Using Scanner in Java to await user hitting return key

[mr.hood]

Hi all,

I've been trying to figure out how I can use the Scanner class in Java to pause my program and wait for the user to hit the return key. What I have now looks like this:

Scanner kbd = new Scanner(System.in);
kbd.next();
...

The thing is, the rest of my program won't run unless there is actually some kind of input (i.e. just hitting the return key without any input just makes the program keep waiting for input). Is there a way I can get around this?

 

[Tacomablack]

I don't think that scanner has that functionality. What scanner.next() does is it was for user input and returns the input. It does not accept null characters.

What your looking for is some type of listener. Take a look at the KeyListener class from java.awt.event.* libary. Just perform some wait function and listen for the enter key.

 

[quicknote]

Hello,

It sounds like you are on the right track with using the Scanner class to wait for user input. However, as you have noticed, the kbd.next() method will only return when there is input from the user. To get around this, you could use the kbd.nextLine() method instead. This will wait for the user to hit the return key before returning, regardless of whether there is input or not. You could also add a prompt for the user to enter some input before hitting return to continue with your program.

Another option would be to use a loop to continuously check for input using the hasNext() method. This way, your program will keep running until the user inputs something and hits return.

I hope this helps. Keep exploring and experimenting with the Scanner class to find the best solution for your program. Good luck!