Did I make this code too complex?

Question about the task

Shortest or longest

Java Syntax, Level 7, Lesson 6

Under discussion

Any ideas what I way I should have done it instead?

1. Create a list of strings.
2. Add 10 strings from the keyboard.
3. Find out which string occurs earlier in the list: the shortest or the longest.
If several strings are shortest or longest, then consider the very first such string encountered.
4. Display the string described in Step 3. One string should be displayed.

Requirements:

Declare a string list variable and immediately initialize it.
The program should read 10 strings from the keyboard and add them to the list.
The program should display the shortest string if it comes before the longest.
The program should display the longest string if it comes before the shortest.

package com.codegym.task.task07.task0712; import java.io.BufferedReader; import java.io.IOException; import java.io.InputStreamReader; import java.util.ArrayList; /* Shortest or longest */ public class Solution { public static void main(String[] args) throws Exception { //write your code here BufferedReader nancy =new BufferedReader(new InputStreamReader(System.in)); ArrayList<String> arr =new ArrayList<String>(); int shortBoi=0, longCat=0; for(int i=0;i<10;i++){ String s =nancy.readLine(); arr.add(s); if(arr.get(i).length()<arr.get(shortBoi).length()) shortBoi=i; if(arr.get(i).length()>arr.get(longCat).length()) longCat=i; //^this code seems way too complex } if(shortBoi<longCat) System.out.println(arr.get(shortBoi)); else System.out.println(arr.get(longCat)); } }

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Nouser

Level 36 , Germany

30 July 2020, 06:48

it's OK but a little bit hard to read. If we don't know about the Integer MAX and MIN_VALUE consants (and we do not at this time) you came to the right conclusion to initialize to variables to compare the string length to. What makes it complex is, that you saved an index and not the minimum or maximum length like:

int maxLength = 0, minLength = 0;

minLength is not fully initialized at the 0 may lead to errors. So I update it (somehow as you also did) in the first iteration of the loop.

for (int i = 0; i < 10; i++) {
    l.add(r.readLine());
    //in the first iteration initialize max and min (rally needed only for minLength, for max 0 would do)
    if (i == 0) {
        maxLength = minLength = l.get(i).length();
    }

then you can compare the length of the read string with min and max...

else {
                //check maxLength and minLength
                if (maxLength < l.get(i).length())
                    maxLength = l.get(i).length();
                ....
    }

Now just output the first occurence of max or min

for (String result : l) {
    if (result.length() == maxLength || result.length() == minLength) {
        System.out.println(result);
        break;
    }
}

Not the best code but a start.