How do I convert a byte array with null terminating character to a String in Java?

Question

How can I create a String object from a byte array

byte arr[MAX_SIZE];  // Java

where one of the array elements is a C null terminating byt

Answer 1

byte arr[] = ...
Charset charset = ...
int i;
for (i = 0; i < arr.length && arr[i] != 0; i++) { }
String str = new String(arr, 0, i, charSet);

Notes:

• It is generally a good idea to use an explicit CharSet parameter so that your application doesn't depend on the platform's default characterset / encoding.

• This won't work for some charsets. For instance, a UTF-16 encoded string can't safely be represented as a zero-terminated byte sequence because many code units contain zero bytes. (On the other hand, UTF-8 is OK provided that the string contains no instances of code point zero; see Can UTF-8 contain zero byte?)

... but I was wondering whether the String constructor will do this automatically.

No it / they won't. (Don't "wonder" ... read the javadoc :-))

I also assume the system's default charset will be used on all ends.

If you don't specify a charset, the Java platform's default will be used. This is likely to be the system default, but that is not guaranteed.