the number of characters that it contains. To

.
obtainthis value, call the length( ) method,
2. Syntax:
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int length( )
3. Example
char chars[] = { 'a', 'b', 'c' }; String s = new String(chars);
System.out.println(s.length());// 3
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toString()
1. Every class implements toString( ) because it is defined by
Object.However, the default Implementation of toString() is
sufficient.
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2. For most important classes that you create, will want to override
toString()and provide your own string representations.
String toString( )
3. To implement toString( ), simply return a String object that contains
the human-readable string that appropriately describes an object of your
class.
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4. By overriding toString() for classes that you create, you allow them to
befully integrated into Java’s programming environment. For example,
theycan be used in print() and println() statements and in
concatenation expressions.

5. The following program demonstrates this by

overridingtoString( ) for the Box class:

class Box
{
double width; double height; double
depth;Box(double w, double h, double

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 Module 2: String Handling

d)
{
width = w; height = h; depth = d;
}

public String toString()

{
return "Dimensions are " + width + " by " + depth + " by " + height + "."; }
}

class toStringDemo

in
{
public static void main(String args[])
{
Box b = new Box(10, 12, 14);
String s = "Box b: " + b;

.
System.out.println(b);

}
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System.out.println(s);
}

The output of this program is shown here:

Dimensions are 10.0 by 14.0 by 12.0
Box b: Dimensions are 10.0 by 14.0 by 12.0
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Character Extraction
The String class provides a number of ways in which characters can be
extracted from a String object. String object can not be indexed as if they
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were a character array, many of the String methods employ an index (or
offset) into the string for their operation. Like arrays, the string indexes
beginat zero.
A. charAt( )
1. description:
To extract a single character from a String, you can refer directly to
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anindividual character via the charAt( ) method.

2. Syntax
char charAt(int where)
Here, where is the index of the character that you want to
obtain.charAt( ) returns the character at the specified location.

3. example,
char ch;
ch = "abc".charAt(1);
assigns the value “b” to
ch.
Java Program

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 Module 2: String Handling

public class CharAtExample

{
public static void main(String[] args)
{
String sampleString = "Hello, World!";
// Get the character at index 1
char characterAtIndex1 = sampleString.charAt(1);

// Print the character

System.out.println("The character at index 1 is: " + characterAtIndex1);

in
// Get the character at index 7
char characterAtIndex7 = sampleString.charAt(7);

// Print the character

.
System.out.println("The character at index 7 is: " + characterAtIndex7);

ud // Example with user input

String userInput = "Java Programming";
int index = 5;
char characterAtIndex = userInput.charAt(index);
System.out.println("The character at index " + index + " in \"" +
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userInput + "\" is: " + characterAtIndex);
}
}

Output:
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The character at index 1 is: e

The character at index 7 is: W
The character at index 5 in "Java Programming" is: P

B. getChars( )
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1. to extract more than one character at a time, you can use the
getChars()method.
2. Syntax
void getChars(int sourceStart, int sourceEnd, char target[ ],
inttargetStart)

Here, sourceStart specifies the index of the beginning of the

substring,sourceEnd specifies an index that is one past the end of the desired
The array that will receive the characters is specified by target. The index
within target at which the substring will be copied is passed in targetStart.

Java Program

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 Module 2: String Handling

public class GetCharsExample {

public static void main(String[] args) {
String sampleString = "Hello, World!";

// Define the destination character array with sufficient length

char[] destinationArray = new char[5];

// Copy characters from sampleString to destinationArray

// starting from index 7 to 12 (exclusive of 12) from sampleString
// and place them starting at index 0 in destinationArray
sampleString.getChars(7, 12, destinationArray, 0);

in
// Print the destinationArray
System.out.print("The characters copied to destinationArray are: ");
for (char c : destinationArray) {
System.out.print(c);

.
}

}
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}

Output:
System.out.println();

The characters copied to destination Array are: World

class getCharsDemo
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{
public static void main(String args[])
{
String s = "This is a demo of the getChars method.";
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int start = 10;

int end = 14;
char buf[] = new char[end - start];
s.getChars(start, end, buf, 0);
System.out.println(buf);
}
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}
Here is the output of this program:
Demo

C. getBytes( )
1. This method is called getBytes( ), and it uses the default character-to-
byteconversions provided by the platform.
Syntax:
byte[ ] getBytes( )
Other forms of getBytes( ) are also available.
2. getBytes( ) is most useful when you are exporting a String value into an
environment that does not support 16-bit Unicode characters. For

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 Module 2: String Handling

example,most Internet protocols and text file formats use 8-bit ASCII
for all text interchange.

Java Program
public class GetBytesExample
{
public static void main(String[] args)
{
String sampleString = "Hello, World!";

in
// Get bytes from the string using the platform's default charset
byte[] byteArray = sampleString.getBytes();

// Print the bytes

System.out.println("The bytes of the string are:");

.
for (byte b : byteArray)
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}
System.out.print(b + " ");

System.out.println();

// Get bytes from the string using a specified charset (e.g., UTF-8)
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try
{
byte[] utf8ByteArray = sampleString.getBytes("UTF-8");
// Print the bytes
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System.out.println("The bytes of the string in UTF-8 are:");

for (byte b : utf8ByteArray)
{
System.out.print(b + " ");
}
System.out.println();
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}
catch (java.io.UnsupportedEncodingException e)
{
System.out.println("The specified charset is not supported.");
}
}
}

Output:

The bytes of the string are:

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 Module 2: String Handling

72 101 108 108 111 44 32 87 111 114 108 100 33

The bytes of the string in UTF-8 are:

72 101 108 108 111 44 32 87 111 114 108 100 33

D. toCharArray( )
If you want to convert all the characters in a String object into a
characterarray, the easiest way is to call toCharArray( ).

It returns an array of characters for the entire

in
string.It has this general form:
char[ ] toCharArray( )
Java Program

.
public class ToCharArrayExample
{

ud {
public static void main(String[] args)
String sampleString = "Hello, World!";
// Convert the string to a character array
char[] charArray = sampleString.toCharArray();
// Print the characters in the array
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System.out.print("The characters in the array are: ");
for (char c : charArray) {
System.out.print(c + " ");
}
System.out.println();
}
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}
Output:
The characters in the array are: H e l l o , W o r l d !

String Comparision
String comparison in Java can be performed using several methods, each serving different
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purposes and offering varying degrees of control over how the comparison is executed. Here
are some common ways to compare strings in Java:
The String class includes several methods that compare strings or substrings within
strings.
a. equals ( ):
To compare two strings for equality, use equals( ).
It has this general form:
boolean equals(Object str)
Here, str is the String object being compared with the invoking String object. It
returns true if the strings contain the same characters in the same order, and false
otherwise. The comparison is case-sensitive.

