Lexicographic quicksort algorithm - java

My professor gave me a code for the methods to be used in sorting an array of names lexicographically, but I have no idea how what to write inside the main class to show that the program works. I am very new to java, so please if you know how to do this could you write it as simple as possible for me to understand it. Thanks in advance.
This is are the classes
public class quicksort_class {
int[] array1 = new int[11];
public quicksort_class(int[] w)
{
array1 = w;
}
private static void sort(String[] string, int leftlimit, int rightlimit) {
if (rightlimit > leftlimit)
{
int midpoint = partitionstep(string, leftlimit, rightlimit);
sort(string, leftlimit, midpoint - 1);
sort(string, midpoint, rightlimit);
}
}
public static int partitionstep(String[] string, int leftlimit, int rightlimit)
{
String midpoint = string[rightlimit];
int lpointer = leftlimit;
int rpointer = rightlimit;
String temp = "";
while(string[lpointer].compareTo(midpoint) <= 0)
{
lpointer = lpointer ++;
}
while(string[rpointer].compareTo(midpoint) > 0)
{
rpointer = rpointer --;
}
if(lpointer > rpointer)
{
temp = string[lpointer];
string[lpointer] = string[rightlimit];
string[rpointer] = temp;
System.out.println(string);
}
while(lpointer < rpointer)
{
temp = string[lpointer];
string[lpointer] = string[rightlimit];
string[rightlimit] = temp;
}
return lpointer;
}
}
This is the main class (as you can see I have no idea what to write)
package quicksort;
public class Quicksort {
public static void main(String[] args) {
}
}

Write something that sets up an array of strings and calls sort against it, then prints out the results or checks them against a known good result.
Ideally, write something which does this repeatedly, with particular emphasis on checking unusual combinations (already sorted or sorted in reverse, null in the array, same value appearing several times or all values being identical...)
If you want to go beyond that, you need to dig into the code to understand its edge cases and specifically test those, and/or do a "code coverage" analysis (there are tools to help with that) to make sure all parts of the code have been exercised.

Assume the algorithm of sort method is correct:
1. If the main method is within the body of quicksort_class, you can directly call the sort method as sort(arrayToBeSorted, 0 , arrayToBeSorted.length-1). And the arrayToBeSorted should ordered lexicographically after your call. You can check that to confirm.
2. If the main method is in other class, as your main method currently, you need to at least change the private prefix of sort method to public, and call quicksort_class.sort(arrayToBeSorted, 0 , arrayToBeSorted.length-1).
Some tips:
1. Private prefix of method definition means this method can only be called inside current class body.
2. Static prefix of method definition means you should call this method via class name directly, instead of via a instance of class.
By the way, can you provide what the array1 attribute stands for? I don't get why it's there.

Related

How to use a recursive method that has a return type void in java?

So I understand how to use a recursive method that has some other return type other than void. Typically I would call the same method again in the same method( inside the recursive case), while decremented or increment some value in the call to reach the base case. Then at some point the base case is reached and the problem is solved, so it starts returning the value from every call. Along those lines.
BUT
What if the method has the return type void, so you can't call the method as it won't/can't return anything? I'm trying to write a sentence backwards, which I've solved both with a for loop and a resucrive method that can return a string value, but I'm not sure how to approach it if it's void which is what the assignment is asking for.
Edit: I should also mention the sentence can only be passed in the parameter
Thank you everyone for the information and the help!
Recursion doesn't work only with methods/functions that return values. Recursion means only that the method/function calls itself.
You must guarantee that there is at least one stop condition but this does not require the function to return a value. This is commonly achieved by incrementally changing one or more arguments that you pass each time the function recursively calls itself. When that/those arguments satisfy a certain condition your function no longer calls itself and all pending operations are solved.
I am not fully aware of the task you are trying to do but here is an example of a recursive function that writes a string backwards. I use PSEUDO-functions with names that hopefully are self-explanatory.
public void writeBackwards(String str) {
// This is the negation of the stop condition, so the stop condition
// is when the string is empty, in which case this function will do
// nothing:
if (!str.isEmpty()) {
char firstCharacter = str.getFirstCharacter();
str = str.removeFirstCharacter();
writeBackwards(str); // the recursive call
// The following operation will be pending, waiting for the
// recursive call to be resolved first:
writeCharacter(firstCharacter);
}
}
You can use any mutable Object as a parameter of the recursive function to store the result. For example, the backwards-sentence problem you mentioned could be written as:
public void stringReverse(String s, int index, StringBuilder sb) {
if (index < 0)
return;
sb.append(s.charAt(index));
stringReverse(s, index - 1, sb);
}
And called like this
StringBuilder sb = new StringBuilder();
stringReverse(mySentence, mySentence.length() - 1, sb);
Just like in C++ you can pass in pointers, here in Java you can simply pass in a class object to your function to hold the value generated from the recursive calls of the function. A simple example reflecting your question to compute fibonacci number is following.
public class ComputeFibonacci {
static class Fibonacci {
public int ith;
public int value;
Fibonacci(int a, int b) {
ith = a;
value = b;
}
}
private static void fibonacci(Fibonacci result) {
if (result.ith == 1 || result.ith == 2) {
result.value = 1;
} else {
Fibonacci left = new Fibonacci(result.ith - 1, 0);
Fibonacci right = new Fibonacci(result.ith - 2, 0);
fibonacci(left);
fibonacci(right);
result.value = left.value + right.value;
}
}
public static void main(String[] args) {
// Here we compute the 10th fibonacci number
Fibonacci f = new Fibonacci(10, 0);
fibonacci(f);
System.out.println("The result is " + f.value);
}
}
Good luck.

