A simple way to create static imports for constants in existing code?

Question

If I have a constant BAR in Foo, which I will use in a class C I\'ll have to write

Object o = Foo.BAR + \"...\";

which I can use Ctrl-Shift-M i

Answer 1

Sounds like a nice idea, but after you have changed all the files, how much better will they be? Perhaps you should think about only changing the files which you are working on for other reasons already.

Answer 2

If I were faced with such a challenge, I'd probably write a small program to do it for me. Ruby and Python (JRuby and Jython?) are pretty well suited for the task, although you could do it in Java too.

OK, so that'll probably take you at least the same amout of time as doing it by hand, but at least you'll be having fun :).

Answer 3

One cautionary note: excessive use of static imports can actually make your code less readable (imho), particularly if the constant name doesn't clearly indicate the class or enum from which it belongs. You can also get constant names from different classes/enums that sound similar or even have the same name.

So what you're forcing the reader to do is hope his IDE will tell him the class (via, say, a tool tip) or they have to navigate to it to find out what it is. Printouts and code snippets become that much less reeadable.

Honestly I use static imports extremely rarely for these reasons.