Unreachable code and compilation issues

[Andy James]

Hi all,

Why the following code doesn't compile?

while (false) {
    int a = 10;
}

whereas the following compiles successfully?

if (false) {
    int a = 10;
}

In both the cases, code int a = 10; will never execute, that is, is unreachable. Then why compilation is unsuccessful only for the while statement?

cheers
A

[Enkita mody]

false condition has any sense for while loop ? Nope.It executes only when it is true.

Although false condition for if-else statement can have else part.

if(false)
     true
else
     false

[Matthew Brown]

The Java Language Specification makes a specific exception for if statements. If you look at the relevant section, and read the example at the bottom, it explains why - basically it's there to enable conditional compilation.