Am I returning the correct value from my method & am I writing it correctly?

I'll preface my question with the statement that I am very new to Java, so I apologise if my code is totally disgusting to read.
What I'm trying to do: I'm writing a program that takes two integers from the user, a low value and a high value, and sends both integers to two different methods. Method #1 has a simple for loop and should print out all of the numbers between the lowest number and the highest number that are multiples of 3 or 5, and Method #2 does the same except for numbers that are multiples of 3 or 5 it also checks if that number is also a multiple of 6 and, if so, it prints the number and an asterisk next to it.
What I'm having trouble with: I'm pretty stumped on what I need to return from my methods & how to return anything at all. This is the first time I've worked on a method properly (just moved up from "Hello World) and from what I can see I don't really need to return anything at all. All the code that I've put in my methods pretty much complete the program, so I thought maybe returning the integers I sent would be enough, apparently it's not. So, without further ado, here's my code.
The Error:
javac BonusQ.java
.\MethodOne.java:19: error: illegal start of type
return(int lowestRange, int highestRange);
^
.\MethodTwo.java:36: error: illegal start of type
return(int lowestRange, int highestRange);
^
The Main:
import java.util.Scanner;
public class BonusQ
{
public static void main(String [] args)
{
Scanner scan = new Scanner(System.in);
int lowestRange = 0;
int highestRange = 0;
System.out.println("Enter the lowest integer in your range");
lowestRange = scan.nextInt();
System.out.println("Enter the highest integer in your range");
highestRange = scan.nextInt();
MethodOne.NoAsterisk(lowestRange, highestRange);
MethodTwo.Asterisk(lowestRange, highestRange);
}
}
MethodOne:
public class MethodOne
{
public static int NoAsterisk(int lowestRange, int highestRange)
{
for(int i = lowestRange; i <= highestRange; i++)
{
if (i%5 == 0)
{
System.out.println(i);
}
else if (i%3 == 0)
{
System.out.println(i);
}
}
}
return(int lowestRange, int highestRange);
}
MethodTwo:
public class MethodTwo
{
public static int Asterisk(int lowestRange, int highestRange)
{
for(int i = lowestRange; i <= highestRange; i++)
{
if (i%5 == 0)
{
if (i%5 == 0 && i%6 == 0)
{
System.out.println(i + "*");
}
else
{
System.out.println(i);
}
}
else if (i%3 == 0)
{
if (i%3 == 0 && i%6 == 0)
{
System.out.println(i + "*");
}
else
{
System.out.println(i);
}
}
}
}
return(int lowestRange, int highestRange);
}
Sorry if the post is a bit beefy to read, I just find that adding my thoughts on the code might help you explain to me what's going wrong, seeing as you may not know the extent of my incompetence :)
Thanks in advance.
Ok, Classes have members.
Members are either some variables or arrays of variables
and the methods of a class.
So you got
public class MyMethod
{
public static int Asterisk(int loRange, int hiRange)
{
// Do magic let's make a sum for this example
// You enter loRange and hiRange (you defined it above)
return loRange + hiRange // Here the method returns a result
}
}
// So then....
public static void main(String [] args)
{
// WHATEVER IS IN HERE RUNS ALWAYS FIRST.
z = Asterisk(1,2); // 1 and 2 is lo and hi range values ;)
// Z has a value of 3 now because Asterisk(1,2) returns 1 + 2
}
See how this works?
Now this works because you use the static definition (meaning there must not be an instance of MyMethod created first to use the method. It's not wrong, but if you can make a program do things with class instances, you better do it that way.
You make an instance of a class, this is called an object, using a special method. This method has the exact name of the Class and constructs an instance of it.
You should study now about constructors, abstract classes etc etc.
I can't say you do it wrong or right either. It is about what the program is all about and you should study the scope for variables and methods, and the encapsulation concept of Object Oriented Programming.
Using only static methods, goes against encapsulation principle, it is possibly wrong but I can't tell for sure.
I hope this helped you and gave you a good direction to go on with your study.
PS:
To return multiple results, you should return an array of variables, not just a variable.
You can also return nothing and just have it do the job to a needed array. This FORCES you though to make this array public. (Not a good practice)
Finally if multiple value returns are needed to just print them on the console... well, just do it in the method, no need to return anything really.
You don't need to return anything, being that the methods are printing out all the values.
You can change them into void methods, for example:
public static void asterisk(int lowest, int highest) {
//loops and if statements
//no return statement!
}
The code in the methods will run and voila, you are done!
EDIT: That being said, there's a lot more than can be done to make this code more Java-like, but for now this will work.
mmmmm...you can return types, and (int lowestRange, int highestRange) its not a type. Look at the method definition
public static int Asterisk(int lowestRange, int highestRange)
the return type is declared as int, so you should return an int value. You can do something like
return lowestRange;
return 1;
with that in consideration, the error should dissapear. The question is, why do you need to return a value? From what i've read, your methods are supose to print stuff, not to return stuff...
The return statements are out of the method. You have to put them before the close method brackets.
public class MyClass{
public int sum (int a, int b){
return a + b;
} // The return have to be before this brackets
}

