How to format strings in Java
Primitive question, but how do I format strings like this:
"Step {1} of {2}"
by substituting variables using Java? In C# it's easy.
Answer
Take a look at String.format. Note, however, that it takes format specifiers similar to those of C's printf family of functions -- for example:
String.format("Hello %s, %d", "world", 42);
Would return "Hello world, 42". You may find this helpful when learning about the format specifiers. Andy Thomas-Cramer was kind enough to leave this link in a comment below, which appears to point to the official spec. The most commonly used ones are:
- %s - insert a string
- %d - insert a signed integer (decimal)
- %f - insert a real number, standard notation
This is radically different from C#, which uses positional references with an optional format specifier. That means that you can't do things like:
String.format("The {0} is repeated again: {0}", "word");
... without actually repeating the parameter passed to printf/format. (see The Scrum Meister's comment below)
If you just want to print the result directly, you may find System.out.printf (PrintStream.printf) to your liking.