Frequently Asked Questions

Note: I am putting these here because students have asked them in the past, this is not a reflection of what will be on quizzes. 

Q: Can you do math with arrays such as adding every element together for example?

A: Yes, we will be practicing this sort of thing in class, you will have to access every index in the array and work with individual values. 

Q: Can you change the size of an array without redeclaring it if multiple primitive data types are being inputted or removed from the array? 

A: No, once an array is declared with a certain size that is the only size it can have forever. 

Q: When we use String args[] in the main method, is this related to arrays?

A: Yes! The main method takes in an array of Strings called args as its parameter.

Q: How do you code for an array with an unknown quantity of elements in the array?

A: You have to know the number of things before you create an array, otherwise you will either have empty spots or have to remake the array when you get too many items. But the next data structure we learn about will solve this problem for us.

Q: Do numbers need to have ' ' around them? I know all of the characters do, and I assume numbers don't, but I want to be sure.

A: You're right, characters are the only things that have single quotes around them. If you put single quotes around a number it is no longer an integer it is the character representing that integer. 

Q: So if these were words would the position be the whole word? For example if I had String words[] = {"cat", "dog"}; would words[0] be "cat" and words[1] be "dog"?

A: Correct!