Array in Method Header: error ']' expected (Java)

I'm quite new to arrays and methods, and I've been seeing this error recurring through several programs: error '[' expected.
In each occasion, it seems to correct itself as I adjust something else, but in this particular case, I am completely stumped.
By the way, I am using several methods and arrays to create a quiz (before you ask, yes, this is an assignment and I agree, a list is a better way to handle this data - but that is not an option).
It is possible that I am not passing the arrays correctly between methods, as I'm a little muddy on that process. From my understanding, in order to send/receive (i.e. import/export) an array or other variable between methods, I must declare that variable/array in the method header parameters.
import java.util.Scanner;
public class H7pseudo
{
public static void main(String[] args)
{
//call getAnswerkey method
getAnswerkey(answerkey[i]);
//call getAnswers method
getAnswers(answers[i]);
//call passed method? necessary or no?
boolean passed = passed(answerkey[i], answers[i], qMissed[i], points);
//Print results of grading
if (passed)
{
System.out.println("Congratulations! You passed.");
}
else
{
System.out.println("Try again, sucka. You FAILED.");
}
//call totalPoints
totalIncorrect(points);
//call questionsMissed
questionsMissed(qMissed[i]);
}
//get answer key (create answerkey array & export)
public static void getAnswerkey(answerkey[i])
{
//create answerkey array here
char[] answerkey;
//determine number of questions (indices)
answerkey = new char[20];
//input values (correct answers) for each index
//for our purposes today, the answer is always 'c'.
for (int i = 0; i <=20; i++)
{
answerkey[i] = 'c';
}
}
//get student answers (create answers array & export)
public static void getAnswers(answers[i])
{
//initialize scanner for user input
Scanner scan = new Scanner(System.in);
//create answer array here
char[] answers;
//determine number of questions (indices)
answers = new char[20];
//prompt for user input as values of each index
for (int i = 0; i <= 20; i++) {
answers[i] = scan.nextChar();
}
}
//grade student answers (import & compare index values of arrays:answers&answerkey
//create & export qMissed array
public static boolean passed(answerkey[i], answers[i], qMissed[i], points)
{
int points = 0;
//create new array: qMissed
boolean[] qMissed;
//determine number of questions to be graded
qMissed = new boolean[20];
//initialize values for array
for (int i = 0; i <= 20; i++) {
qMissed[i] = false;
}
//cycle through indices of answerkey[i] & answers[i];
for (int i = 0; i =< 20; i++)
{
if (answers[i] == answerkey[i])
{
correct = true;
points = points+1;
qMissed[i] = true;
}
else {
qMissed[i] = false;
}
}
//evaluate whether or not the student passed (15+ correct answers)
if (points >= 15)
{
passed = true;
}
else
{
passed = false;
}
return passed;
}
public static void totalIncorrect(points)
{
int missed = 20 - points;
System.out.println("You missed " + missed + " questions.");
}
public static void questionsMissed(qMissed[i])
{
// for each index of the array qMissed...
for (int i = 0; i < qMissed.length; i++)
{
//...print correct and false answers.
system.out.println(i + ": " + qMissed[i] + "\n");
}
}
}
You can't define array size in the method signature, in Java.
public static void getAnswerkey(answerkey[i])
You can't put anything inside the [] in a method declaration. Also, you have to mention the type:
public static void getAnswerKey(char[] answerkey)
This is not the only reason your code won't work as intended, but I'll leave the rest as part of the exercise.
Look at your method definitions:
public static void questionsMissed(qMissed[i])
This is wrong. You should define the type of the variable and it should not contain [i] like an element of an array. It should be something like this:
public static void questionsMissed(int qMissed)
Or if you want to pass the array, write it like this:
public static void questionsMissed(int[] qMissed)
