Compare new Integer Objects in ArrayList Question - java

I am storing Integer objects representing an index of objects I want to track. Later in my code I want to check to see if a particular object's index corresponds to one of those Integers I stored earlier. I am doing this by creating an ArrayList and creating a new Integer from the index of a for loop:
ArrayList<Integer> courseselectItems = new ArrayList();
//Find the course elements that are within a courseselect element and add their indicies to the ArrayList
for(int i=0; i<numberElementsInNodeList; i++) {
if (nodeList.item(i).getParentNode().getNodeName().equals("courseselect")) {
courseselectItems.add(new Integer(i));
}
}
I then want to check later if the ArrayList contains a particular index:
//Cycle through the namedNodeMap array to find each of the course codes
for(int i=0; i<numberElementsInNodeList; i++) {
if(!courseselectItems.contains(new Integer(i))) {
//Do Stuff
}
}
My question is, when I create a new Integer by using new Integer(i) will I be able to compare integers using ArrayList.contains()? That is to say, when I create a new object using new Integer(i), will that be the same as the previously created Integer object if the int value used to create them are the same?
I hope I didn't make this too unclear. Thanks for the help!

Yes, you can use List.contains() as that uses equals() and an Integer supports that when comparing to other Integers.
Also, because of auto-boxing you can simply write:
List<Integer> list = new ArrayList<Integer>();
...
if (list.contains(37)) { // auto-boxed to Integer
...
}
It's worth mentioning that:
List list = new ArrayList();
list.add(new Integer(37));
if (list.contains(new Long(37)) {
...
}
will always return false because an Integer is not a Long. This trips up most people at some point.
Lastly, try and make your variables that are Java Collections of the interface type not the concrete type so:
List<Integer> courseselectItems = new ArrayList();
not
ArrayList<Integer> courseselectItems = new ArrayList();

My question is, when I create a new Integer by using new Integer(i) will I be able to compare integers using ArrayList.contains()? That is to say, when I create a new object using new Integer(i), will that be the same as the previously created Integer object if the int value used to create them are the same?
The short answer is yes.
The long answer is ...
That is to say, when I create a new object using new Integer(i), will that be the same as the previously created Integer object if the int value used to create them are the same?
I assume you mean "... will that be the same instance as ..."? The answer to that is no - calling new will always create a distinct instance separate from the previous instance, even if the constructor parameters are identical.
However, despite having separate identity, these two objects will have equivalent value, i.e. calling .equals() between them will return true.
Collection.contains()
It turns out that having separate instances of equivalent value (.equals() returns true) is okay. The .contains() method is in the Collection interface. The Javadoc description for .contains() says:
http://java.sun.com/javase/6/docs/api/java/util/Collection.html#contains(java.lang.Object)
boolean contains(Object o)
Returns true if this collection
contains the specified element. More
formally, returns true if and only if
this collection contains at least one
element e such that (o==null ? e==null
: o.equals(e)).
Thus, it will do what you want.
Data Structure
You should also consider whether you have the right data structure.
Is the list solely about containment? is the order important? Do you care about duplicates? Since a list is order, using a list can imply that your code cares about ordering. Or that you need to maintain duplicates in the data structure.
However, if order is not important, if you don't want or won't have duplicates, and if you really only use this data structure to test whether contains a specific value, then you might want to consider whether you should be using a Set instead.

Short answer is yes, you should be able to do ArrayList.contains(new Integer(14)), for example, to see if 14 is in the list. The reason is that Integer overrides the equals method to compare itself correctly against other instances with the same value.

Yes it will, because List.contains() use the equals() method of the object to be compared. And Integer.equals() does compare the integer value.

As cletus and DJ mentioned, your approach will work.
I don't know the context of your code, but if you don't care about the particular indices, consider the following style also:
List<Node> courseSelectNodes = new ArrayList<Node>();
//Find the course elements that are within a courseselect element
//and add them to the ArrayList
for(Node node : numberElementsInNodeList) {
if (node.getParentNode().getNodeName().equals("courseselect")) {
courseSelectNodes.add(node);
}
}
// Do stuff with courseSelectNodes
for(Node node : courseSelectNodes) {
//Do Stuff
}

I'm putting my answer in the form of a (passing) test, as an example of how you might research this yourself. Not to discourage you from using SO - it's great - just to try to promote characterization tests.
import java.util.ArrayList;
import junit.framework.TestCase;
public class ContainsTest extends TestCase {
public void testContains() throws Exception {
ArrayList<Integer> list = new ArrayList<Integer>();
assertFalse(list.contains(new Integer(17)));
list.add(new Integer(17));
assertTrue(list.contains(new Integer(17)));
}
}

Yes, automatic boxing occurs but this results in a performance penalty. Its not clear from your example why you would want to solve the problem in this manner.
Also, because of boxing, creating the Integer class by hand is superfluous.

