Ternary Operator: Should You Use It for Function Calls?

Ternary Operator: Alternative Assignment or Redundant Code?

Consider the following code snippet:

if (string != null) {
    callFunction(parameters);
} else {
    // Intentionally left blank
}

Is it possible to refactor this using the ternary operator?

The ternary operator in Java has the following syntax:

return_value = (true-false condition) ? (if true expression) : (if false expression);

If the condition is true, the expression after the question mark (!) is evaluated and assigned to the return value. Otherwise, the expression after the colon (:) is evaluated and assigned.

In the given code, the if-else statement checks if a string variable is not null and calls a function if true. We can assume two possible scenarios:

1. callFunction() Has a Non-Void Return Value:
   In this case, we can utilize the ternary operator as follows:

   return_value = (string != null) ? callFunction(parameters) : null;

2. callFunction() Has No Return Value:
   In this scenario, using the ternary operator would be redundant. The if-else statement already handles the alternative actions, and adding a ternary operator would not provide any additional functionality.

It's important to note that the ternary operator is intended for alternative assignments. In the given code, the true clause calls a function, which does not directly assign a value. Consequently, using the ternary operator here would not make sense.

Instead, if the objective is to simplify the code into a one-liner, the following options can be considered:

• Remove the false clause since it is unnecessary:

  if (string != null) {
      callFunction(parameters);
  }

• Use the one-liner syntax:

  if (string != null) callFunction(parameters);

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