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 Module 2: String Handling

The equals( ) method compares the content of two strings for equality. It is case-
sensitive.
public class EqualsExample
{
public static void main(String[] args)
{
String str1 = "Hello";
String str2 = "Hello";
String str3 = "hello";

in
System.out.println(str1.equals(str2)); // true
System.out.println(str1.equals(str3)); // false
}
}

.
Output: true
false

b. equalsIgnoreCase( )
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To perform a comparison that ignores case differences, call equalsIgnoreCase( ).
When it compares two strings, it considers A-Z to be thesame as a-z.
It has this general form:
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boolean equalsIgnoreCase(String str)
Here, str is the String object being compared with the invoking String object. It, too,
returns true if the strings contain the same characters in the same order, and false
otherwise.
Example 1:
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public class EqualsIgnoreCaseTrueExample

{
public static void main(String[] args)
{
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// Define two strings

String str1 = "HelloWorld";

String str2 = "helloworld";

// Compare the two strings using equalsIgnoreCase()
boolean areEqual = str1.equalsIgnoreCase(str2);
// Print the result
if (areEqual)

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 Module 2: String Handling

{
System.out.println("The strings are equal.");
}
else

{
System.out.println("The strings are not equal.");
}

in
}
}

Output: The strings are equal.

.
Example2 :

{
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public class EqualsIgnoreCaseFalseExample

public static void main(String[] args)

{
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// Define two strings
String str1 = "HelloWorld";
String str2 = "HelloJava";
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// Compare the two strings using equalsIgnoreCase()

boolean areEqual = str1.equalsIgnoreCase(str2);

// Print the result
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if (areEqual)
{
System.out.println("The strings are equal (ignoring case).");

}
else
{
System.out.println("The strings are not equal.");
}

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 Module 2: String Handling

}
}
Output: The strings are not equal.
C. regionmatches( )

1. The regionMatches() method compares a specific region inside a string

with another specific region in another string. There is an overloaded
form that allows you to ignore case in such comparisons.
2. Syntax:
boolean regionMatches(int startIndex, String str2, int str2StartIndex,

in
intnumChars)

boolean regionMatches(boolean ignoreCase, int startIndex, String

str2,int str2StartIndex, int numChars)

.
3. For both versions, startIndex specifies the index at which the region begins
within the invoking String object.
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The String being compared is specified by str2. The index at which the
comparison will start within str2 is specified by str2 StartIndex. The length
ofthe substring being compared is passed in numChars.

4. In the second version, if ignoreCase is true, the case of the characters is

ignored. Otherwise, case is significant.
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The regionMatches() method in Java is used to compare a specific region of
one string with a region of another string. It allows you to specify the starting index
and the length of the region to compare.

Here is a simple program that demonstrates the use of the regionMatches() method.
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I'll provide two versions: one where regionMatches() returns true and another
where it returns false.
Program 1: regionMatches() Returns true
public class RegionMatchesTrueExample
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{
public static void main(String[] args)
{
// Define two strings
String str1 = "HelloWorld";
String str2 = "World";

// Compare regions of the two strings

boolean match = str1.regionMatches(5, str2, 0, 5);

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 Module 2: String Handling

// Print the result

if (match)
{
System.out.println("The regions match.");

}
else
{

in
System.out.println("The regions do not match.");
}

.
}

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Output: The region matches
Program 2: regionMatches() Returns false
public class RegionMatchesFalseExample

{
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public static void main(String[] args)
{
// Define two strings
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String str1 = "HelloWorld";

String str2 = "Java";

// Compare regions of the two strings
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boolean match = str1.regionMatches(5, str2, 0, 4);

// Print the result
if (match)

{
System.out.println("The regions match.");
}
else
{

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 Module 2: String Handling

System.out.println("The regions do not match.");

}
}
}

Output: The region do not match

d. startsWith( ) and endsWith( )
▪ The startsWith( ) method determines whether a given String begins
with aspecified string.

in
▪ endsWith( ) determines whether the String in question ends
with aspecified string.
▪ Syntax
• boolean startsWith(String str);
• boolean endsWith(String str);

.
• Here, str is the String being tested.

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• If the string matches, true is returned.
Otherwise, false is returned.
The startsWith() method in Java is used to check if a string begins with a specified prefix.
Here are two simple programs that demonstrate the use of the startsWith() method: one where
the method returns true and another where it returns false.
Program 1:
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public class StartsWithTrueExample
{
public static void main(String[] args)
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{
// Define the string
String str = "HelloWorld";
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// Define the prefix

String prefix = "Hello";

// Check if the string starts with the specified prefix

boolean result = str.startsWith(prefix);
// Print the result
if (result)
{
System.out.println("The string starts with the prefix.");

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 Module 2: String Handling

}
else
{
System.out.println("The string does not start with the prefix.");

}
}
}

in
Output: The string starts with the prefix
Program 1: StartsWithTrueExample

Define String: str is "HelloWorld".

.
Define Prefix: prefix is "Hello".

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Check Prefix: str.startsWith(prefix) returns true because str starts with "Hello".
Print Result: The program prints "The string starts with the prefix."
Program2 :

public class StartsWithFalseExample

lo
{
public static void main(String[] args)
{
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// Define the string

String str = "HelloWorld";

// Define the prefix
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String prefix = "World";

// Check if the string starts with the specified prefix
boolean result = str.startsWith(prefix);

// Print the result

if (result)
{
System.out.println("The string starts with the prefix.");
}

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 Module 2: String Handling

else
{
System.out.println("The string does not start with the prefix.");
}

}
}
Program 2: StartsWithFalseExample

in
Output: The string does not start with the prefix
Define String: str is "HelloWorld".

Define Prefix: prefix is "World".

.
Check Prefix: str.startsWith(prefix) returns false because str does not start with "World".

endswith ( ) method:
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Print Result: The program prints "The string does not start with the prefix."

The endsWith() method in Java is used to check if a string ends with a specified suffix. Here
are two simple programs that demonstrate the use of the endsWith() method: one where the
method returns true and another where it returns false.
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Program 1: endsWith() Returns true
public class EndsWithTrueExample
{
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public static void main(String[] args)

{
// Define the string
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String str = "HelloWorld";

// Define the suffix

String suffix = "World";

// Check if the string ends with the specified suffix
boolean result = str.endsWith(suffix);
// Print the result
if (result)

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 Module 2: String Handling

System.out.println("The string ends with the suffix.");

}
else
{

System.out.println("The string does not end with the suffix.");

}
}

in
}
Output: The string ends with the suffix

Program 1: EndsWithTrueExample

.
Define String: str is "HelloWorld".

