Java’s String class encapsulates an array of bytes. A byte can be converted to a char, in which case, String becomes an array of characters used to compose words, sentences, or any other data you want ...

Most new Java developers quickly learn that they should generally compare Java Strings using String.equals(Object) rather than using ==. This is emphasized and reinforced to new developers repeatedly ...

Thanks for the reply! I thought about that approach, but am on the fence about it (it just doesn't seem like a clean way to go, for whatever reason). My feeling is that there must be code in the JDK ...