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javapropertiesfile-extensionsaving-data

Saving More Complicated Application Data

For simple program data that needed to be saved I just used properties files before but I was wondering how I can save more complicated application data such as: arraylists e.g..

How would I save such data into a file? And is there a way to save it in a file with my own extension ( so not .properties for example when using the properties method to save data ) and to make sure it cannot be edited by user manually ( which is simply possible with notepad for example for .properties files )?

Thanks in advance.

Best Regards, Skyfe.

Solution

  • The simplest way to do this as stated is to use the built-in Serialization mechanism. Just serialize your ArrayList out to a file using an ObjectOutputStream wrapped around a FileOutputStream. As long as each item in your list is serializable, this will work fine.

    It's not impossible to modify, but it's fairly obfuscated over, say, a text file (it's binary for starters).