Apart of this, there are other several errors in your code:
getAnswerkey(answerkey[i]); //answerkey is not defined
getAnswers(answers[i]); //answers is not defined
It would be better if you start reading a Java tutorial first.
I want to vote up Luiggi's answer, but I don't have enough reputation to do that :)
Congrats, cordivia, on getting started with Java!
Here is how an array is declared:
type[] arrayName = new type[numberOfElements]
For example, you did this right in your method definition for getAnswerkey():
char[] answerkey;
answerkey = new char[20];
The part in the method definition inside the parentheses defines the kind of data the method is willing to accept from the outside. So if you don't need to put something into the method to get something out of it, you don't need to put anything in the parentheses. Define the method like this:
getAnswerkey() {
...But that's not the whole story. If you want to get something out of the method, it needs to have a return type as well. A return type is what you're gonna get out of the method when the method's done doing it's magic. For example, if you want to get an int array out of a method you would do something like this:
public static int getTheInteger() {
Since you want an array of chars from the method, you'll want to do something like this:
public static char[] getAnswerkey() {
So that's how you get a method to give you something back. If don't want anything back, you put void:
public static void noMarshmallows() {
Now, when you use the method, you're gonna need to do something with what it gives you, or it did all that work for nothing. So you need to store the return value in a variable when you call the array (calling methods is what you've been doing in main). You know how to store something in a variable. You use the '=' operator:
int myVeryFavoriteNumber;
myVeryFavoriteNumber = 5;
So, you do the same thing when you're getting something out of an array. You assign the return value to a variable. If you want to do this with an array, do this:
int[] myFavs;
myFavs = getMyFavoriteNumbers();
Same with chars:
char[] answerKey;
answerKey = getAnswerKey();
Voila! Your answer key is now right out in the open for the rest of main to see :)
Now, if you want to put something into a method and have it do something with what you put in, you define a parameter. You know how this works. It's just like declaring a variable, and that's exactly what it is. Parameters go in the parentheses and only the method using the parameter sees that variable name (it's local). Something like this:
public static void plusOneToAll (int[] numbers) {
for (int i = 0; i < numbers.length; i++) {
numbers[i] = numbers[i] + 1;
}
}
Notice int[] numbers in the parentheses. The type being passed in is int[] or integer array. numbers is just the parameter name. It functions just like a variable, but it is declared locally (inside the parentheses) and use locally (inside the method). So, if you wanted to compare the answers from two arrays and return the number of matches (like a total score for instance), you would do something like this:
public static int getTotalScore (char[] correctAnswers, char[] userAnswers) {
int totalScore = 0;
for (int i = 0; i < correctAnswers.length; i++) {
if (userAnswers[i] == correctAnswers[i]) {
totalScore = totalScore + 1;
}
}
return totalScore;
}
Notice the return type: int (written before the method name). Inside the array I'm using the variable totalScore to keep track of the number of times the answers match. The method takes two char arrays from the outside and uses them on the inside. Finally, I return an int: totalScore. That kicks the value of totalScore back out to whatever called it (main).
If I might add one last thing: Do yourself a favor and go pick up a copy of Head First Java. It's hard to find a good tutorial online and Java textbooks are just plain boring. The Head First series are kind of like coloring books for adults.
Best of luck!

