fmt error phone number

[aditee sharma]

Hi,
I want to format a string value containing numeric value to a phone number format:

<fmt:formatNumber value="${orderLine.mobileCTN}" pattern="(###)-###-####"/>

However, the following error is thrown :
In <parseNumber>, value attribute can not be parsed: "2145255656"

Please help.

[Steve Luke]

A phone number really isn't a number, it is a String containing digits. The fmt:formatNumber tag uses the DecimalFormat class to generate the output, and there just is no way to convert a number or String into a phone number format using the DecimalFormat class.

For the code you presented here will assume the parenthesis means positive numbers and the dash will format negative numbers. Your output would be (2145255656)--. That is, if you get past the parse errors.

The parse error comes from an incompatible input value, possibly because the value in the variable contains quotes, or is not a Number, or can't be coerced into a Number.

The solution is to format the phone number as a String with the proper format in the data object before you try to receive it in the JSP. An example utility method for doing so might be:

static String formatAsTeleNum(Object src) {
if (src == null) throw new IllegalArgumentException("No null for telephone.");
 
String input = String.valueOf(src);
input = input.replaceAll("[\\(\\)\\-\\s]", "");
 
if (input.length() != 10) throw new IllegalArgumentException("Not correct number of digits.");
if (input.matches("(\\d*\\D+\\d*)+")) throw new IllegalArgumentException("Contains non-digits.");
 
String output = String.format("(%s) %s-%s", input.substring(0, 3),
                                    input.subSequence(3, 6),
                                    input.substring(6));

return output;
}

Which is set up for US, local 10 digit phone calls in the form [phone].

[ August 08, 2008: Message edited by: Steve Luke ]
[ August 08, 2008: Message edited by: Steve Luke ]

[aditee sharma]

Thanks Steve.
I can write the utility method myself, but thanks for the kind effort.
I wonder why despite phone number being a common feature among the websites, we don't have a utility method along the lines of format Date ?

[Steve Luke]

Originally posted by aditee sharma:
Thanks Steve.
I can write the utility method myself, but thanks for the kind effort.
I wonder why despite phone number being a common feature among the websites, we don't have a utility method along the lines of format Date ?

Would be nice, but there are so many variations on what a phone number includes that a simple Locale won't do the trick. You would end up with a pretty hefty library to cover everything (I think). Or you can let us schleps store the Phone Number as a String and display it in a way that makes sense to us...