starOut.java

/* Return a version of the given string, where for every star (*) in the 
 * string the star and the chars immediately to its left and right are gone. 
 * So "ab*cd" yields "ad" and "ab**cd" also yields "ad".
 */
public String starOut(String str) {
    if(str.length() < 1)
        return "";
        
    if(str.length() == 1) {
        if(str.charAt(0) == '*')
            return "";
        else
            return str;
    }
                                    
    char[] arr = new char[str.length()];
    int count = 0;
                                            
                                                
    if(str.charAt(0) != '*' && str.charAt(1) != '*') {
        arr[count] = str.charAt(0);
        count++;
    }
                                                              
    for(int i = 1; i < str.length() - 1; i++) {
        if(str.charAt(i-1)!='*' && str.charAt(i) != '*' && 
            str.charAt(i+1) != '*') {
            arr[count] = str.charAt(i);
            count++;
        }
    }
                                                                                        
    if(str.charAt(str.length()-1) != '*' && 
        str.charAt(str.length()-2) != '*') {
        arr[count] = str.charAt(str.length() - 1);
        count++;
    }
                                                                                                      
    return new String(arr, 0, count);
}