Related

Java, Sorting an ArrayList by using Comparator

As I used Comparator for sorting a library after the author's name, I just coincidentally "found" something, which actually works perfectly, but I don't understand why. Firstly please have a look at my code:
public class Bookshelf{
Collection<Literature> shelf = new ArrayList<Literature>();
ArrayList<Literature> unsorted = (ArrayList<Literature>)shelf;
public void printShelf() {
Comparator<Literature> compareBySurname= new Comparator<Literature>() {
#Override
public int compare(Literature o1, Literature o2) {
return o1.author.surname.compareTo(o2.author.surname);
}
};
unsorted.sort(compareBySurname);
for (Literature c : shelf)
System.out.println(c);
}
}
As you can see, I am sorting the ArrayList "unsorted". But after I sort it, I am iterating through the Collection "shelf" and printing the elements of the Collection "shelf".And the output is a list of sorted elements by surname.
To achive my intention, I actually should iterate through the ArrayList "unsorted" and print the elements (of course this option works too). So my question is, why the first methode actually works too? :D So I am not sorting the Collection "shelf" directly, but I get a sorted list.
Thanks in advance!
ArrayList<Literature> unsorted = (ArrayList<Literature>)shelf; does not create a new ArrayList. It simply makes unsorted refer to the same ArrayList as shelf. They are not different objects. You want something like
ArrayList<Literature> unsorted = new ArrayList<>(shelf); // <-- a different List.
Because both lists share the same memory reference when you assign the list with the "=" operator. To have a new list with another reference, you must use the key name "new".

