Meaning of Error Squiggles in VSCode Java - java

My java code has these error squiggles. What do they mean and how do I disable them?
Mouse Over Drop Down 1
Mouse Over Drop Down 2
What do these mean? What does the software suggest me to do?
PS: I'm a complete newb

Hints, no error. For proposing code changes, and SonarLint: code style warnings.
Here it suggests (wrongly so) to replace System.out by a shorter final PrintWriter, say out, so you need only to use out.println(...). That is not normally done.
But a similar rule states that one should use a Logger instead.
For the main: new Hello().execute(); and then in a separate non-static method (execute) do the code you wrote in main.
SonarLint: code style checker, named after the C lint tool to find "lint" in the code, dubious code pieces, like unitialized variables, dangerous lossy conversions and such.
Writing to System.out (the console) is not good style in a web server or a GUI desktop application, hence the advice is to use a Logger for logging interesting information, possibly to the console, but also possibly to a log file.
You should especially as a beginner not disable the linting extension.
Ignore the squiggles, only from time to time look at them.
One can also disable specific SonarLint rules one finds dumb.

I disabled the extension "Language Support for Java(TM) by Red Hat" . This was the extension that did the code linting. Now the squiggles are gone.

Related

Printing up a line in java console (reverse of '\n')

Foreword
I've seen some questions related to this in other languages and done quite some research on this. First, before we begin going down the rabbit hole, I must describe why I'm doing this. I'm pretty printing a binary tree and I found a way to do it that I don't think anyone else has found (can't find it anywhere on the web I've searched forever). It solves a lot of the problems related to spacing and conflicts and I'll probably provide it as an answer to prettyprint Btree questions later. Anyways, an essential part of doing the above is to be able to move the line feed (the cursor) one line up. I will also settle for moving the carriage return one line up.
I have made three EDITs to this question named "Edit 1-3" near the bottom.
My specific Windows version (might be relevant): Windows 10 v1607
OS build: 14393.2035
The problem??
The problem is that this is easily done with ANSI escape characters
ANSI escape codes: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ANSI_escape_code
With "\033[A" being the specific code I want to implement (got it from a question about moving one line up in python).
The problem
So problem solved right? Oh no, not even close. The problem is, apparently windows had this """wonderful""" update that may have broke everything ANSI/console related. The below links to a question about this but with different ANSI requirements however the root problem is the same.
How to print color in console using System.out.println?
tl:dr It doesn't work for windows for some reason, you need a big library to do this or something else.
Sooo then I tried doing some in-depth research on the update itself and why this happens to be windows specific (of course) and I was led to this.
the root cause of windows problem: https://github.com/Microsoft/WSL/issues/1173
tl;dr:
Basically, the update changed a default setting for cmd.exe which is the default console that java uses. What changed was how the console setting for ANSI codes are processed for 'child applications' AKA java (stuff that uses the console but isn't console itself). The default Before the update was that child applications inherited the default of console which was to have ANSI enabled. NOW (because apparently, the previous default broke things) they changed it so that child applications DO NOT inherit the default settings from the console. This means java has to effectively set this console mode itself if java wants to have ANSI enabled. There are obviously a plethora of libraries for the java command to do that but of the good available ones, there are some issues. Firstly they require maven and I don't want maven, also I don't like NEEDING a million extra libraries to do something very simple and it adds to the number of things my code relies on (which is bad). So I'm trying to avoid simple solutions like "just use JANSI" to setConsoleMode for ANSI.
What I've tried after this
after I was done reading/understanding that I tried going into my Registry Editor and trying to change the default setting of the console (cmd.exe) to always enable ANSI even for child applications (AKA java). It had been suggested in the GitHub discussion but to my surprise the specific setting wasn't even there for me. (it was supposed to be in Computer -> HKEY_CUURENT_USER -> Console between "TrimLeadingZeros" and "WindowAlpha").
Try 2
Since I couldn't edit the console setting without big libraries full of things I don't want, I tried thinking outside the box and I messed around in java settings. I discovered where exactly java sets it's console and discovered that I could change that setting to use a different console in java. I had recently installed git and known that git bash was available so I tried that using the below question (and google in general) as a starting point.