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Define Suffix: suffix is "World".
Check Suffix: str.endsWith(suffix) returns true because str ends with "World".
Print Result: The program prints "The string ends with the suffix."

Program 2: endsWith() Returns false

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public class EndsWithFalseExample
{
public static void main(String[] args)
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// Define the string

String str = "HelloWorld";
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// Define the suffix

String suffix = "Hello";
// Check if the string ends with the specified suffix

boolean result = str.endsWith(suffix);

// Print the result
if (result)
{
System.out.println("The string ends with the suffix.");

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 Module 2: String Handling

}
else
{
System.out.println("The string does not end with the suffix.");

}
}
}

in
Output: The string does not end with the suffix
Program 2: EndsWithFalseExample

Define String: str is "HelloWorld".

.
Define Suffix: suffix is "Hello

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Check Suffix: str.endsWith(suffix) returns false because str does not end with "Hello".
Print Result: The program prints "The string does not end with the suffix."
e. equals( ) Versus ==
It is important to understand that the equals( ) method and the == operator
perform two different operations.
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the equals( ) method compares the characters inside a String object.
The == operator compares two object references to see whether they refer to the
same instance.

class EqualsNotEqualTo
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{
public static void main(String args[])
{
String s1 = "Hello";
String s2 = new String(s1);
System.out.println(s1 + " equals " + s2 + " -> " + s1.equals(s2));
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System.out.println(s1 + " == " + s2 + " -> " + (s1 == s2));

}
}
equals() Method
The equals() method is a method provided by the Object class, which is overridden by
many classes including String. It compares the content of two objects to determine if
they are logically equal. For strings, equals() compares the actual contents of the
strings, character by character.
String str1 = "Hello";
String str2 = "Hello";
String str3 = new String("Hello");

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 Module 2: String Handling

System.out.println(str1.equals(str2)); // true
System.out.println(str1.equals(str3)); // true

== Operator
The == operator in Java checks whether two object references point to the same
memory location, i.e., whether they refer to the same object. When applied to strings, it
checks whether two string variables refer to the same string object in memory.

String str1 = "Hello";

String str2 = "Hello";
String str3 = new String("Hello");

in
System.out.println(str1 == str2); // true (because of string literal pooling)
System.out.println(str1 == str3); // false (different memory locations)

.
Note:

f. compareTo( )
▪
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equals() compares the contents of two strings.

== compares the references of two string objects.

Sorting applications, you need to know which is less than, equal to, or
greater than the next.
▪
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A string is less than another if it comes before the other in dictionary
order. A string is greater than another if it comes after the other in
dictionary order. The String method compareTo() serves this purpose.
▪ It has this general form:
• int compareTo(String str)
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• Here, str is the String being compared with the invoking String. The result
of the comparison is returned and is interpreted,
▪ Less than zero when invoking string is less than str.
▪ Greater than zero when invoking string is greater than str.
▪ Zero The two strings are equal.
The compareTo() method in Java is used to compare two strings lexicographically. It
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returns an integer value based on the comparison result:

If the first string is lexicographically less than the second string, it returns a negative
integer.
If the strings are equal, it returns 0.
If the first string is lexicographically greater than the second string, it returns a positive
integer.

Here's a simple example demonstrating the use of the compareTo() method:

Program1:

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 Module 2: String Handling

public class CompareToExample

{
public static void main(String[] args)
{

String str1 = "apple";

String str2 = "banana";
int result = str1.compareTo(str2);

in
if (result < 0)
{

System.out.println(str1 + " comes before " + str2 + " lexicographically.");

.
}

{
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else if (result > 0)

System.out.println(str1 + " comes after " + str2 + " lexicographically.");

}
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else
{
System.out.println(str1 + " and " + str2 + " are equal lexicographically.");
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}
}
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In this example, "apple" is lexicographically less than "banana", so the compareTo()

method returns a negative integer. The program then prints that
Output: "apple" comes before "banana" lexicographically.

"Lexicographically" refers to the ordering of strings based on the alphabetical order of

their characters. When comparing strings lexicographically:

The comparison starts from the first character of each string.

If the characters at the corresponding positions are equal, the comparison continues to
the next characters.

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 Module 2: String Handling

If the characters differ, the string with the lower Unicode value at that position is
considered "smaller" in lexicographical order.
If one string ends before the other and all corresponding characters are equal, the
shorter string is considered "smaller".

For example:
"apple" comes before "banana" lexicographically because 'a' comes before 'b'.
"apple" comes after "ant" lexicographically because 'p' comes after 'n', even though 'p'
comes after 'n'.

in
"apple" and "apple" are considered equal lexicographically because they are identical.

Lexicographical comparison is not limited to alphabetic characters; it can be applied to

any sequence of characters, including digits and special characters, based on their
Unicode values.

.
5. Searching String

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A. indexOf( ) and lastIndexOf( )
1. indexOf( ) Searches for the first occurrence of a character orsubstring.

2. lastIndexOf( ) Searches for the last occurrence of a character orsubstring.

3. These two methods are overloaded in several different ways

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4. return the index at which the character or substring was found, or
–1 on failure.

5. To search for the first occurrence of a character, int indexOf(int ch)

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6. To search for the last occurrence of a character,

int lastIndexOf(int ch) Here, ch is the character being sought

7. To search for the first or last occurrence of a substring, use int indexOf(String
str) int lastIndexOf(String str) Here, str specifiesthe substring.
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8. You can specify a starting point for the search using these forms: int indexOf(int
ch, int startIndex)
int lastIndexOf(int ch, int startIndex)

9. int indexOf(String str, int startIndex) int lastIndexOf(String str, int startIndex)
Here, startIndex specifies the index at which point the search begins.
10. For indexOf( ), the search runs from startIndex to the end of
the string. For lastIndexOf( ), the search runs from startIndex to zero. The
following example shows how to use the various index methods to search inside
of Strings:

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 Module 2: String Handling

The indexOf() method is a function commonly found in programming languages, particularly

in languages like JavaScript. It is used to determine the index of the first occurrence of a
specified value within a string or an array. Here's a brief explanation of how it works:

For Strings: In the context of strings, indexOf() searches the string for a specified substring
and returns the position of the first occurrence of that substring. If the substring is not found,
it returns -1.

let str = "Hello, world!";

console.log(str.indexOf("world")); // Output: 7

in
console.log(str.indexOf("Earth")); // Output: -1 (not found)

or Arrays: In the context of arrays, indexOf() searches the array for a specified item and
returns the index of the first occurrence of that item. If the item is not found, it returns -1.