How Set checks for duplicates? Java HashSet

For the below code it outputs " 1 ". and second code outputs " 2 " I don't understand why this is happening. Is it because I am adding the same object? How should I achieve the desired output 2.
import java.util.*;
public class maptest {
public static void main(String[] args) {
Set<Integer[]> set = new HashSet<Integer[]>();
Integer[] t = new Integer[2];
t[0] = t[1] = 1;
set.add(t);
Integer[] t1 = new Integer[2];
t[0] = t[1] = 0;
set.add(t);
System.out.println(set.size());
}
}
Second Code:
import java.util.*;
public class maptest {
public static void main(String[] args) {
Set<Integer[]> set = new HashSet<Integer[]>();
Integer[] t = new Integer[2];
t[0] = t[1] = 1;
set.add(t);
Integer[] t1 = new Integer[2];
t1[0] = t1[1] = 1;
set.add(t1);
System.out.println(set.size());
}
}
The Set implementation probably calls t.hashCode() and since arrays don't override the Object.hashCode method, the same object will have the same hashcode. Changing the array's contents thus does not affect its hash code. To get an array's hash code correctly, you should call Arrays.hashCode.
You shouldn't really put mutable things inside sets anyways, so I would suggest you put immutable lists into sets instead. If you want to stick with arrays, just create a new array, like you did with t1, and put it into the set.
EDIT:
For code 2, t and t1 are two different arrays so their hash code are different. Again, since the hashCode method is not overridden in arrays. The array's contents don't effect the hash code, whether or not they are the same.
A Set contains only distinct element (it is its nature). The basic implementation, HashSet, use hashCode() to first find a bucket containing values then equals(Object) to look for a distinct value.
Arrays are simple: their hashCode() use the default, inherited from Object, and therefore depending on reference. The equals(Object) is also the same than Object: it check only the identify, that is: references must be equals.
Defined as Java:
public boolean equals(Object other) {
return other == this;
}
If you want to put distinct arrays, you'll have to either try your luck with TreeSet and a proper implementation of Comparator, either wrap you array or use a List or another Set:
Set<List<Integer[]>> set = new HashSet<>();
Integer[] t = new Integer[]{1, 1};
set.add(Arrays.asList(t));
Integer[] t1 = new Integer[]{1, 1};
set.add(Arrays.asList(t1));
System.out.println(set.size());
As for mutability of the object used in a Set or a Map key:
fields used by the boolean equals(Object) should not be muted because the muted object could be then equals to another. The Set would no longer contains distinct values.
fields used by the int hashCode() should not be muted for hash based collection (HashSet, HashMap) because as said above their operate by putting items in a bucket. If the hashCode() change, it is likely the place of the object in the bucket will also change: the Set would then contains twice the same reference.
fields used by the int compareTo(T) or Comparator::compare(T,T) should not be muted for the same reason than equals: the SortedSet would not know there was a change.
If the need arise, you would have to first remove item from the set, then mutate it, the re-add it.
You're adding the Object to a Set which
contains no duplicate elements.
You are only ever adding one Object to the Set. You only change the value of it's contents. To see what I mean try adding System.out.println(set.add(t));.
As the add() method:
Returns true if this set did not already contain the specified element
Also your t1 is completely irrelevant in your first code snippet as you never use it.
In your second code snippet it outputs two because you are adding two different Integer[] Objects to the Set
Try printing out the hashcode of the Objects to see how this works:
Integer[] t = new Integer[2];
t[0] = t[1] = 1;
//Before we change the values
System.out.println(t.hashCode());
Integer[] t1 = new Integer[2];
t1[0] = t1[1] = 1;
//After we change the values of t
System.out.println(t.hashCode());
//Hashcode of the second object
System.out.println(t1.hashCode());
Output:
//Hashcode for t is the same before and after modifying data
366712642
366712642
//Hashcode for t1 is different from t; different object
1829164700
How java.util.Set implementations check for duplicate objects depends on the implementation, but per the documentation of Set, the appropriate meaning of "duplicate" is that o1.equals(o2).
Since HashSet in particular is based on a hash table, it will go about looking for a duplicate by computing the hashCode() of the object presented to it, and then going through all the objects, if any, in the corresponding hash bucket.
Arrays do not override hashCode() or equals(), so they implement instance identity, not value identity. Thus, regardless of the values of its elements, a given array always has the same hash code, and always equals() itself and only itself. You first code adds the same array object to a set two times. Regardless of the values of its elements, it is still the same set. The second code adds two different array objects to a set. Regardless of the values of their elements, they are different objects.
Note, too, that if you have mutable objects that implement value identity, such that their equality and hash codes depends on the values of their members, then modifying such an object while it is a member of a Set very likely breaks the Set. This is documented on a per-implementation basis.

How to sort List<String> list numerically?