https://superuser.com/questions/1196463/start-sh-exe-bash-with-given-path
Third time is the charm?
I couldn't get the darn thing to work. It didn't return any errors or do anything new, like at all. It was even set 'for the current project' so it should've done something different when I ran my project no? I believe part of the problem is that my root git folder is screwy (not in program files). This is probably because the computer I'm using is a work computer and maybe some setting there affects where git was installed, I don't know but what I do know is that when I changed consoles I tried this path:
C:\Users\abbotts1\AppData\Local\Programs\Git\bin\bash.exe
I also tried:
C:\Users\abbotts1\AppData\Local\Programs\Git\bash.exe
and
C:\Users\abbotts1\AppData\Local\Programs\Git\bin\sh.exe
and
"C:\Users\abbotts1\AppData\Local\Programs\Git\bin\sh.exe" --login -i
And after each change of console I tried this code:
public class ExpressionEvaluator {
public static void main(String[] args) {
System.out.println("1");
System.out.println("\033[A");
System.out.println("2");
}
}
And I always got:
1
Extra Line here
2
As the output. If I removed the 'move cursor up' ANSI println statement attempt I got:
1
2
What I wanted was:
2
1
(the whole point being, I'm able to move up a line freely)
I've also tried making them print statements and that didn't work either.
So I'm now at wits end
So here is what I want, an answer something like:
A nonintrusive way to change the setting for cmd.exe to allow child applications like java to use ANSI BY DEFAULT when ran
OR a nonintrusive library that doesn't require maven and a million other things to enable ANSI so I can run the ANSI in java in the console and get my desired output
OR a programmatic workaround that allows me to effectively print one line up without this whole ANSI thing
OR help to configure IntelliJ console so that I can actually use a different console and use ANSI to print one line up
To address the obvious concerns
Since 1 and 4 are superuser questions and 2 is 'I need a library' and offtopic I'm more talking about point 3 here. If there is no workaround for this and the answer is one of the offtopic ones just tell me there is no workaround. I don't know how else to ask this question since it is a 'programming specific problem' it just has many solutions some of which are not 'on the topic' because they aren't programming solutions. If the only answer is 'the solution isn't on topic here' then I'll go ask in the appropriate place. Let me know if I should delete this question when I go to ask it somewhere else.
What I think might work for on topic part of this
Since 3 is on topic here I'll discuss what I'm thinking:
Maybe I could make some sort of system to print only to certain arrays instead of moving up and down lines (i.e. have an array to represent the lines, traverse the tree and instead of moving up and down lines, just switching the array to print to). I don't see this as very efficient and Its kind of a waste of arrays and processing power but if its a solution I'm willing to hear it. That's all I can 'think of' but most of what I've tried is trying to get ANSI to work.
For future reference:
what is the appropriate way to ask these questions with multiple off-topic solutions/ solution questions? Is it better just not to ask them at all? Do solutions that involve questions constitute a chameleon question? I don't feel like bringing the meta effect upon myself.
Edit 1: where I'm at so far:
I've tried the whole git bash thing again and boy was it a process. The actual git bash path in the terminal needs to be in quotes with the --login -I arguments coming afterward. Ex:
C:\Git\bin\sh.exe --login -i
This setting is for the java terminal. THEN you have to set a windows environment variable named PATH to your java JDK. Go to your path environment variables (there are a million and one youtube videos for that) and set a new variable named PATH to your JDK. Ex:
C:\Program Files\Java\jdk-10.0.1\bin
This question:
How can i make gitbash find the javac command?
Goes through that process extensively
Tl;dr You have to set a windows path variable this in order for git bash to recognize the javac and java commands.
Once that's done you need to actually run your java and javac commands like you would in any terminal. BTW be careful because paths in git bash require a two '\' notation instead of the normal '\' so your source directory path might look like this:
C:\IdeaProjects\Calculator\src\
Then you just run:
javac ClassName.java
java ClassName
BUT THEN it doesn't actually print the ANSI output, it prints the raw escape characters. Also, I found out I was using the WRONG escape sequence (I had the wrong number to represent the 'esc' button since the 'esc' key is represented as some number, but I had the wrong hex number I was using like x330 or something). I also learned that the notation is like this:
'esc key hex number' + '[' + 'parameter hex values separated by commas'
so this might look like:
\x1B [ A