.
Javascript

ud
let arr = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5];

console.log(arr.indexOf(3)); // Output: 2

console.log(arr.indexOf(6)); // Output: -1 (not found)

Java Program
lo
public class IndexOfDemo

{
uc

public static void main(String[] args)

// Example with a String

String str = "Hello, world!";

vt

int stringIndex = str.indexOf("world");

System.out.println("Index of 'world' in string: " + stringIndex); // Output: 7

// Example with an Array

int[] arr = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5};

int arrayIndex = indexOf(arr, 3);

System.out.println("Index of 3 in array: " + arrayIndex); // Output: 2

Prof. Radha R, Dept. of ISE, SVIT Page 21

 Module 2: String Handling

// Helper method to find the index of an element in an array

public static int indexOf(int[] array, int value)

for (int i = 0; i < array.length; i++)

if (array[i] == value)

in
{

return i;

.
}

}}
} ud
return -1; // Value not found in the array

Output:
lo
Index of 'world' in string : 7

Index of 3 in array: 2
uc

The lastIndexOf() method is similar to the indexOf() method but searches for the last
occurrence of a specified value instead of the first occurrence. Here's a small Java program
demonstrating the use of the lastIndexOf() method for both a string and an array.

public class LastIndexOfDemo

{
vt

public static void main(String[] args)

{

// Example with a String

String str = "Hello, world! Hello, everyone!";
int stringLastIndex = str.lastIndexOf("Hello");
System.out.println("Last index of 'Hello' in string: " + stringLastIndex);
// Output: 14

Prof. Radha R, Dept. of ISE, SVIT Page 22

 Module 2: String Handling

// Example with an Array

int[] arr = {1, 2, 3, 4, 3, 2, 1};
int arrayLastIndex = lastIndexOf(arr, 3);
System.out.println("Last index of 3 in array: " + arrayLastIndex); // Output: 4

}
// Helper method to find the last index of an element in an array
public static int lastIndexOf(int[] array, int value)

in
{
for (int i = array.length - 1; i >= 0; i--)

.
if (array[i] == value)
{

}
ud
return i;

}
lo
return -1; // Value not found in the array

}
uc

Output:

Last index of 'Hello' in string: 14

Last index of 3 in array: 4
vt

5. Modifying a String
String objects are immutable, whenever you want to modify a String, you must either
copy it into a StringBuffer or StringBuilder, or use one of the following String methods,
which will construct a new copy of the string with your modifications complete.
The substring() method in Java is used to extract a part of a string. It has two
overloaded versions:

substring(int beginIndex): Returns a new string that is a substring of the original string,
starting from the specified index to the end of the string.
substring(int beginIndex, int endIndex): Returns a new string that is a substring of the
original string, starting from the specified index to the specified end index (exclusive).
Here's a small Java program that demonstrates the use of both versions of the substring()

Prof. Radha R, Dept. of ISE, SVIT Page 23

 Module 2: String Handling

method:
Java Program:

public class SubstringDemo

{
public static void main(String[] args)
{
// Original String

in
String str = "Hello, world!";
// Using substring(beginIndex)
String subStr1 = str.substring(7);

.
System.out.println("Substring from index 7: " + subStr1); // Output: "world!"

ud
// Using substring(beginIndex, endIndex)

String subStr2 = str.substring(0, 5);

System.out.println("Substring from index 0 to 5: " + subStr2); // Output: "Hello"
String subStr3 = str.substring(7, 12);
lo
System.out.println("Substring from index 7 to 12: " + subStr3); // Output: "world"
}

}
uc

Output:
Substring from index 7: world!
Substring from index 0 to 5: Hello
Substring from index 7 to 12: world
vt

The concat() method in Java is used to concatenate, or join together, two strings. This method
appends the specified string to the end of the current string.
Here's a small Java program that demonstrates the use of the concat() method:
public class ConcatDemo
{

public static void main(String[] args)

{
// Original Strings

Prof. Radha R, Dept. of ISE, SVIT Page 24

 Module 2: String Handling

String str1 = "Hello, ";

String str2 = "world!";
// Using concat() method
String concatenatedString = str1.concat(str2);

// Printing the result

System.out.println("Concatenated String: " + concatenatedString); // Output: "Hello,
world!"

in
// Additional example
String str3 = " Have a great day!";

String finalString = concatenatedString.concat(str3);

.
// Printing the final result

ud
System.out.println("Final Concatenated String: " + finalString); // Output: "Hello,
world! Have a great day!"

}
}

Output: Concatenated String: Hello, world!

lo
Final Concatenated String: Hello, world! Have a great day!
replace( )
The replace( ) method has two forms.
uc

The first replaces all occurrences of one character in the invoking string with another
character.
Syntax:
String replace(char original, char replacement)
Here, original specifies the character to be replaced by the character specified by
replacement. The resulting string is returned.
vt

Example
String s = "Hello".replace('l', 'w');puts the string
“Hewwo” into s.

The second form of replace( ) replaces one character sequence with another. It has this
general form:
String replace(CharSequence original, CharSequence replacement)

public class SimpleReplaceExample

Prof. Radha R, Dept. of ISE, SVIT Page 25

 Module 2: String Handling

public static void main(String[] args)

// Define the original string

String originalString = "Hello, World!";

// Define the substring to be replaced

String toReplace = "World";

// Define the replacement substring

in
String replacement = "Universe";

// Use the replace() method to create a new string with the replacements

.
String modifiedString = originalString.replace(toReplace, replacement);

ud
// Display the original and modified strings

System.out.println("Original string: " + originalString);

System.out.println("Modified string: " + modifiedString);

}
lo
}

Output:
uc

Original string: Hello, World!

Modified string: Hello, Universe!

trim( )
The trim() method returns a copy of the invoking string from which any leading and
trailing whitespace has been removed.
vt

Syntax:
String trim( )Example:
String s = " Hello World".trim();
This puts the string “Hello World” into s.
The trim( ) method is quite useful when you process user commands.

The trim() method in Java is used to remove leading and trailing whitespace from a
string. It is a simple and commonly used method for cleaning up strings before
processing them further.

