#wrapper classes

Wrapper Classes for converting simple types Lecture notes | study india 

Those who don't know how to program aren't going to understand this.  But I'm posting it here anyways.

Because I cannot stop laughing.  At myself.  I am horrifed.  And amused.

How did it get this far?

I have a simple assignment for my Java programming course which requires me to use the built in type-wrapper classes to accept a string of words and convert all the words into pig latin.

I could do this in my sleep for C++ and though the logic behind the process in Java is a little different I was not, how to put it, mentally stimulated enough, really.  And I think its obvious.

Because the assignment was pig latin and somewhere along the line my brain started thinking of individual words as tiny cutely drawn pigs, and I started being silly with variable names and suddenly found myself laughing like a cartoon villain with a mostly complete halloween themed Java Program and ohGodIDon'tKnowHowThisHappened...

package a5main; import java.util.*; import java.io.*;   public class A5main  {      public static void main(String[] args)      {        Scanner pigFarm = new Scanner(System.in);         System.out.println("Please enter a sentence to be converted into Pig Latin:");        String pigLine = pigFarm.nextLine();        pigLatinator slaughterHouse = new pigLatinator();        slaughterHouse.preparePiggies(pigLine);        int carcassCount = slaughterHouse.reportCarcassCount();        String porkchopStack = "";        String currentPiggy;

       for ( int choppedPigs = 0; choppedPigs < carcassCount; choppedPigs++ )        { currentPiggy = slaughterHouse.chopPig(); porkchopStack = porkchopStack.concat(currentPiggy);        }

       System.out.println("The sentence you provided is translated into pig latin as:");        System.out.println(porkchopStack);     } }

((((   And the related Class from which slaughterHouse is created:  ))))

package a5main;

public class pigLatinator  {     private String slaughteredPiggies;     private int carcassCount = 0;     private boolean needsWhiteSpace = false;     private int butcherStation = 0;          public void preparePiggies(String livingPiggies)     {         slaughteredPiggies = livingPiggies.trim();         countCarcasses();     }          private void countCarcasses()     {         int conveyorStation = 0;                  conveyorStation = slaughteredPiggies.indexOf(" ");                  while (conveyorStation != -1)         {             conveyorStation = slaughteredPiggies.indexOf(" ", conveyorStation + 1);             carcassCount++;         }         if ( (conveyorStation == -1) && !slaughteredPiggies.equals("") )         {             carcassCount++;         }     }          public int reportCarcassCount()     {         return carcassCount;     }          public String chopPig()     {         butcherStation = slaughteredPiggies.indexOf(" ");                  String thisPiggy = isolatePiggy();                  thisPiggy = makeChops(thisPiggy);                  thisPiggy = wrapCuts(thisPiggy);                  return thisPiggy;     }          private String isolatePiggy()     {         String givenPiggy;                  if (butcherStation != -1)         {             givenPiggy = slaughteredPiggies.substring(0, butcherStation);               slaughteredPiggies = slaughteredPiggies.substring(butcherStation);             slaughteredPiggies = slaughteredPiggies.trim();                          needsWhiteSpace = true;         }         else         {             givenPiggy = slaughteredPiggies;         }                  return givenPiggy;     }          private String makeChops(String givenPiggy)     {         char[] piggyPieces = new char[givenPiggy.length()];\                  piggyPieces = givenPiggy.toCharArray();                  char haunch = piggyPieces[0];                  int currentCut = givenPiggy.indexOf(haunch);         String cutPiggy = givenPiggy.substring(currentCut + 1);                  if ( Character.isUpperCase(haunch) && ( piggyPieces.length > 1 ) )         {             char thigh = piggyPieces[1];                          currentCut = cutPiggy.indexOf(thigh);             cutPiggy = cutPiggy.substring(currentCut + 1);                          thigh = Character.toUpperCase(thigh);             haunch = Character.toLowerCase(haunch);                          cutPiggy = thigh + cutPiggy;         }                  cutPiggy += haunch;                  return cutPiggy;     }         private String wrapCuts(String givenPiggy)     {         if (needsWhiteSpace)         {             givenPiggy = givenPiggy.concat("ay ");         }         else         {             givenPiggy = givenPiggy.concat("ay");         }         return givenPiggy;     } }

This compiles and runs as specified in the assignment.  I added some case sensitivity (which was not part of the original specs bit it was bugging me with caps letters in the middle of words...), wanted the ability to preserve punctuation but the Java way of doing it was too complex and I ran out of time.

I submitted it to my professor as is with nothing but the following message and picture:

Confession #1: I've been terrible at blogging.

Confession #2: I've been terrible at blogging because I keep starting posts, then leave them as half-finished drafts because RoR does something new and/or magical and I become completely entranced by the new and/or magical thing it does.

I also got distracted by the Programmer's Manifesto and the Become a Programmer, Mother[expletive deleted] resources (I'm trying to keep this programming blog PG-13!).

As I told Alfonso yesterday, Code Academy has always been intense.  However, things really picked up steam around week 5 which, coincidentally, was when I started writing halves of blog posts.  I'm certain that this jolt in learning speed and pace was a direct result of the first 4 weeks of Code Academy, during which Jeff Cohen carefully laid out an educational framework that has made it infinitely easier for us to pick up new material on our own.

Since week 4, I've been working on a bevy of things:

Writing wrapper classes for APIs (and getting up close and personal with HTTParty)

Learning about mocking, stubbing, and RSpec

Overcoming my irrational avoidance of Git and GitHub

Working my way through the Michael Hartl Ruby on Rails Tutorial

Mockups and research for a breakable (beer) toy!

Debugging the bug(s) from hell so that my computer finally plays nice with RVM and Ruby 1.9.2.  This is an epic five week saga that finally concluded after 48 hours of crazy bug-tracking.  Granted, it's nothing compared to this awesome article about an incredibly subtle bug that Raghu emailed out to the rest of Code Academy, though I'm pretty sure the adrenaline rush I got after getting everything to work was comparable.

Tonight, I'll be working on mocking and stubbing with RSpec so that I can finish writing some wrapper classes, which may or may not unleash a deluge of backlogged blog posts.