where the actual letters and numbers are hex value stuff (without the obvious 0x...) and the first escape hex value has an x in it (why?). Anyways, when running them in Java as strings you need to escape the escape character (duh right?) with an extra '\' so, for example, the code might look like:
System.out.println("\\\x1B [A");
I just noticed that stack overflow escapes these too so I
actually have three '\' but for you guys, it only displays two '\',
weird right? Anyways back to what I was saying
BUT STILL, the output doesn't actually work! This is where I'm at. I've done the above and I 99.9% know git bash is installed right and runs fine but when I run this:
public class ExpressionEvaluator {
public static void main(String[] args) {
System.out.println("1");
System.out.println("\\x1B [A");
System.out.println("2");
}
}
I get this in java console (not git bash??):
1
\x1B [A
2
and this in git bash:
1
\x1B [A
2
What I actually want is:
2
1
Because the ANSI escape character is supposed to move my cursor/linefeed/whatever, one line upwards. The same thing happens if I run the above code but instead use the ANSI code: "\x1B [F". Only raw ANSI is output. I'm pretty sure git bash was supposed to be 'natively ANSI aware' and I've seen people say that on websites so I don't know why it isn't working.
And I still don't know for sure if those are two separate console outputs or the same console output. I really can't tell so if anyone wants to leave a comment saying 'yeah its the same dummy', I'd appreciate it because I can't find a definitive source out on the web that it is. I think it is but nothing other than the console setting in IntelliJ indicates that as true.
I've heard rumors of a TERM variable that needs to be set or otherwise manipulated on windows. I've checked myself what it is using:
echo $TERM
in git bash and I got back:
cygwin
So I don't exactly know if that's good or bad because I've literally gone through all the search terms you can think of and they all lead to the same basic page of results for 'git bash colors not working' and most of them involve windows 7 (don't have it) installing maven/jansi (don't want or shouldn't need it) or some other language that isn't Java and using some other IDE which isn't IntelliJ. Some pages that do have my specific requirements have said something about TERM supposed to be xterm or some other thing like xterm-256 or something for 'color' output, something like this. I am so unfamiliar with this stuff so I don't even know where to begin.
Too long give us a tl;dr
I need to know why git bash is printing raw ANSI instead of actually using the ANSI.
what I know
I'm using git bash with IntelliJ, 99.9% sure I have my path set correctly, I am able to run my java class from git bash, I have it set as the IntelliJ terminal and I currently have the windows TERM variable set to cygwin.
What I don't know
I don't know what TERM needs to be and can't find it on the web, I can't tell if the IntelliJ console that appears when I click the green arrow 'run' is the same as the git bash console, and I can't figure out if some other thing is preventing me from actually interpreting the ANSI.
What I need
I need a simple explanation, something straight out of r/ELI5 of what is wrong with git bash if anything and how to fix it. If it can't be explained simply or nothing is wrong then maybe I'll try another supposedly 'natively ANSI aware' terminal. I think Powershell was another option that was listed. My best bet is that the TERM variable needs to be something else, or git bash was never really natively ANSI aware and capable, to begin with. I've seen other questions with the same problem for colors but their fixes are for older versions/different languages and things or they don't actually work. I have yet to find a good page for 'git bash outputs raw ANSI in IntelliJ' and I've used variations of those exact words for hours now. All I can get is long GitHub discussions on the 'bugs' related to this and they confuse me, don't lead to solutions, and may be active or just don't contain any resolution.
Edit 2
After doing some more research I've learned that my previous escape code was correct:
\033[A
\x1B[A
should be similar.
I also learned that it isn't the console I'm using that's the problem, its Windows itself. I now know this because I've tried compiling and running on cmd.exe , git bash and powershell. To change the default setting talked about earlier (consoles not supporting ansi for child applications) you have to EXPLICITLY enable it via the program itself rather than rely on a console or something.
link to a question that explains this in Python here:
How to use the new support for ANSI escape sequences in the Windows 10 console?
tl;dr
The method that they use is something called getConsoleMode and setConsoleMode and VIRTUALTERMINALPROCESSING flags. Apparently you need to use these to actually set the console mode to support ANSI. I don't currently know if those are things that are in java hidden somewhere or (likely) something that needs to be added to the base java libraries. I'm going to try and figure out how they actually get the ctypes thing from that question (seems to be what they're importing to sue these methods) and get the methods I need. Once I do I'll post that as an answer unless one of you figures it out before I do and can explain it better.