Here's a simple Java program that demonstrates the use of the trim() method:

Prof. Radha R, Dept. of ISE, SVIT Page 26

 Module 2: String Handling

Java Program:
public class TrimExample
{
public static void main(String[] args)
{
// Define a string with leading and trailing spaces
String originalString = " Hello, World! ";

// Display the original string (including spaces)

System.out.println("Original string: \"" + originalString + "\"");

in
// Use the trim() method to remove leading and trailing spaces
String trimmedString = originalString.trim();

// Display the trimmed string

System.out.println("Trimmed string: \"" + trimmedString + "\"");

.
}
}

Output:
ud
Original string: " Hello, World! "

Trimmed string: "Hello, World!"

lo
Data Conversion
The valueOf( ) method converts data from its internal format intoa human-readable form.
1. It is a static method that is overloaded within String for all of Java’s built-in types so
uc

that each type can be converted properly into a string.

2. valueOf( ) is also overloaded for type Object, so an object of any class type you create
can also be used as an argument

Syntax:
vt

static String valueOf(double num)

static String valueOf(long num)
static String valueOf(Object ob)
static String valueOf(char chars[ ])

valueOf( ) is called when a string representation of some other typeof data is needed.
example, during concatenation operations.

Any object that you pass to valueOf( ) will return the result of a call to the object’s
toString( ) method.

There is a special version of valueOf() that allows you tospecify asubset of a char array.

Prof. Radha R, Dept. of ISE, SVIT Page 27

 Module 2: String Handling

Syntax:
static String valueOf(char chars[ ], int startIndex, int numChars)

Here, chars is the array that holds the characters, startIndex is the index into the array of
characters at which the desired substring begins, and numChars specifies the length of the
substring.
public class SimpleValueOfExample

public static void main(String[] args)

in
{

// Integer to String

.
int intValue = 100;

ud
String intString = String.valueOf(intValue);

System.out.println("Integer to String: " + intString);

// Double to String

double doubleValue = 50.25;

lo
String doubleString = String.valueOf(doubleValue);

System.out.println("Double to String: " + doubleString);

uc

// Boolean to String

boolean boolValue = false;

String boolString = String.valueOf(boolValue);

System.out.println("Boolean to String: " + boolString);

vt

// Char to String

char charValue = 'Z';

String charString = String.valueOf(charValue);

System.out.println("Char to String: " + charString);

} }

Output:

Integer to String: 100

Prof. Radha R, Dept. of ISE, SVIT Page 28

 Module 2: String Handling

Double to String: 50.2

Boolean to String: false

Char to String: Z

Changing Case of Characters

toLowerCase( )
1. converts all the characters in a string from uppercase to lowercase.

2. This method return a String object that contains the lowercase equivalent of the

in
invoking String.

3. Non alphabetical characters, such as digits, are unaffected.

Syntax

.
String toLowerCase( )

Java Program
ud
public class ToLowerCaseExample
{
public static void main(String[] args)
lo
{
// Define the original string
String originalString = "Hello, World!";

// Use the toLowerCase() method to convert the string to lowercase

uc

String lowerCaseString = originalString.toLowerCase();

// Display the original and the lowercase strings

System.out.println("Original string: " + originalString);
System.out.println("Lowercase string: " + lowerCaseString);
}
vt

Output:
Original string: Hello, World!
Lowercase string: hello, world!

A. toUpperCase()

1. converts all the characters in a string from lowercase to uppercase.

2. This method return a String object that contains the uppercase equivalent of the
invoking String.

Prof. Radha R, Dept. of ISE, SVIT Page 29

 Module 2: String Handling

3. Non alphabetical characters, such as digits, are unaffected.

Syntax
String toUpperCase( )
In Java, the toUpperCase() method is used to convert all characters in a string to uppercase.

public class UpperCaseExample

public static void main(String[] args)

in
{

// Create a string

String str = "hello world";

.
ud
// Convert all characters to uppercase

String upperCaseStr = str.toUpperCase();

// Print the original string and the uppercase version

System.out.println("Original String: " + str);

lo
System.out.println("Uppercase String: " + upperCaseStr);

}
uc

Output:

Original String: hello world

Uppercase String: HELLO WORLD

vt

StringBuffer
StringBuffer is a peer class of String that provides much of the functionality of strings.
Asyou know, String represents fixed-length, immutable character sequences.

StringBuffer in Java is a class that represents a mutable sequence of characters. It's

similar to the String class, but unlike strings, objects of type StringBuffer can be
modified after they are created.

This makes StringBuffer suitable for situations where you need to modify strings
frequently without creating new objects each time.

Prof. Radha R, Dept. of ISE, SVIT Page 30

 Module 2: String Handling

public class StringBufferExample

public static void main(String[] args)

// Create a StringBuffer object

StringBuffer stringBuffer = new StringBuffer("Hello");

// Append text to the StringBuffer

in
stringBuffer.append(" World");

// Insert text at a specific position

.
stringBuffer.insert(5, ", ");

// Replace text ud
stringBuffer.replace(6, 11, "there");

// Delete characters

stringBuffer.delete(11, 12);
lo
// Print the modified string

System.out.println(stringBuffer.toString()); // Output: Hello, there World

uc

In this example:

We create a StringBuffer object initialized with the string "Hello".

vt

We then append " World" to it.

We insert ", " at index 5.

We replace characters from index 6 to 10 with "there".

We delete the character at index 11.

Finally, we print the modified string.

StringBuffer provides methods for appending, inserting, replacing, and deleting

characters in the sequence, making it a versatile class for string manipulation.
Additionally, StringBuffer is synchronized, which means it's safe for use in

Prof. Radha R, Dept. of ISE, SVIT Page 31

 Module 2: String Handling

multithreaded environments. If you don't need thread safety, you can use the
StringBuilder class, which provides similar functionality but is not synchronized,
resulting in better performance in single-threaded scenarios

Output: Hello, there World

For example, in the previous StringBuffer example, we demonstrated how various

methods (append(), insert(), replace(), delete()) can modify the contents of the
StringBuffer object directly, altering its state without creating new objects.

Here's an example of how you can use StringBuffer in Java:

StringBuffer represents growable and writeable character sequences.

in
StringBuffer may have characters and substrings inserted in the middle or appended to
theend.

