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Start your free trialJames Kane
Front End Web Development Techdegree Student 3,070 PointsI have absolutely no clue how to start this :( sorry for the lack of attempt but my mind is blank.
any help appreciated
public class ConferenceRegistrationAssistant {
/**
* Assists in guiding people to the proper line based on their last name.
*
* @param lastName The person's last name
* @return The line number based on the first letter of lastName
*/
public int getLineNumberFor(String lastName) {
int lineNumber;
lineNumber = lastName.charAt(0);
/*
lineNumber should be set based on the first character of the person's last name
Line 1 - A thru M
Line 2 - N thru Z
*/
return lineNumber;
}
}
public class Example {
public static void main(String[] args) {
/*
IMPORTANT: You can compare characters using <, >. <=, >= and == just like numbers
*/
if ('C' < 'D') {
System.out.println("C comes before D");
}
if ('B' > 'A') {
System.out.println("B comes after A");
}
if ('E' >= 'E') {
System.out.println("E is equal to or comes after E");
}
// This code is here for demonstration purposes only...
ConferenceRegistrationAssistant assistant = new ConferenceRegistrationAssistant();
/*
Remember that there are 2 lines.
Line #1 is for A-M
Line #2 is for N-Z
*/
int lineNumber = 0;
/*
This should set lineNumber to 2 because
The last name is Zimmerman which starts with a Z.
Therefore it is between N-Z
*/
lineNumber = assistant.getLineNumberFor("Zimmerman");
/*
This method call should set lineNumber to 1, because 'A' from "Anderson" is between A-M.
*/
lineNumber = assistant.getLineNumberFor("Anderson");
/*
Likewise Charlie Brown's 'B' is between 'A' and 'M', so lineNumber should be set to 1
*/
lineNumber = assistant.getLineNumberFor("Brown");
}
}
1 Answer
Felix Sonnenholzer
14,654 PointsHi there,
don't worry, having a blank mind happens to everyone.
In the Example.java you have a few examples for char comparison. So, since only the first letter of the last name is relevant we would extract that one and take a look at it.
public int getLineNumberFor(String lastName) {
int lineNumber = 0;
/*
lineNumber should be set based on the first character of the person's last name
Line 1 - A thru M
Line 2 - N thru Z
*/
if (lastName.charAt(0) <= 'M') {
lineNumber = 1;
} else {
lineNumber = 2;
}
return lineNumber;
}
Because it is a single char you can make simple comparsions with <, >, and so on. Think of it in this case like the position in the alphabet. A is 1 B is 2 ... E is 5 and so on.
Since A - M (thought as numbers) are smaller than or equal M this comparison works just fine for chars.
If there is still something not clear, just ask
James Kane
Front End Web Development Techdegree Student 3,070 PointsJames Kane
Front End Web Development Techdegree Student 3,070 PointsThanks a lot Felix I understand now :)