Java- Array/String mashup error?

Question

I have the slight problem at the moment with my Java code that I can't pick up a random string from an array I have. A segment of my code is here:

 private static String core;
    {

            String[] insults = new String[15];
            insults[0] = "So's your mum.";
            insults[1] = "I hate you too.";
            insults[2] = "Freak!";
            insults[3] = "Your balls are like peas.";
            insults[4] = "You're so ugly, your birth certificate was an apology letter from the condom factory.";
            insults[5] = "Ooh, take me to the burn unit.";
            insults[6] = "That insult was like your dick- Pathetic.";
            insults[7] = "Your mum looks like a dog. I was brought up not to lie.";
            insults[8] = "Can you look away? It's killing my face...";
            insults[9] = "If you had a house for every good insult you gave me, you'd still be living on the streets!";
            insults[10] = "Shut up, you'll never be the man your mother is.";
            insults[11] = "Shut up, you'll never be the man your mother is.";
            insults[12] = "Oh my God... Was your face squashed in a vice at birth?";
            insults[13] = "I know you are, but what am I?";
            insults[14] = "Oh, okay then...";
             double count = 0;
    };


public static void output(String output) {
    String insult1 = tpiCore.core[(new Random()).nextInt(insults.length)];
}

You can probably see from here what I'm trying to do. Pick a random insult from the list up above. If I try and run the code, it throws an error at tpiCore.core[(new Random()).nextInt(insults.length)];, "saying that The type of the expression must be an array type but it resolved to String". Then, when I change the type to Array, it throws up all kinds of errors along the core class. I don't know what I'm doing wrong. Can anyone help?

1. what is tpiCore? 2. what is that instruction block under the declaration of core supposed to do? — Marco Forberg
– Marco Forberg, Commented May 10, 2013 at 9:00
String insult1 = tpiCore.core[(new Random()).nextInt(insults.length)]; looks very dangerous... — Maroun
– Maroun, Commented May 10, 2013 at 9:02

vikingsteve · Accepted Answer · 2013-05-10 09:12:36Z

2

If you must use static variables, here is how to do it.

public class TpiCore {

    private static String[] insults = new String[15];
    static {
        insults[0] = "xxx";
        insults[1] = "yyy";
        insults[2] = "zzz";
        // etc...
    }

    public static void main(String[] args) {
        String insult1 = TpiCore.insults[new Random().nextInt(insults.length)];
        System.out.println(insult1);
    }
}

However I would suggest something more like this. Good luck.

public class TpiCore {

    private String[] insults = new String[15];

    public TpiCore() {
        insults[0] = "xxx";
        insults[1] = "yyy";
        insults[2] = "zzz";
        // etc...
    }

    private String randomInsult() {
        return insults[new Random().nextInt(insults.length)];
    }

    public static void main(String[] args) {
        TpiCore core = new TpiCore();
        String insult1 = core.randomInsult();
        System.out.println(insult1);
    }
}

answered May 10, 2013 at 9:12

vikingsteve

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2 Comments

JayD2208 Over a year ago

I have tried what you have sugested, but for some reason I still get the error. Is the problem just that I'm using JTextArea.append(randomInsult());?

vikingsteve Over a year ago

Can you show us the relevant code? You need to use append on an instance of a JTextArea object, not on the class itself.

user1338744 · Accepted Answer · 2013-05-10 09:01:16Z

0

You are using core as an array, but it's defined as String

private static String core;

so you can't do

tpiCore.core[...]

you should do something like

tpiCore.insults[...]

answered May 10, 2013 at 9:01

user1338744

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