Apparently, the escape sequences work fine if you only use them from the console but If you use a "child application" then they don't work. So at the very least we now for sure know the root cause of the problem.
Edit 3
Found this which is highly relevant especially the console virtual terminal sequences section (lefthand navbar):
https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/console/console-virtual-terminal-sequences
This which, near the bottom has a whole C-implementation of how to enable the console to read ANSI. Apparently, this doesn't need libraries at all but the process to actually change the console defaults to use code like this requires sysadmin privileges, intimate knowledge of the program files and a whole host of other things (at least if you're before the windows 10 update when color support was changed). Now it's still disabled by default but can be enabled. I don't yet know how to try ANSI from the console directly. I've tried multiple
echo \x1B[(insert ANSI code here)
but none of the commands seem to work in ANY terminal (cmd, git bash, powershell). They just return the raw code
\x1B[(whatever the ANSI code was)
I obviously am new to the console so I might be using the wrong command, if so feel free to enlighten me but the examples I've seen use echo. ANYWAYS, I thought that calling the ANSI directly from terminal was supposed to work since its supposedly enabled by default just not child applications (post windows 10 update) BUT maybe its not, maybe its disabled by default and even when enabled its still disabled for child applications (Java) unless explicitly changed in said child application (java). I'm going to try to see if it's possible to enable ANSI directly from the console, or if the linked C-code needs to be directly ported to Java or ran in the console just to work. The problem is I don't know how to get the imports/includes that the C-code uses and use it for code in java. I'd rather not just accept a coded 'solution' in C and try and use that alongside java code, I'd rather translate, understand it better and have my own code that does the same thing.
Another option I've been told is something called ANSICON which is like some sort of plugin that you install in the console with the -i flag and that's supposed to enable ANSI at least in-console. I found this
https://community.liferay.com/blogs/-/blogs/enable-ansi-colors-in-windows-command-prompt
the above explains that process in a little more detail.
My specific windows version and the version of the update
Another thing I learned was that the specific version of windows 10 that the 'update' that changed ANSI console behavior was like windows 10 v1151 or something, I'll try and find the webpage to source this directly but I currently have windows 10 v1607 so I think I should be good. Included in that was the actual OS build which I have 14393.2035 and I think that was identified as a particularly intermediate update to this process in one of my previous links (I believe its the one with the whole GitHub discussion about the update, you can find it here: https://github.com/Microsoft/WSL/issues/1173). I have a work computer so I can't really make system updates because I'm not an administrator and I doubt IT would let an intern go around updating work computers.
Anyways, I'll continue on trying to see if I can get the C-code to java, I'll test it and then try and post an answer. If ya'll are ahead of me let me know.
The python way you reference in "Edit 2" (https://stackoverflow.com/a/36760881/309816) simply invokes Windows-specific native code (kernel32, which is non-portable) to "fix" this.
I suppose you are OK with that and want to do the same in Java (i.e. invoke kernel32 when you detect Windows)...
A very lightweight library for achieving the same in Java is JNA which has out-of-the-box wrapper for kernel32 (see: https://java-native-access.github.io/jna/4.2.1/com/sun/jna/platform/win32/Kernel32.html)
You seem to be after this method: https://java-native-access.github.io/jna/4.2.1/com/sun/jna/platform/win32/Wincon.html#SetConsoleMode-com.sun.jna.platform.win32.WinNT.HANDLE-int-
Hope this works for you.
EDIT: technically, you only need jna.jar (see getting started here: https://github.com/java-native-access/jna/blob/master/www/GettingStarted.md), but I would suggest you also use jna-platform.jar so that you don't need write the code that generates the mappings for kernel32 at runtime yourself.
Home for JNA: https://github.com/java-native-access/jna
I think adding 1 (or 2 if you add jna-platform) jars that have a very specific scope (doing native calls without all the JNI preparation overhead) is lightweight enough. You don't need to generate any headers, or change anything in your compilation process. It will just work by adding those jars to your classpath.
You should also clarify in your question that this is about Windows. Maybe edit the title to: "Printing up a line in java console (reverse of '\n') on Windows" as this is really about a platform-specific concern that you want to address with Java.

