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Start your free trialZachary Martin
3,545 PointsWhy do we use a 2nd boolean here?
} public boolean applyGuess (char letter) { boolean isHit = mAnswer.indexOf(letter) >= 0; if (isHit) { mHits += letter; } else { mMisses += letter;
Why do we use the 2nd boolean here before isHit when we used it before applyGuess?
1 Answer
Brendon Butler
4,254 PointsSince
public boolean applyGuess() {
}
is a method, the "boolean" in this line is referring to the return type of the method.
This reference
boolean isHit = //blah blah blah
is a variable. In Java, variables aren't dynamic like in Python or other languages. So you have to tell the compiler what type of variable it is.
Say you have a light switch. This light switch has two methods -- a method to check if the light is on and a method to set the light on or off.
public class LightSwitch {
// this creates the variable and sets the default value
private boolean on = false;
// for this method you HAVE to return either true or false
public boolean isOn() {
return on; // returns the variable we created above
}
// for this method, it has the return type of void so you don't have to return anything.
public void turnOn() {
if (on) {
System.out.println("The light is already on!");
return; // you still can use the return statement to break out of the method without running any code below it
}
on = true;
}
public void turnOff() {
if (!on) {
System.out.println("The light is already off!");
return; // you still can use the return statement to break out of the method without running any code below it
}
on = false;
}
}