Program not recognizing string sentinel

[BethM]

Hello,

I'm new to Java and am trying to create a simple payroll program that uses a while loop to repeat until the user enters "Stop" for the employee's name. I've tried everything I can think of and everything others have suggested and for some reason, I cannot get the program to differentiate between the word "Stop" or any other word. Could someone please help me figure out what I'm doing wrong? My code is as follows:

import java.util.Scanner; // imports scanner class for user input

public class Payrolltest
{
public static void main( String[] args ) // begins execution of program
{
Scanner input = new Scanner( System.in ); // creates a scanner to obtain user input

String Employee = "name"; // employee's name
double Hours = 0; // hours worked
double Rate = 0; // employee's pay rate
double Paycheck = 0; // amount of the paycheck

System.out.println(); // blank line for readability



while (!Employee.equals("Stop")) //begins the repetition loop for employee input until user enters the sentinel stop.
{
System.out.println ("Please enter the employee's name. Enter \"Stop\" to quit."); //prompts for the employee's name.

Employee = input.nextLine(); // read input from user and assign to Employee
System.out.println ("Enter hours worked:"); // prompt for hours worked
Hours = input.nextDouble(); // read input from user and assign to Hours

System.out.println ("Enter employee's hourly pay rate:"); // prompt for pay rate
Rate = input.nextDouble(); // read input from user and assign to Rate

Paycheck = Hours * Rate; // calculates amount for paycheck

System.out.println(); // blank line for readability

System.out.printf ("%s's paycheck is $%,.2f", Employee, Paycheck); // displays employee's name and paycheck amount

System.out.println(); // blank line for readability
System.out.printf ("Do you want to continue? enter the next employee's name or enter \"Stop\" to quit.)");
Employee = input.nextLine(); // read input from user and assign to Employee

} // end repetition loop for user input

System.out.printf ("Thank you for using the payroll program."); // goodbye message

} // end method main
} // end class Payroll

Thanks!

[Ada Lovelace]

Just a side note first:
When your comparing two string is Java, remember you use the assignment operator as
Strings are objects themselves - so you compare them to each other. Not the equality
operator '=='.

If you are choosing a sentinel controlled loop - you generally have to ask the first value
input before you enter the body of the controlling loop. For example:

public class TestMe
{
   public static void main(String[] args)
   {
      double x = 0.0f;
 
      System.out.print("Enter a value, enter -1 to quit: ")
      x = input.nextDouble();
 
      // ok - we have the first value of 'x' - so let's test against the continuation 
      // condition shall we
      while (x != -1)
      {
         double total += x;
         // ask for the next input here - breaking if input matches sentinel condition
      } // if the test is false - the entire loop is skipped
       // and control moves to any executable statements
   }
}

Generally, it is also better to not use a string data type when comparing a sentinel value.
If you want to use a String, use a single character like "x" for example as the terminating
condition.

Wishes Ada xx

[BethM]

Hi Ada,

Thanks for the advice. I've been told from several others that == cannot be used to compare strings and even tried that in desperation with no luck. I have used single characters and integers as sentinels in the past with success, however one of the requirements of this program is that the user needs to be able to enter the word stop instead of an integer or single character. Is there a work around that I can use? I've tried everything I can think of and don't know where to go from here.

Thanks again for your help,

BethM

[Ada Lovelace]

Have you considered other built in String methods?

matches() combined with the negation operator ! in a continuation
condition will terminate a sentinel controlled loop when the entered
string matches the string placed within the parentheses.

Hope this helps.

Wishes Ada xx

[GregBrannon]

Welcome to the forum! Please read this topic to learn how to post code in code or highlight tags and other useful info for new members.

Welcome to the forum. Please post your updated code correctly.

one of the requirements of this program is that the user needs to be able to enter the word stop instead of an integer or single character. Is there a work around that I can use?

No, there's no workaround to avoid the program's requirements. Your while() loop is poorly constructed to accomplish what you're trying to do. Asking for the sentinel value at the beginning of the loop will not prevent the remainder of the loop from executing unless an 'if' statement is added to break out of the loop at that point, and I'm not recommending it, as it's not necessary.

Rethink your loop construction and where in the loop the sentinel value is acquired.