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Java Java Basics Perfecting the Prototype String Equality

Help Equal Java, I don't understand.

String firstExample = "hello"; String secondExample = "hello"; String thirdExample = "HELLO";

if firstExample.equals.secondExample { console.printf("first is equal to second"); System.exit(0); }

it says error

or is it

if firstExample.equals(secondExample){ console.printf("first is equal to second"); System.exit(0); }

Equality.java
// I have imported a java.io.Console for you, it is named console. 
String firstExample = "hello";
String secondExample = "hello";
String thirdExample = "HELLO";
if firstExample.equals.secondExample{
  console.printf("first is equal to second");
  System.exit(0);
}

1 Answer

Seth Kroger
Seth Kroger
56,414 Points

It should be:

if ( firstExample.equals(secondExample) ) {

Because the syntax of if statements is: if (expression) { code_block } The parentheses aren't optional in Java. The expression here is firstExample.equals(secondExample) because equals is a method and needs to be called with the second string as an argument.