Different ways to retrieve a string form R.java file (Android)

Question

Let's imagine we had this text inside values/strings.xml

<string name="some_text">HELLO WORLD</string>

I can call this string from anywhere inside my project like so:

String s = String.valueOf(R.string.some_text);

Today I learnt this other way to do exactly the same job:

String s = getResources().getString(R.string.some_text);

Does anyone know if there is any advantage in using the second way? The first one seems shorter and easier to remember.

Thanks

That is the first that I have seen of String.valueOf( ) working. Intriguing if true as then I wouldn't need to call getResources( ) from odd locations that might not have immediate access to them. — Jay Snayder
– Jay Snayder, Commented Feb 24, 2015 at 19:53
I'm pretty sure String.valueOf(R.string.some_text) will turn whatever the int identifier value is for that string into a String representation of that number. Not what you want. Also, if you are calling getString from an Activity or a Fragment, you don't have to call getResources() first as there is a convenience getString method you can use. — Michael Krause
– Michael Krause, Commented Feb 24, 2015 at 20:08

Kirill K · Accepted Answer · 2015-02-24 20:22:03Z

1

Try to compare or output the value of s for the two methods. They are not the same :) String.valueOf(R.string.some_text) returns string representation of a resource id integer. getResources().getString(R.string.some_text); probably does what you wanted.

Correct way is getResources().getString(R.string.some_text); and there are other convenience methods as mentioned by @danny117 but they are dependant of the location of the specific code

edited Feb 24, 2015 at 20:22

answered Feb 24, 2015 at 20:12

Kirill K

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danny117 · Accepted Answer · 2015-02-24 20:06:55Z

1

Look at the class your working with. For example the fragment class has a built in getString() function so you can just call it.

getString(R.string.me)

answered Feb 24, 2015 at 20:06

danny117

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