The Optional class was introduced in Java 8 in java.util package to handle situations where a value might be absent.
This class helps to reduce the risk of NullPointerException.
Example:
import java.util.Optional;
public class OptionalExampleJava {
public static void main(String[] args) {
Optional<String> optionalName = Optional.of("Mike");
printName(optionalName);
String nullableName = null;
Optional<String> optionalNullableName = Optional.ofNullable(nullableName);
printName(optionalNullableName);
}
public static void printName(Optional<String> optional) {
if (optional.isPresent()) {
System.out.println("Name: " + optional.get());
} else {
System.out.println("No Name Provided...");
}
}
}
You can also make use of Optional to set a default value when the value is null.
String name = null;
Optional<String> optionalName = Optional.ofNullable(name);
String val = optionalName.orElse("None");
System.out.println(val);

Reference: https://docs.oracle.com/en/java/javase/17/docs/api/java.base/java/util/Optional.html
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