"Editor's note: Sometimes the most interesting discussions begin when someone says, "This may be a stupid question, but .... " If the person asking the question has taken the time to think about the problem before asking, the question is often not stupid at all. The uncertainty points out an ambiguity in the specs, holes in the docs, or a search for how more experienced programmers might address a particular problem. From time to time, we will print one of the "(Not So) Stupid Questions" we receive and invite our readers to answer the question in the feedback section."
"As a Java programmer, you can check for the equality of two strings in one of two ways: you can use == (for example, strObj1 == strObj2) or you can use equals() (for example, strObj1.equals(strObj2)). If you know how both of these functions are implemented internally, you can make an informed decision as to which one to use for any specific situation."
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"Please see the first lesson in the miniseries entitled Java Advanced Placement Study Guide: Introduction to the Lessons, Primitive Types, for additional background information. The lesson immediately prior to this one was entitled Java Advanced Placement Study Guide: Assignment and Arithmetic Operators."
"I recommend that you also make use of my online Java tutorial lessons, which are designed from a more conventional textbook approach. Those tutorial lessons are published at Gamelan.com."
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