switch_iii.md

Switch III

The switch statement in Java originally came from a little language you might know about called C.

In C switches work slightly differently than the ones you have seen so far in Java. But, due to this history, there is another kind of switch that doesn't use arrows (->) and instead uses a colon (:).

boolean shouldBeMainCharacter(String name) {
    switch (name) {
        case "Gohan":
            return true;
        case "Goku":
        default:
            return false;
    }
}
void main() {
    System.out.println(
        shouldBeMainCharacter("Goku")
    );
}

This "C-Style Switch" is important to learn chiefly because, for a long time, it was the only switch in Java. Therefore in your coding life you are very likely to run into it when reading old code.

It also might be uniquely useful for you once in a blue moon. Who knows.