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Thread: end of file \ file offset

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    Default end of file \ file offset

    hi,
    i am using BufferReader to read lines from a text file.
    i would like to create a boolean method names hasMore() which will be indicating if the end-of-file reached.
    here is a pesudo
    if(hasMore())
    line = br.readLine()

    and speaking of files, how do i get the offset within the open file which i've been reading its lines?


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    Administrator copeg's Avatar
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    Default Re: end of file \ file offset

    Not sure why you wish to create the new method, all you really need to do is check if the readLine() method returns null.
    String line;
    while ( ( line = br.readLine() ) != null ){
    //line contains the line contents of the line just read
    }
    As for offset, don't think there is a way to do this directly through the reader object but you can tally what has been read so far and use this as the offset.

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    Super Moderator helloworld922's Avatar
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    Default Re: end of file \ file offset

    If your buffer supports marking (I believe file buffers do), you can "dummy read" one character and then go back to your marked spot.

    public boolean hasMore(BufferedReader reader) throws IllegalArgumentException
    {
         if (reader.markSupported())
         {
              reader.mark(1);
              int val = reader.read();
              reader.reset();
              if (val == -1)
              {
                   return false;
              }
              else
              {
                   return true;
              }
         }
         else
         {
              // marking not supported
              throws new IllegalArgumentException();
         }
    }

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    Default Re: end of file \ file offset

    first of all, thanks.
    i will try it now.

    now i have this to handle...
    i am opening a file using BufferedReader and march through the file once. after it, i have to return to the beginning of the file, and i would like to acheive it without closeing the file and reopen it.
    how can it be done?

    i am still wondering how come java became more complicated then c language...

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    Administrator copeg's Avatar
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    Default Re: end of file \ file offset

    Quote Originally Posted by JayRay View Post
    now i have this to handle...
    i am opening a file using BufferedReader and march through the file once. after it, i have to return to the beginning of the file, and i would like to acheive it without closeing the file and reopen it.
    how can it be done?
    Use the method Helloworld suggested...mark the bufferedreader when you open the file, read it, then call reset on the reader...have a look at these methods in the api of BufferedReader to learn specifically how to use them. You must pass a value to mark that indicates how far it expects to read while still preserving the mark
    i am still wondering how come java became more complicated then c language...
    I'm sure there are just as many others out there asking the opposite question

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    Super Moderator helloworld922's Avatar
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    Default Re: end of file \ file offset

    i am still wondering how come java became more complicated then c language...
    It's not, in Java you don't have to manage your memory manually, or worry about "cryptic" symbols, or linking, or multiple inheritance issues, or operator overloading, or pointers, or tons of OS-specific problems/compiler specific problems... etc. etc.

    Also, if you're reading through a whole file, I would strongly suggest against marking, especially for larger files. Marking basically creates a separate buffer that has the set amount of data you specify put in. This leads to two issues (well, there might be more):
    1. You have to know how big of a buffer you need. If you have access to the original file reference, this won't be too difficult of a task.
    2. Because you are creating a separate buffer, you're wasting a ton of memory just to store the file in memory twice.

    In java (and actually, in C/C++, too), it's not an uncommon practice to read through a whole file, closing it, and the re-opening that file for read again.

    If you want to access any part of a file at any time, I'd suggest looking at the Random Access File Class.
    Last edited by helloworld922; March 27th, 2010 at 04:14 PM.

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