Debugging using Java source code

Is there a way to include whole Java source code into an eclipse project so the program is easier to debbug (e.g. by inserting println in methods you otherwise couldn't insert anything)?
I have a bug in my code. But to better understand why the bug in my code appears, I'd like to see what intermediate results in some system method (on which use the bug occurs) are.
For example, I'd like to know what JViewPort.scrollRectToVisible() exactly does and how my input behaves in it by printing out some intermediate results that occur in the method itself.
EDIT:
Instead of using JRE System Library X, I want to add the source code from JDK as if I had written the code myself. I want to be able to edit any System class just as I am able to edit any class I created myself. I want editable .java files, not packed .jars...
You would need to add the 3rd-party library to your Eclipse workspace as an project. (How you would do that depends on the code you are dealing with.) Once you have done that, you can hack your copy of the library to add trace prints etcetera.
A better alternative is to simply attach the source code for the 3rd-party library so that the debugger can show you source as you step through the code, set breakpoints,. Then use "advanced breakpoint" techniques instead of trace prints; e.g. http://www.vogella.com/articles/EclipseDebugging/article.html#advanced
You cannot change the library code, but you can view it by using de-compiler. The max you can do is this. Now if you change any code in the libraries which you reached via the de-compiler, you would find an error stating "the integrity of the .jar package has changed which is not allowed"
Eclipse have built-in support for what you wanna do.
All you have to do is set breakpoint and execute application in debugging mode.
You can use these icons in Eclipse debugging perspective.
Follow along Eclipse Debugging Tutorial for details.

How to execute console or GUI input as if it was actual Java code?

I want to be able to input java commands/code to execute during run-time (during the execution of a "persistent" program) in the same way, or as close as possible, to the same code would be executed if it was present on the source-code for the program (programmed as part of the software), using a GUI element, like jTextArea.
The following StackOverflow questions seem to be related, but, along with they'r answers, don't seem to be what i'm looking for.
How To Get Input From Console Class In Java?
Using GUI for console input and outputin java
I don't want to "be able to trigger actions from specific console inputs, and print the feedback into the console", as seems to be the case of console applications described in those question and answers.
What i want is to "be able to execute actual java code, that i cannot predict nor control, from console (or GUI) input".
NOTE: The "i cannot predict nor control" here refers to the "developer"...But of course i can predict and "control" it if i'm the one inputting the code, as the "user" would do.
Since java uses a virtual-machine environment, i think it might be possible for it to execute "run-time inputted code"...But i'm not sure such thing is even possible.
For example, i'd like the run-time input of for(int i=0; i<3; i++){System.out.println(i);} in the "GUI console" (jTextArea, for example) to, upon pressing the enter key or clicking a "Send" button, be ("compiled and "?) executed, and give the same output as if it was part of the original source-code, thus:
0
1
2
So i'd like to know the following:
Is it possible?
If yes, how can i do it? (OR, if no, what is the closest alternative?)
Use the JavaCompiler. It can compile code from a String.
For an E.G. see the STBC & especially the source code. It provides a GUI and can compile the code in the text area on button click.
But note the:
System Requirements
STBC will run on any computer with a version 1.6+ Java Plug-In* JDK (AKA SDK).
(*) The API that STBC uses is merely a public interface to the compiler in the tools.jar that is distributed only with JDKs (though the 'public JRE' of the JDK also seems to acquire a tools.jar). This leads to some unusual requirements in running either the native jar, or the web start app.
You can use JavaCompiler, as this question's answer states:
https://stackoverflow.com/a/935316/420001
Also, what you're wanting to do is evaluate a String of code:
It's not really recommended though.
There is a project called BeanShell
"In short, BeanShell is dynamically interpreted Java, plus a scripting language and flexible environment all rolled into one clean package. "
I know this is an old answer but for future Googlers:
I would recommend JavaREPL whose source is available here:
https://github.com/albertlatacz/java-repl
What AlmightyR is asking for is called Read-Eval-Print-Loop (REPL) for the Java language which is what JavaREPL provides.
JavaREPL has an online demo available here: http://www.javarepl.com/console.html
JavaREPL also has an Intellij plugin and a CLI version which are both linked to in the Github repository.
It looks sort of abandoned currently but perhaps it just doesn't need to be maintained?

