Float.valueOf() method and NumberFormatException

[Abimaran Kugathasan]

public class CheckValueOfMethod	{
	public static void main(String[] args)	{
		Float f = Float.valueOf("3.14");
		System.out.println(f);
		Integer i = Integer.valueOf("3.14");// RTE
	}
}

We don't need to put the post-fix f in the 3rd line. Why is that, What's really happening?

Thanks in Advanced!

[ramesh maredu]

Below are the lines pasted from java doc

"Note that trailing format specifiers, specifiers that determine the type of a floating-point literal (1.0f is a float value; 1.0d is a double value), do not influence the results of this method. In other words, the numerical value of the input string is converted directly to the target floating-point type. In general, the two-step sequence of conversions, string to double followed by double to float, is not equivalent to converting a string directly to float. For example, if first converted to an intermediate double and then to float, the string
"1.00000017881393421514957253748434595763683319091796875001d"
results in the float value 1.0000002f; if the string is converted directly to float, 1.0000001f results."

[Abimaran Kugathasan]

Thanks ramesh maredu, So the compiler won't check whether the String literal that we passed to the method has post-fixed "f". It convert the String to that Wrapper class object, on which the method being invoked!

Please Confirm!

Thanks in Advanced!

BTW, Why don't I get Notification E-mail for the "Watching Posts"?

[Sandra Bachan]

Perhaps you can help me help you (I'm also studying for SCJP 6)

Chapter 3 of Sierra/Bates says:

Float f2 = Float.valueOf("3.14f"); // assigns 3.14 to the Float object f2

A page or two later, the text says:

Float f2 = new Float(3.14f); // make a new wrapper object
short s = f2.shortValue(); // convert f2's value to a short
System.out.println(s); // result is 3 (truncated, not // rounded)

I tried the following code snippit:

Float f2 = Float.valueOf("3.14f");
System.out.println("Float.valueOf(\"3.14f\") = " + f2);
		
Float f3 = Float.valueOf(3.14f);
System.out.println("Float.valueOf(3.14f) = " + f3);

Float f4 = Float.valueOf("3.14");
System.out.println("Float.valueOf(\"3.14\") = " + f4);

And it outputs:

Float.valueOf("3.14f") = 3.14
Float.valueOf(3.14f) = 3.14
Float.valueOf("3.14") = 3.14



However, if I add the following code:

Float f5 = Float.valueOf(3.14);
System.out.println("Float.valueOf(3.14) = " + f5);

I get a compiler error:

cannot find symbol
symbol : method valueOf(double)
location: class java.lang.Float
Float f5 = Float.valueOf(3.14);
^
1 error


I'm really not sure why this is happening....

[Rene Argento]

Sandra, from what I understood, on the f5 variable you are passing a double parameter for the Float.valueOf() method, while it does not support it.

[Prasad Kharkar]

no this is not the case
this is because ValueOf method takes the String as the argument and not others
so

Float.valueOf("3.14"); // compiles fine 
Float.valueOf(3.14);// gives the compiler error

[Rene Argento]

That's what I said. The Float.valueOf() method accepts either a float or a String parameter though.

[Prasad Kharkar]

yeah
Rene
nice work
I missed it
Happy preparation

[Rene Argento]

Thanks
But I still have a long way to go before getting ready for SCJP..

[Abimaran Kugathasan]

Abimaran Kugathasan wrote:

public class CheckValueOfMethod	{
	public static void main(String[] args)	{
		Float f = Float.valueOf("3.14");
		System.out.println(f);
		Integer i = Integer.valueOf("3.14");// RTE
	}
}

We don't need to put the post-fix f in the 3rd line. Why is that, What's really happening?

Thanks in Advanced!

I think, here, we are using name reference Float, so the method valueOf() takes a String arguments and convert it to the named class, So no need of postfix "f" at the end. it's redundant!

[Abimaran Kugathasan]

[Adeel Ansari]

Abimaran Kugathasan wrote:
We don't need to put the post-fix f in the 3rd line. Why is that, What's really happening?

I assume you folks already got the point. Just clear up the things. There in the third line, whether you put a f or not it wouldn't change the type of argument you are passing. That would still be a string. The whole point of passing a f is to make the number float, otherwise a decimal literal is of double type. And there is no method like, Float.valueOf(double), exists.

[Abimaran Kugathasan]

Adeel Ansari wrote:

Abimaran Kugathasan wrote:
We don't need to put the post-fix f in the 3rd line. Why is that, What's really happening?

I assume you folks already got the point. Just clear up the things. There in the third line, whether you put a f or not it wouldn't change the type of argument you are passing. That would still be a string. The whole point of passing a f is to make the number float, otherwise a decimal literal is of double type. And there is no method like, Float.valueOf(double), exists.

Exactly.

When I post this question, I've this doubt, but I cleared it.

Thanks to All......