Java All-in-One For Dummies, 5th Edition

Chapter 1

Working with Files

IN THIS CHAPTER

Examining the File class

Understanding command-line parameters

Introducing the JFileChooser class

In this chapter, you discover the ins and outs of working with files and directories. I don’t show you how to read or write files (for that info, you should flip to Book 8, Chapter 2), but you do find out how to find files on the hard drive; create, delete, and rename files; and work with directories. You find out how to use the Swing file-chooser dialog box that lets you add filing capabilities to Swing applications. Finally, you find out how to retrieve parameters from the command line — a useful technique, because command-line parameters are often used to pass file information to console programs.

Beginning with Java 1.7, you have two choices for working with files and directories: You can use the original File class or you can use the new Path class, which is part of a new file-processing package called NIO.2. (NIO.2 stands for New I/O version 2.) This chapter covers both of these classes.

Using the File Class

The File class is your key to processing files and directories. A File object represents a single file or directory. Note that ...