StringBuffer will automatically grow to make room for such additions and often has

.
morecharacters pre allocated than are actually needed, to allow room for growth.

ud
StringBuffer Constructors
StringBuffer defines these four constructors:
StringBuffer( )
StringBuffer(int size)
lo
StringBuffer(String str)
StringBuffer(CharSequence chars)
a. The default constructor (the one with no parameters) reserves room for 16
characters without reallocation.
uc

b. The second version accepts an integer argument that explicitly sets the size of
thebuffer.
c. The third version accepts a String argument that sets the initial contents of the
StringBuffer object and reserves room for 16 more characters without
reallocation.
vt

d. StringBuffer allocates room for 16 additional characters when no specific

buffer length is requested, because reallocation is a costly process in terms of
time.
length( ) and capacity( )
a. The current length of a StringBuffer can be found via the length( ) method, while
thetotal allocated capacity can be found through the capacity( ) method.
Syntax
int length( )
int capacity( )
Java Program on length( )

Prof. Radha R, Dept. of ISE, SVIT Page 32

 Module 2: String Handling

public class LengthExample

{
public static void main(String[] args)
{
// Create a string
String str = "Hello, World!";
// Get the length of the string

in
int length = str.length();
// Print the length of the string
System.out.println("Length of the string: " + length);

.
// Output: Length of the string: 13

}
Output:
}
ud
Length of the string: 13
lo
Java Program on capacity( )
public class CapacityExample
{
uc

public static void main(String[] args)

{
// Create a StringBuffer with an initial capacity of 16
StringBuffer stringBuffer = new StringBuffer();
vt

// Append some text to increase the capacity

stringBuffer.append("Hello World");
// Get the current capacity
int capacity = stringBuffer.capacity();
// Print the current capacity
System.out.println("Current Capacity: " + capacity);
// Output: Current Capacity: 16
}

Prof. Radha R, Dept. of ISE, SVIT Page 33

 Module 2: String Handling

}
We create a StringBuffer object without specifying an initial capacity. By default, it
initializes with a capacity of 16.
We append the string "Hello World" to the StringBuffer, which increases its capacity
if needed to accommodate the new data.
We use the capacity() method of the StringBuffer class to get the current capacity.
The current capacity is stored in the variable capacity.

in
We then print the current capacity using System.out.println().
Output: Current Capacity: 16

ensureCapacity( )

.
a. If you want to pre allocate room for a certain number of characters after a
StringBuffer has been constructed, you can use ensureCapacity( ) to set the size of
thebuffer. ud
b. This is useful if you know in advance that you will be appending a large number
ofsmall strings to a StringBuffer.
Syntax
void ensureCapacity(int capacity)
lo
Here, capacity specifies the size of the buffer.
The ensureCapacity() method in Java is used to ensure that the StringBuffer or StringBuilder
has a minimum capacity specified by the parameter. If the current capacity of the buffer is
uc

less than the specified minimum capacity, the buffer's capacity is increased to the specified
minimum capacity. Otherwise, the capacity remains unchanged.
Java Program
public class EnsureCapacityExample
{
vt

public static void main(String[] args)

{
// Create a StringBuffer with an initial capacity of 10
StringBuffer stringBuffer = new StringBuffer(10);

// Print the initial capacity

System.out.println("Initial Capacity: " + stringBuffer.capacity()); // Output: Initial
Capacity: 10

// Ensure that the capacity is at least 30

stringBuffer.ensureCapacity(30);

Prof. Radha R, Dept. of ISE, SVIT Page 34

 Module 2: String Handling

// Print the current capacity after ensuring capacity

System.out.println("Current Capacity after ensuring: " + stringBuffer.capacity());
// Output: Current Capacity after ensuring: 30
}
}
Explanation

We create a StringBuffer object with an initial capacity of 10.

We print the initial capacity of the StringBuffer.
We use the ensureCapacity() method to ensure that the capacity is at least 20.

in
We print the current capacity after ensuring the capacity.
Output:
Initial Capacity: 10

.
Current Capacity after ensuring: 20

setLength( )
ud
To set the length of the buffer with in a StringBufferobject,

Syntax:

void setLength(int len)

lo
Here, len specifies the length of the buffer. This value must be nonnegative.
When you increase the size of the buffer, null characters are added to the end of the
existingbuffer.
uc

If you call setLength( ) with a value less than the current value returned by length(), then
thecharacters stored beyond the new length will be lost.
In Java, the setLength() method is used to set the length of a StringBuffer or
StringBuilder object to a specified value. If the new length is greater than the current
length, the additional characters are filled with null characters ('\0'). If the new length is
vt

smaller than the current length, the content of the buffer is truncated to fit the new length.

Java Program

public class SetLengthExample

public static void main(String[] args)

Prof. Radha R, Dept. of ISE, SVIT Page 35

 Module 2: String Handling

// Create a StringBuffer with some initial content

StringBuffer stringBuffer = new StringBuffer("Hello, World!");

// Print the initial content and length

System.out.println("Initial Content: " + stringBuffer);

System.out.println("Initial Length: " + stringBuffer.length());

// Set the length to 5

in
stringBuffer.setLength(5);

// Print the content and length after setting the length

.
System.out.println("Content after setting length: " + stringBuffer);

}
}
ud
System.out.println("Length after setting length: " + stringBuffer.length());
lo
Explanation:

We create a StringBuffer object with the initial content "Hello, World!".

We print the initial content and length of the StringBuffer.

uc

We use the setLength() method to set the length of the StringBuffer to 5.

We print the content and length of the StringBuffer after setting the length.

Output:
vt

Initial Content: Hello, World!

Initial Length: 13

Content after setting length: Hello

Length after setting length: 5

charAt( ) and setCharAt( )

a. The value of a single character can be obtained from a StringBuffer via the
charAt()method. You can set the value of a character within a StringBuffer

Prof. Radha R, Dept. of ISE, SVIT Page 36

 Module 2: String Handling

usingsetCharAt( ).
b. Syntax
char charAt(int where)
void setCharAt(int where, char ch)
c. For charAt( ), where specifies the index of the character being obtained.
d. For setCharAt( ), where specifies the index of the character being set, and ch
specifies the new value of that character.
In Java, the charAt() method is used to retrieve the character at a specified index in
a string. It belongs to the String class. The indexing starts from 0, meaning the first

in
character is at index 0, the second character is at index 1, and so on. Here's how
you can use it:

public class CharAtExample

{

.
public static void main(String[] args)
{
ud
// Create a string
String str = "Hello, World!";

// Get the character at index 7

char ch = str.charAt(7);
lo
// Print the character
System.out.println("Character at index 7: " + ch);
// Output: Character at index 7: W
uc

}
}

Output: Character at index 7: W

setChar( ) method
vt

The setCharAt() method, on the other hand, is a method of the StringBuffer class
(or StringBuilder in case of non-synchronized operations), which is used to modify
the character at a specified index in a string. It allows you to replace the character
at the given index with a new character. Here's how you can use it:
public class SetCharAtExample
{
public static void main(String[] args)
{

