java.lang.Byte compare()
Description
The compare() method of Byte class is used simply to compare two byte values on which one is higher. The compare(byte x, byte y) returns the int equivalent of comparing the method argument x and y. All the wrapper class has their own implementation of the compare method which gave us a lot of flexibility in comparing two numbers regardless of what data type is. It might be argued to use our own comparator instead, but designing a good comparator requires a lot of time and deligence. This method is more robust and will rely on the inherent behaviour of the compare method of the wrapper classes. Both ways has their pros and cons, it’s up to the java programmer to decide which suits him best.
Important Notes:
- The method
compare(byte x, byte y)will yield the same result asByte.valueOf(x).compareTo(Byte.valueOf(y))
Method Syntax
public static int compare(byte x, byte y)
Method Argument
| Data Type | Parameter | Description |
|---|---|---|
| byte | x | the first byte to compare |
| byte | y | the second byte to compare |
Method Returns
The compare() method of Byte class returns the value 0 if x == y; a value less than 0 if x < y; and a value greater than 0 if x > y.
Compatibility
Requires Java 1.7 and up
Discussion
To differentiate two numbers, usually our approach is to make use of if else conditional statements, and base on the results of the evaluation we determine the which one of the two numbers are greater or if they are equality. The compare method were devised as such that we can test the equality or compare two numbers without going the trouble of formulating the conditional statements. Well we might still be using the if condition however the conditional statements are more consistent now since we have only 3 possible values which are 0, <0, and >0.
Java Byte compare(byte x, byte y) Example
Below is a simple java example on the usage of compare() method of Byte class.
package com.javatutorialhq.java.examples;
/*
* This example source code demonstrates the use of
* compare(byte x, byte y) method of Byte class.
*/
public class ByteCompareExample {
public static void main(String[] args) {
// initialize 3 byte primitive
byte firstValue = 12;
byte secondValue = 12;
byte thirdValue = 15;
// compare the first byte to the second
int compareOneTwo = Byte.compare(firstValue, secondValue);
// compare the first byte to the third
int compareOneThree = Byte.compare(firstValue, thirdValue);
// display the comparison result of first
// and second value
if (compareOneTwo == 0) {
System.out.println("First and second value are equal");
} else if (compareOneTwo > 0) {
System.out.println("First value is greater than second value");
} else {
System.out.println("First value is less than second value");
}
// display the comparison result of first
// and second value
if (compareOneThree == 0) {
System.out.println("First and third value are equal");
} else if (compareOneTwo > 0) {
System.out.println("First value is greater than third value");
} else {
System.out.println("First value is less than third value");
}
}
}
Basically on the above example, we have declared three Byte values. We then use the compare method to do comparison of these three values. Based on the result of this method, we have devised a logic to display specific messages.
Sample Output
Below is the sample output when you run the above example.