Eclipse - showing full call stack (like when it hits breakpoint in debugger) without putting in breakpoints?

I'm working with a legacy Java app that is new to me so one way to figure out how it works and find things easier, I have thought would be to be able to get the full stack trace after I perform actions, so as to be able to see which classes are being used based on a particular UI action. I had thought this was possible in the debugger but it seems that it only works if I insert a breakpoint and in this case part of the purpose of this is so that I don't have to know what's being called to be able to insert the breakpoint first (as this would help tell me that).
I apologize if this is a basic question, I have searched on this but I'm not finding the correct answer.
This doesn't directly answer your question, but maybe it will solve your problem better. Take a look at BTrace. It lets you instrument a running Java app and insert some basic code of your own. You could, for instance, have it write out entire method call chains to help you find your way through the app. It's somewhat similar to AspectJ, but with an entirely different purpose and requiring no change in the project source:
"BTrace is a safe, dynamic tracing tool for Java. BTrace works by dynamically (bytecode) instrumenting classes of a running Java program. BTrace inserts tracing actions into the classes of a running Java program and hotswaps the traced program classes."
A few suggestions:
Some profilers will allow you to walk from any particular method up (and sometimes down) to see what's calling and being called. I've found this surprising informative about flow, even in apps I thought I knew well.
For understanding the mainline flow, I don't think there's a better substitute for working interactively with a debugger. It will lead you into learning other important things. Not what you wanted to hear, I know. This presumes that you can rapidly restart the app when you miss a key off-ramp.
Reverse-designing large legacy apps is the one place where I use UML fairly regularly. There's too much to keep in my head to form a good big picture. If you have a UML tool that will do reverse-engineering, load it up with the app, then probably prune down hard on the classes you don't care about, because they are trivial or obvious. Arrange the diagrams in a way that helps you understand. I've used Together, Magic Draw, and Visual Paradigm in this way. Together worked the best - but it was a decade ago.
When you are in the debugger perspective, you will see a view showing the launched processes. In that view you can tell it to pause all threads of a process. Once stopped, you will be able to browse through threads to see what they are all doing. To try to catch what a particular action is doing, you would have to start the action and then quickly pause all threads.
You could always run the application with the VM arg of -verbose:class. You could then watch the console output and see what classes the VM is loading when you perform a particular action. This could possibly give you a starting place for where to place breakpoints. This won't always work depending on the scenario, but may be helpful.
Another trick you can use is to figure what classes you know that have to be involved in the code path you are trying to trap. For instance, you mentioned that it's a Java EE web app and therefore the action is likely some kind of a servlet interaction (at some level). I don't have the API in front of me, but you can place a breakpoint on the method in the response object where the output stream is retrieved. Once that breaks, you will know the code that's trying to service the request.
You can always see where a method is called by clicking "Open Call Hierarchy" from eclipse (left click on the selected method or CTRL+ALT+H ). Also, you always can inspect where a method/class is defined by clicking "Open Declaration" (left click on the selected method/class or F3).

IntelliJ inspection -- non-thrown exception

This is a follow-up question to 1832203. I'm making it a new question as well, because it seems that posting an answer to a question doesn't change its position on the java page and so I'm worried that it won't get seen. Apologies if I've just stepped on some etiquette toes.
I'm an IntelliJ newbie -- started using it two days ago and I'm absolutely head-over-heels in love! One of the things I adore is the code inspections. However...
In one of my classes I often create exceptions without throwing them. If I can't turn off (or downgrade) the inspection warning for this then I can see I'm going to end up ignoring inspections on at least that file (if not the entire project), which would be a real pity.
I've done a search in the inspection settings for "exception", and found nothing that relates exactly, so I turned them all off just to see, and it's still doing it (even after a rebuild...BTW when are inspections redone? at save? at rebuild? ???), so I would really like some help on how to make this one into an info/typo level -- which I can then ignore.
Using the free version, if that makes any difference
TIA to all those experienced IntelliJ warriors out there!
Press Alt+Enter to show inspection popup, then press Right Arrow to see available options. You'll see there options to suppress this current instance of warning, for this class or completely turn it off.

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