I have a List<String> list which is initialized to an arrayList. That is,
List<String>list = new ArrayList();
It has the following elements.
[1,bread, 1,turkey, 10,potato, 11,plum, 12,carrot, 2,milk, 2,rice]
I would like to sort the list so that the numbers are in ascending order. For example,
[1,bread,1 turkey,2,milk,2,rice,10,potato,11,plum,12,carrot]
How can I do that?
Java is an Object-Oriented language, and you should use it.
So, create a new class with two fields: int and String.
Now parse your strings and create objects, i.e. 1,bread is parsed into the int value 1, and the String value bread.
Next, make your class implement Comparable, and implement the compareTo method to order the objects by the int value.
Finally, now that List<String> was converted to List<MyObj>, call Collections.sort(list).
You're not trying to sort the elements in the List--you're trying to sort pairs of elements. You can't do that with a simple sort. What you'll need to do is:
Define a class with two fields, an int and a String. Make the class implement Comparable.
Define a comparator for the class that compares the int fields to get the order you want. You'll have to decide what your comparator will do if the int fields are equal (do you want the String fields to be in ascending order?)
Create a List<YourClass> whose size is half the size of the original list, by going through the source list in pairs, something like
for (int i = 0; i < list.size() - 1; i += 2) {
create a YourClass by converting list.get(i) to an int, and using list.get(i+1) as the String field
}
Sort the new list
If desired, recreate a List<String> by going through the List<YourClass> and adding a String conversion of the int, followed by the String field from YourClass, to the new list.
I don't know what you're planning to do with the String list, but in most cases it will make your program easier if you create a List<YourClass> list as soon as possible, and work with YourClass objects throughout the rest of the program
The simple answer is that you could provide a custom Comparator which understands the structure of each individual String element and can parse and compare them properly. Something like this:
#Test
public void testShouldSortByNumber() {
// Arrange
List<String> list = Arrays.asList("1,bread", "1,turkey", "10,potato", "11,plum", "12,carrot", "2,milk", "2,rice");
final List<String> EXPECTED_LIST = Arrays.asList("1,bread", "1,turkey", "2,milk", "2,rice", "10,potato", "11,plum", "12,carrot");
// Act
Collections.sort(list, new Comparator<String>() {
#Override
public int compare(String o1, String o2) {
try {
int i1 = Integer.parseInt(o1.split(",")[0]);
int i2 = Integer.parseInt(o2.split(",")[0]);
// If the numbers are equal, could order by alpha on the second part of the string split
return i1 < i2 ? -1 : i1 == i2 ? 0 : 1;
} catch (Exception e) {
// Lots of possible errors above -- NPE, NFE, invalid string format, etc.
e.printStackTrace();
}
return 0;
}
});
// Assert
assert list.equals(EXPECTED_LIST);
}
The more complex answer is that you should better define your problem -- what should the result be if an element is empty or null, if the numbers are equal are the other strings compared lexicographically or is it irrelevant?
You may also want to use a different data structure -- if the content of each element is really two different logical concepts, a tuple or class may be correct. Or, you may want to use a SortedMap (of which TreeMap is probably the best implementation here) where the key is the "ingredient" and the value is the "count" (or "cost", I don't have any context on the numerical value).
You can also enhance the code above with a lambda if you have access to JDK 8+.

Compare and match arrays with different sizes

I have a couple of arrays with different sizes; say, array A and array B.
Array A
[chery, chery, uindy, chery, chery]
Array B
[chery, uindy]
Need to check whether the values present in Array A is available in Array B or not. In the above example, all the values in Array A is available in Array B. Please help this out with the Java code. Thanks!
You can convert your arrays to a List and then use the containsAll method to see if a particular list contains all elements described in another list.
You would get better performance out of it if they were Sets instead.
Example:
List<String> firstList = Arrays.asList("chery", "chery", "unid", ...);
List<String> secondList = Arrays.asList("chery", "unid", ...);
System.out.println(secondList.containsAll(firstList));
If the performance of this method in particular is getting a bit dodgy, then consider converting the lists into Sets instead:
Set<String> firstSet = new HashSet<>(Arrays.asList("chery", "chery", "unid", ...));
In the example I am using integers but can be used for other types also with slight modifications.
First put a loop on array A elements.
for(int i =0; i<A.length(); i++)
{
//this loop will transverse with all elements in array A.
}
Now inside this for loop make another for loop which transverse through elements of loop B.
for(int i =0; i<A.length(); i++)
{
for(int j=0; j<B.length();j++)
{
if(A[i] == B[j])
{ System.out.println("this element is in array A and B"); }
}
}
Now if you want to check if all elements of A are in B you can make a boolean. this boolean is true as long each element in A is found at least once in B. as soon as you find one element which is not present on both arrays you can exit.
Base on your requirement, you are going to find out if B is a superset of A (I mean the distinct values).
This can be easily done by one line like this:
String[] aArr = {.....};
String[] bArr = {.....};
return new HashSet<String>(Arrays.asList(bArr)).containsAll(Arrays.asList(aArr));
In brief, make B a Set, and check if B set contains all values of A
so, if A = {Apple, Apple, Banana, Cherry} and B = {Apple, Banana, Cherry, Pineapple}, it will return true (that's the behavior base on your description)
For arrays of Strings :
for (String str : array1)
{
System.out.println(ArrayUtils.contains(array2, str);
}
An array is not a good data structure for doing this. A Set is better. So convert your two arrays to Set objects, then simply use Set.equals(). Either do the conversion by creating new objects just before the comparison, or use a Set everywhere.
Set<String> setA = new HashSet<>(Arrays.asList(new String[]{"chery", "chery", "uindy", "chery", "chery"}));
Set<String> setB = new HashSet<>(Arrays.asList(new String[]{"chery", "uindy"}));
System.out.println("Sets are equal: " +setA.equals(setB));
The equals method of AbstractSet says
Compares the specified object with this set for equality. Returns true
if the given object is also a set, the two sets have the same size,
and every member of the given set is contained in this set. This
ensures that the equals method works properly across different
implementations of the Set interface. This implementation first checks
if the specified object is this set; if so it returns true. Then, it
checks if the specified object is a set whose size is identical to the
size of this set; if not, it returns false. If so, it returns
containsAll((Collection) o).

