Java's ArrayList

ArrayLists provide a number of benefits over standard arrays. Most importantly, they are dynamically sized. Recall that with arrays, once the size is specified, it cannot be changed directly. ArrayLists allow for dynamic addition and removal of elements via the add() and remove() methods.

ArrayLists are not part of the java.lang library and thus must be imported manually:

import java.util.ArrayList;

Once imported, we can begin creating and manipulating ArrayLists:

_Figure 1.0f_

import java.util.ArrayList;
 
public class ArrayExample {
	public static void main(String[] args) {
		ArrayList<String> myList = new ArrayList<String>();
	}
}

As with any variable, we have declared the data type, ArrayList<String>, the variable name, myList, and the value it is assigned, new ArrayList<String>().

We have successfully created an ArrayList via its constructor, new ArrayList<>(). The following line is valid and equivalent to line 5 of 1.0f:

_Figure 1.1f_

ArrayList<String> myList = new ArrayList<>();