Choosing among array, arrayList, etc

[GoToLoop]

@mdg

Can these be used in Processing? Or are we limited to the functions in the Processing documentation.

The whole Java’s Standard API is available in Processing:
Docs.Oracle.com/en/java/javase/11/docs/api/index.html

@mdg

Can a method from ArrayList be used on an array?

Java array got its own special syntax, like its [] access operator:

[] (array access) / Reference

While an ArrayList is a regular class like all the rest:

class / Reference

Docs.Oracle.com/en/java/javase/11/docs/api/java.base/java/util/ArrayList.html

@mdg

, but it’s tedious compared to what I know how to do using vectorized array helper functions in Python, R, or Matlab.

Processing got other “modes” besides default Java Mode.
Python & R modes are available to download from the PDE itself.
There are other flavors outside the PDE, like p5js, Pjs, Ruby, etc.

Although vanilla array & ArrayList (the most performant containers) are the most used containers in Java, we’ve also got HashMap, HashSet, ArrayDeque, LinkedList and many more:
Docs.Oracle.com/en/java/javase/11/docs/api/java.base/java/util/package-summary.html