Prof. Radha R, Dept. of ISE, SVIT Page 37

 Module 2: String Handling

// Create a StringBuffer
StringBuffer stringBuffer = new StringBuffer("Hello, World!");
// Set the character at index 7 to 'G'
stringBuffer.setCharAt(7, 'G');
// Print the modified string
System.out.println("Modified string: " + stringBuffer); // Output: Modified string:
Hello, Gold!
}

in
}
Output: Modified string: Hello, Gold!
getChars( ) method

.
a. To copy a substring of a StringBuffer into an array, use the getChars( )
method.Syntax
Syntax
ud
void getChars(int sourceStart, int sourceEnd, char target[ ], int targetStart)
Here, sourceStart specifies the index of the beginning of the substring, and
sourceEndspecifies an index that is one past the end of the desired substring.
lo
b. This means that the substring contains the characters from sourceStart
throughsourceEnd–1.

c. The array that will receive the characters is specified by target.

uc

The index within target which the substring will be copied is passed in targetStart.
d. Care must be taken to assure that the target array is large enough to hold the
numberof characters in the specified substring.

public class Main

vt

public static void main(String[] args)

StringBuffer exampleBuffer = new StringBuffer("Hello, World!");

int sourceStart = 0;

int sourceEnd = 5;

char[] target = new char[5];

Prof. Radha R, Dept. of ISE, SVIT Page 38

 Module 2: String Handling

int targetStart = 0;

exampleBuffer.getChars(sourceStart, sourceEnd, target, targetStart);

// Convert the target char array to a string and print it

System.out.println(new String(target)); // Output: Hello

Output:Hello

in
StringBuffer getChars Method:

The method getChars(int srcBegin, int srcEnd, char[] dst, int dstBegin) copies characters
from the StringBuffer into the destination character array dst.

.
srcBegin: The starting index in the source StringBuffer.
ud
srcEnd: The ending index in the source StringBuffer (exclusive).

dst: The destination character array where characters are copied.

dstBegin: The starting index in the destination array where copying begins.

Defines a StringBuffer main Method:

lo
named exampleBuffer with the content "Hello, World!".

Specifies sourceStart as 0 and sourceEnd as 5 to copy the first five characters ("Hello").
uc

Initializes a target character array target with a length of 5 to hold the copied characters.

Specifies targetStart as 0 to start copying at the beginning of the target array.

Calls the getChars method to copy the specified characters from exampleBuffer to target.

Converts the target character array to a string and prints it.

vt

append( )
The append() method concatenates the string representation of any other type of
datato the end of the invoking StringBuffer object. It has several overloaded
versions. Here are a few of its forms:
StringBuffer append(String str)

StringBuffer append(int num)

StringBuffer append(Object
obj)

Prof. Radha R, Dept. of ISE, SVIT Page 39

 Module 2: String Handling

1. The result is appended to the current StringBuffer object.

2. The buffer itself is returned by each version of append( ).
3. This allows subsequent calls to be chained together, as shown in the
followingexample:
class appendDemo
{
public static void main(String args[])
{

in
String s;
int a = 42;
StringBuffer sb = new StringBuffer(40);

.
s = sb.append("a =

}
}
ud
").append(a).append("!").toString();
System.out.println(s);
lo
Output

a = 42!
insert( )
uc

1. The insert() method inserts one string in to another.

2. It is overloaded to accept values of all the simple types, plus Strings, Objects,
andCharSequences.
3. Like append(),it calls String.valueOf() to obtain the string representation of the
valueit is called with.
4. This string is then inserted into the invoking StringBuffer object.
vt

5. These are a few of its forms:

StringBuffer insert(int index, String str)

StringBuffer insert(int index, char ch)

StringBuffer insert(int index, Object obj)
Here, index specifies the index at which point the string will be inserted into
the invoking StringBuffer object.
6. The following sample program inserts “like” between “I” and “Java”:

class insertDemo

Prof. Radha R, Dept. of ISE, SVIT Page 40

 Module 2: String Handling

{
public static void main(String args[])
{
StringBuffer sb = new StringBuffer("I Java!");
sb.insert(2, "like ");
System.out.println(sb);

in
}
Output:

I like Java!

.
reverse( )
ud
You can reverse the characters within a StringBuffer object using reverse( ),
shown here:StringBuffer reverse( )
This method returns the reversed object on which it was
lo
called.The following program demonstrates reverse( )
class ReverseDemo
{
public static void main(String args
uc

[]) {
StringBuffer s = new
StringBuffer("abcdef");
System.out.println(s); s
vt

.reverse();
System.out.println(s
); }
}

Output
:
abcdef
fedcba
Prof. Radha R, Dept. of ISE, SVIT Page 41
 Module 2: String Handling

delete( ) and deleteCharAt( )

You can delete characters within a StringBuffer by using the methods delete( )
anddeleteCharAt( ).
Syntax:
StringBuffer delete(int startIndex, int
endIndex)StringBuffer deleteCharAt(int loc)
The delete( ) method deletes a sequence of characters from the invoking object.

in
Here, startIndex specifies the index of the first character to remove, and endIndex
specifies an index one past the last character to remove.
Thus, the substring deleted runs from startIndex to endIndex–1. The resulting
StringBufferobject is returned.

.
The deleteCharAt( ) method deletes the character at the index specified by loc. It returns
ud
theresulting StringBuffer object.
// Demonstrate delete() and deleteCharAt()
class deleteDemo
{
lo
public static void main(String args[])
{

StringBuffer sb = new StringBuffer("This is a test.");

uc

sb.delete(4, 7);
System.out.println("After delete: " + sb);
sb.deleteCharAt(0);
vt

System.out.println("After deleteCharAt: " + sb);

}
}
Output:
After delete: This a test.
After deleteCharAt: his a
test.
replace( )

Prof. Radha R, Dept. of ISE, SVIT Page 42

 Module 2: String Handling

a. You can replace one set of characters with another set inside a StringBuffer object
bycalling replace( ).
b. Syntax
StringBuffer replace(int startIndex, int endIndex, String str)
The substring being replaced is specified by the indexes startIndex and endIndex.
c. Thus, the substringatstartIndexthroughendIndex–1 is replaced.The replacement
stringis passed in str.
The resulting StringBuffer object is

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returned.class replaceDemo

{
public static void main(String args[])

.
{

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StringBuffer sb = new StringBuffer("This is a
test.");sb.replace(5, 7, "was");
System.out.println("After replace: " + sb);
}
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}
Here is the output:
After replace: This was a test.
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substring( )
1. It has the following two
forms:Syntax
String substring(int startIndex)
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String substring(int startIndex, int endIndex)

2. The first form returns the substring that starts at startIndex and runs to the end of
theinvoking StringBuffer object.
3.The second form returns the substring that starts at startIndex and runs through endIndex–
1.
These methods work just like those defined for String that were described earlier.
Difference between StringBuffer and StringBuilder.