Find and print the product of all the entries in array

Okay I have tried to write a simple Java code in BlueJ, that finds and prints the product of all the entries in data such as if data is {1,2,3,4} then the result will be 24.
And my code is below:
public class Product {
public static int[] product(int[] a) {
int [] s = new int[a.length];
for (int i =0; i< a.length; i++)
s[i] = a[i]*a[i];
return s; //the definition of your method...
}
public static void main(String[] args) {
//calling the method to seek if compiles
int[] results = Product.product(new int[] { 1,2,3,4 });
//printing the results
System.out.println(java.util.Arrays.toString(results));
}
}
The above code is giving me the square of each number, which is not what I want to have, somehow I have modify the code that the result will be 24 but I couldn't figure it out, anyone knows how to do it?
First of all, if you are first writing Java it is important to know that variable, function and class names are quite important. Please note that having Product.product() is not a good idea, since the function name is almost the same as the class name. Anyway, regarding your code. Your code is indeed returning the square of your input, what you would want is the following:
public class Product {
public static int getProduct(int[] input) {
int total = 1;
for (int v : input) {
total *= v;
}
return total;
}
}
This will return an integer value with the product of your input array. This also uses a for-each loop instead of a regular for-loop for readability. Also you don't need the index in this case. Good luck with it!
First, your product method needs to return an int rather than an int [].
You need to maintain the product as a variable. You can set it to 1 initially, and then multiply it by each element of the a array in turn; then you just return this value.

Is it possible to loop setters and getters?

I'm fairly confident that there's no way this could work, but I wanted to ask anyway just in case I'm wrong:
I've heard many times that whenever you have a certain number of lines of very similar code in one batch, you should always loop through them.
So say I have something like the following.
setPos1(getCard1());
setPos2(getCard2());
setPos3(getCard3());
setPos4(getCard4());
setPos5(getCard5());
setPos6(getCard6());
setPos7(getCard7());
setPos8(getCard8());
setPos9(getCard9());
setPos10(getCard10());
setPos11(getCard11());
setPos12(getCard12());
There is no way to cut down on lines of code as, e.g., below, right?
for (i = 0; i < 12; i++) {
setPos + i(getCard + i)());
}
I'm sure this will have been asked before somewhere, but neither Google nor SO Search turned up with a negative proof.
Thanks for quickly confirming this!
No way to do that specifically in Java without reflection, and I don't think it would be worth it. This looks more like a cue that you should refactor your getcard function to take an integer argument. Then you could loop.
This is a simple snippet that shows how to loop through the getters of a certain object to check if the returned values are null, using reflection:
for (Method m : myObj.getClass().getMethods()) {
// The getter should start with "get"
// I ignore getClass() method because it never returns null
if (m.getName().startsWith("get") && !m.getName().equals("getClass")) {
// These getters have no arguments
if (m.invoke(myObj) == null) {
// Do something
}
}
}
Like the others stated, probably it's not an elegant implementation. It's just for the sake of completeness.
You could do it via reflection, but it would be cumbersome. A better approach might be to make generic setPos() and getCard() methods into which you could pass the index of the current item.
You need to ditch the getter/setter pairs, and use a List to store your objects rather then trying to stuff everything into one God object.
Here's a contrived example:
import java.util.ArrayList;
import java.util.Arrays;
import java.util.List;
public class Foo {
public static class Card {
int val;
public Card(int val) {
this.val = val;
}
public int getVal() {
return val;
}
}
public static class Position {
int value;
public Position(Card card) {
this.value = card.getVal();
}
}
public static void main(String[] args) {
List<Card> cards = new ArrayList<Card>(Arrays.asList(new Card(1), new Card(2), new Card(3)));
List<Position> positions = new ArrayList<Position>();
for (Card card : cards) {
positions.add(new Position(card));
}
}
}
You can't dynamically construct a method name and then invoke it (without reflection). Even with reflection it would be a bit brittle.
One option is to lump all those operations into one method like setAllPositions and just call that method.
Alternatively, you could have an array of positions, and then just loop over the array, setting the value at each index.
Card[] cardsAtPosition = new Card[12];
and then something like
public void setCardsAtEachPosition(Card[] valuesToSet) {
// check to make sure valuesToSet has the required number of cards
for (i = 0; i < cardsAtPosition.length; i++) {
cardsAtPosition[i] = valuesToSet[i];
}
}
Reflection would be your only option for your example case.

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