removing duplicates from an arraylist

I am trying to remove duplicate objects from an arraylist
see code below:
ArrayList<Customer> customers=new ArrayList<Customer>();
for(int i=0;i<accounts.size();i++){
customers.add(accounts.get(i).getCustomer());
}
for(int i=0;i<customers.size();i++){
for(int j=i+1;j<customers.size();j++){
if(customers.get(i).getSocialSecurityNo().compareTo(customers.get(j).getSocialSecurityNo())==0){
if(customers.get(i).getLastName().compareToIgnoreCase(customers.get(j).getLastName())==0){
if(customers.get(i).getFirstName().compareToIgnoreCase(customers.get(j).getFirstName())==0){
customers.remove(j);
}
}
}
}
}
However, it seems that the last object in the list is not being processed. Perhaps someone can pinpoint the error
Try adding j--; after removing an item. That will reindex for you and solve your issue.
The basic flaw is that since the ListArray is mutable, once you remove one element your indexes have to be readjusted.
if(customers.get(i).getFirstName().compareToIgnoreCase(customers.get(j).getFirstName())==0){
customers.remove(j--);
}
also try subtracting one from your i loop:
for(int i=0;i<customers.size()-1;i++){
for(int j=i+1;j<customers.size();j++){
public static void removeDuplicates(ArrayList list) {
HashSet set = new HashSet(list);
list.clear();
list.addAll(set);
}
override equals and hashcode appropriatley
custormers = new ArrayList(new HashSet(customers))
ensure the equals and hashmethod are correctly implemented
The code below worked for me. Give it a try. You can manipulate the compare method to suit your taste
ArrayList customers = .....;
Set customerlist = new TreeSet(new Comparator(){
#Override
public int compare(Customer c1, Customer c2) {
return c1.getSocialSecurityNo().compareTo(c2.getSocialSecurityNo());
}
});
customerlist.addAll(customers);
customers.clear();
customers.addAll(customerlist);
It's your int j=i+1 that causes trouble. You need to test with the last value of the customers list for each iteration.
Before you add them to the list in the above loop, why don't you check
if(!cutomers.contains(accounts.get(i).getCustomer())
{
//add them if it doesn't contain
}
It should save you from doing the second loop
Edit: Need to override the equals method.
So, about doing this right:
Your Customer objects should have an equals() and hashCode() method, which do the comparison. (Or you simply would have only one Customer object for each customer, which would mean your data model would have to be adjusted. Then the default hashCode/equals would do.)
If you have this, you can replace your three nested ifs with one:
if(customers.get(i).equals(customers.get(j)) {
customers.remove(j);
}
This would not yet solve your problem, but make it easier to have a clearer look on it. If
you look at which objects are compared to which others, you will see that after each removal
of an object from the list, the next one has the same index as the one which you just removed,
and you will not compare the current object to it. As said, j-- after the removal will solve this.
A more performant solution would be using a Set (which is guaranteed not to contain duplicates).
In your case, a HashSet<Customer> or LinkedHashSet<Customer> (if you care about the order)
will do fine.
Then your whole code comes down to this:
Set<Customer> customerSet = new HashSet<Customer>();
for(Account acc : accounts){
customerSet.add(acc.getCustomer());
}
List<Customer> customers = new ArrayList<Customer>(customerSet);
If you don't really need a list (i.e. indexed access), ommit the last line and simply
use the set instead.
My first thought was to use Sets, as others have mentioned. Another approach would be to use Java's version of the foreach, instead of using indexes. A general approach:
public static ArrayList removeDuplicates(ArrayList origList) {
ArrayList newList = new ArrayList();
for (Object m : origList) {
if (!newList.contains(m)) {
newList.add(m);
}
}
return newList;
}
In testing, I just used Strings; I'd recommend inserting Customer into the code where appropriate for type safety.

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