Comparing a character to an array of strings

Hi everyone, this is my first post on this forum. I'm having trouble with a program assigned for homework. I would say that I am at a beginners level in java. Here's my code in class Bug:

String[][] pathInfo = new String[5][25];

........;
........;

/*
Prints array for testing/debug use
@return pathInfo 2D array
*/
public void printArray(String[][] pathInfo)
{
for (int row = 0; row < 5; row++)
{
for (int column = 0; column < 25; column++)
{
if (pathInfo[row][column] == "*") !!!!<<<<------I think the problem lies here
{
System.out.print(pathInfo[row][column]);
}
else
{}
}
}
}

public String[][] fillArrays(String[][] pathInfo) throws FileNotFoundException
{
Scanner bugPathScan = new Scanner(new File("bugpath.txt"));
bugPathScan.useDelimiter("");
for (int row = 0; row < pathInfo.length; row++)
{
for (int column = 0; column < pathInfo[row].length; column++)
{
pathInfo[row][column] = bugPathScan.next();
}
}
return pathInfo;
}

It fills the array with info from a txt file. The text file contains a bunch of symbols, and looks something like this:

****-*--*
*-----****
*-----*--* <--my goal is to print only the '*' characters and skip the '-'
****-*--*


How could I compare the value at the current position within the array to the "*" character? I've tried changing the array type to char[][] but I can't use the scanner to read in a char value. Any ideas? Your help is greatly appreciated

.equals() not ==

I think..

An extension of what ppme said:

When comparing two string literals, it is best to use the .equals() method to compare if each char is the same, rather than the == comparison operator that will check if both objects are the same.

However if you want to compare chars, use single quotation marks. EG

Code Java:

---

/*
 * Precondition: c1 is a char.
 */
if(c1 == 'a')
{
  //Not included
}

---

For getting a specific char at an index in a String, look at the charAt method in the String API:

String (Java Platform SE 6)

Thanks for the tip! Using the .equals method "if (pathInfo[row][column].equals('*'))" lets it compile but its still not printing anything. I'm not sure where the problem lies now though :/

No problem, however string literals aren't chars.

pathInfo[row][column] is a string, but '*' is a char, so you are comparing a String to a char, which I'm surprised compiles.

Double quotes(") makes "*" a string, which you can use to compare to pathInfo.