Q9: What is the difference between == and the .equals() method?
==Operator: Compares primitive values directly, or checks reference identity (whether two reference variables point to the exact same memory address on the heap)..equals()Method: Compares logical content equality when overridden by a class (e.g.,String,Integer). The default implementation inObjectuses==reference identity.
Key Takeaways
==compares memory references;.equals()compares logical values (if overridden).- Always override
.hashCode()whenever overriding.equals().
Knowledge Check
What is the output of: new String("A").equals(new String("A"))?