1. J2SE 5 adds a new string class to Java’s already powerful string handling
capabilities.This new class is called StringBuilder.
2. It is identical to StringBuffer except for one important difference: it is

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 Module 2: String Handling

notsynchronized, which means that it is not thread-safe.

3. The advantage of StringBuilder is faster performance. However, in cases in which
youare using multithreading, you must use StringBuffer rather than StringBuilder.
Additional Methods in String which was included in Java 5

1. int codePointAt(int i )
Returns the Unicode code point at the location specified by i.
2. int codePointBefore(int i )
Returns the Unicode code point at the location that precedes that specified by i.
3. int codePointCount(int start , int end )

in
Returns the number of code points in the portion of the invoking String that
arebetween start and end– 1.
4. boolean contains(CharSequence str )
Returns true if the invoking object contains the string specified by str . Returns

.
false,otherwise.
5. boolean contentEquals(CharSequence str )
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Returns true if the invoking string contains the same string as str. Otherwise,
returns false.
6. boolean contentEquals(StringBuffer str )
Returns true if the invoking string contains the same string as str. Otherwise,
returns false.
7. static String format(String fmtstr , Object ... args )
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Returns a string formatted as specified by fmtstr.
8. static String format(Locale loc , String fmtstr , Object ... args )
Returns a string formatted as specified by fmtstr.
9. boolean matches(string regExp )
Returns true if the invoking string matches the regular expression passed in
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regExp.Otherwise, returns false.

10. int offsetByCodePoints(int start , int num )
Returns the index with the invoking string that is num code points beyond the
startingindex specified by start.
11. String replaceFirst(String regExp , String newStr )
Returns a string in which the first substring that matches the regular
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expressionspecified by regExp is replaced by newStr.

12. String replaceAll(String regExp , String newStr )
Returns a string in which all substrings that match the regular expression specified
byregExp are replaced by newStr
13. String[ ] split(String regExp )
Decomposes the invoking string into parts and returns an array that contains
theresult. Each part is delimited by the regular expression passed in regExp.
14. String[ ] split(String regExp , int max )
Decomposes the invoking string into parts and returns an array that contains the
result. Each part is delimited by the regular expression passed in regExp. The
number of pieces is specified by max. If max is negative, then the invoking string is

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 Module 2: String Handling

fully decomposed. Otherwise, if max contains a nonzero value, the last entry in the
returnedarray contains the remainder of the invoking string. If max is zero, the
invoking stringis fully decomposed.
15. CharSequence subSequence(int startIndex , int stopIndex )
Returns a substring of the invoking string, beginning at startIndex and stopping
atstopIndex . This method is required by the CharSequence interface, which is
now implemented by String.
Additional Methods in StringBuffer which was included in Java 5
StringBuffer appendCodePoint(int ch )
Appends a Unicode code point to the end of the invoking object. A reference to
theobject is returned.

in
int codePointAt(int i )
Returns the Unicode code point at the location specified by i.
int codePointBefore(int i )
Returns the Unicode code point at the location that precedes that specified by i.
int codePointCount(int start , int end )

.
Returns the number of code points in the portion of the invoking String that
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arebetween start and end– 1.
int indexOf(String str )
Searches the invoking StringBuffer for the first occurrence of str. Returns the index
ofthe match, or –1 if no match is found.
int indexOf(String str , int startIndex )
Searches the invoking StringBuffer for the first occurrence of str, beginning
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atstartIndex. Returns the index of the match, or –1 if no match is found.
int lastIndexOf(String str )
Searches the invoking StringBuffer for the last occurrence of str. Returns the index
ofthe match, or –1 if no match is found.
int lastIndexOf(String str , int startIndex )
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Searches the invoking StringBuffer for the last occurrence of str, beginning
atstartIndex. Returns the index of the match, or –1 if no match is found.
The append() method concatenates the string representation of any other type of
datato the end of the invoking StringBuffer object. It has several overloaded
versions. Here are a few of its forms:
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StringBuffer append(String str)

StringBuffer append(int num)

StringBuffer append(Object obj)

4. The result is appended to the current StringBuffer object.

5. The buffer itself is returned by each version of append( ).
This allows subsequent calls to be chained together

Difference between string builder and string buffer in java

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 Module 2: String Handling

In Java, both StringBuilder and StringBuffer are classes used to create mutable sequences
of characters. They are designed to provide a more efficient way to concatenate strings
compared to using the String class, which is immutable. Here are the key differences
between StringBuilder and StringBuffer:

Thread-Safety:

StringBuffer: It is thread-safe. All its methods are synchronized, which means it can be
safely used by multiple threads at the same time without causing any issues.

StringBuilder: It is not thread-safe. Its methods are not synchronized, which means it
should not be used by multiple threads simultaneously. However, this makes it faster in a

in
single-threaded environment because there is no overhead of synchronization.

Performance:

StringBuffer: Due to synchronization, StringBuffer is generally slower than

.
StringBuilder in a single-threaded environment.

synchronization.

Usage:
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StringBuilder: It is faster than StringBuffer because it does not have the overhead of

StringBuffer: Use StringBuffer when you need a mutable sequence of characters that
will be accessed by multiple threads concurrently.
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StringBuilder: Use StringBuilder when you need a mutable sequence of characters that
will only be accessed by a single thread, or when thread-safety is not a concern.

Example:
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StringBuffer stringBuffer = new StringBuffer();

stringBuffer.append("Hello");

stringBuffer.append(" World");
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System.out.println(stringBuffer.toString()); // Outputs: Hello World

Example:

StringBuilder stringBuilder = new StringBuilder();

stringBuilder.append("Hello");

stringBuilder.append(" World");

System.out.println(stringBuilder.toString()); // Outputs: Hello World

Thread Safety: StringBuffer is thread-safe due to synchronization, whereas

StringBuilder is not thread-safe.

Prof. Radha R, Dept. of ISE, SVIT Page 46

 Module 2: String Handling

Performance: StringBuilder is faster than StringBuffer because it lacks synchronization

overhead.

Use Case: Use StringBuffer in multi-threaded contexts where thread safety is needed.
Use StringBuilder in single-threaded contexts or where thread safety is not an issue and
performance is critical.

. in
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Prof. Radha R, Dept. of ISE, SVIT Page 47