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10.4: Printing Variables

  • Page ID
    15217
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    You can display the value of a variable using print or println. The following statements declare a variable named firstLine, assign it the value "Hello, again!", and display that value.

    String firstLine = "Hello, again!";
    System.out.println(firstLine);
    

    When we talk about displaying a variable, we generally mean the value of the variable. To display the name of a variable, you have to put it in quotes.

    System.out.print("The value of firstLine is ");
    System.out.println(firstLine);
    

    For this example, the output is:

    The value of firstLine is Hello, again!
    

    Conveniently, the syntax for displaying a variable is the same regardless of its type. For example:

    int hour = 11;
    int minute = 59;
    System.out.print("The current time is ");
    System.out.print(hour);
    System.out.print(":");
    System.out.print(minute);
    System.out.println(".");
    

    The output of this program is:

    The current time is 11:59.
    

    To output multiple values on the same line, it’s common to use several print statements followed by println at the end. But don’t forget the println! On many computers, the output from print is stored without being displayed until println is run; then the entire line is displayed at once. If you omit the println, the program might display the stored output at unexpected times or even terminate without displaying anything.


    This page titled 10.4: Printing Variables is shared under a CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by Allen B. Downey (Green Tea Press) .

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