Scribd
Upload
61 views

Java Array Initialization

Arrays in Java can be initialized with a list of values at declaration using curly braces. This initializes a new array with the given values. A similar notation using "new baseType[]" can be used in assignments to create and initialize a new array. This creates an "array literal" that represents the array value. The document provides examples of declaring and assigning arrays using these initialization techniques and notes they are equivalent approaches in Java.

Uploaded by

hrishipisal
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
61 views

Java Array Initialization

Arrays in Java can be initialized with a list of values at declaration using curly braces. This initializes a new array with the given values. A similar notation using "new baseType[]" can be used in assignments to create and initialize a new array. This creates an "array literal" that represents the array value. The document provides examples of declaring and assigning arrays using these initialization techniques and notes they are equivalent approaches in Java.

Uploaded by

hrishipisal
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 2

IT SERVICES PRIVATE LIMITED

Array Literals
We have seen that it is possible to initialize an array variable with a list of values at the time it is declared.
For example,

int [] squares = { 1, 4, 9, 16, 25, 36, 49 };

This initializes squares to refer to a newly created array that contains the seven values in the list

A list initializer of this form can be used only in a declaration statement, to give an initial value to a newly
declared array variable. It cannot be used in an assignment statement to assign a value to a variable that
already existed. However, there is another, similar notation for creating a new array that can be used in
other places. The notation uses another form of the new operator to both create a new array object and fill
it with values.

As an example, to assign a new value to an array variable, cubes, of type int[], you could use:

cubes = new int[] { 1, 8, 27, 64, 125, 216, 343 };

This is an assignment statement rather than a declaration, so the array initializer syntax, without "new
int[]," would not be legal here. The general syntax for this form of the new operator is

new base-type [ ] { list-of-values }

This is actually an expression whose value is a reference to a newly created array object. In this sense, it is
an "array literal," since it is something that you can type in a program to represent a value. This means that
it can be used in any context where an object of type base-type[] is legal. For example, you could pass the
newly created array as an actual parameter to a subroutine. Consider the following utility method for
creating a menu from an array of strings:

By the way, it is perfectly legal to use the "new BaseType[] { ... }" syntax instead of the array initializer
syntax in the declaration of an array variable. For example, instead of saying:

int[] primes = { 2, 3, 5, 7, 11, 13, 17, 19 };

you can say, equivalently,

int[] primes = new int[] { 2, 3, 5, 7, 11, 17, 19 };

In fact, rather than use a special notation that works only in the context of declaration statements, I
sometimes prefer to use the second form.

One final note: For historical reasons, an array declaration such as

int[] list;

can also be written as

int list[];

Impetus IT Services Pvt.Ltd.


B-16, First floor, Sant Tukaram Vyapar Sankul, Sector - 24, Nigdi, Pune, Maharashtra. India. Pin – 411044.
Mobile 9970600774, 9730012775|Board 91-20-27640406|Fax 91-20-27641703
Email : admin@impetusitservices.com | Website : www.impetusits.in
IT SERVICES PRIVATE LIMITED
which is a syntax used in the languages C and C++. However, this alternative syntax does not really make
much sense in the context of Java, and it is probably best avoided. After all, the intent is to declare a
variable of a certain type, and the name of that type is "int[]". It makes sense to follow the "type-
name variable-name;" syntax for such declarations.

Impetus IT Services Pvt.Ltd.


B-16, First floor, Sant Tukaram Vyapar Sankul, Sector - 24, Nigdi, Pune, Maharashtra. India. Pin – 411044.
Mobile 9970600774, 9730012775|Board 91-20-27640406|Fax 91-20-27641703
Email : admin@impetusitservices.com | Website : www.impetusits.in

You might also like