When to use a constant...

Question

I have a class that can be mulitple races.. humans, dwarfs, orcs and such...
im not sure whether to make them a String[] races
or to use
private static final int HUMAN = 0;
private static final int DWARF = 1;
could someone tell me the benefits of either way...
thanks
mdpx

Answer 1

Do neither.
Java's an OOP language. Use OOP.
Define classes that represent the various races in the game.
Presumably, you have a character object, which will have as a property the character's race. So the race is an abstraction, a template of characteristics (drwarves are short, wizards are magic, etc.). So define a Race or Species type that fulfills this responsibility. Offhand, I'd suggest making a Race abstract class, with private instantiable subclasses and/or a private constructor, and a static set of predefined instances, like this:
public abstract class Race {
    public static Race DRAWF = new Race() {
        // define implementations of methods here
    public static Race ORC = new Race() {
    //etc
    public abstract int averageHeight();
    // etc
}