Question

Consider the following two code segments. Assume that the int variables m and n have been properly declared and initialized and are both greater than 0.

for (int i = 0; i < m * n; i++)
{
System.out.print("A");
}
for (int j = 1; j <= m; j++)
{
for (int k = 1; k < n; k++)
{
System.out.print("B");
}
}
Assume that the initial values of m and n are the same in code segment I as they are in code segment II. Which of the following correctly compares the number of times that "A" and "B" are printed when each code segment is executed?

Answer 1

The number of times that "A" is printed in code segment I is equal to m * n, while the number of times that "B" is printed in code segment II is equal to (m - 1) * n.

Therefore, the number of times that "A" is printed is equal to the number of times that "B" is printed if and only if m * n = (m - 1) * n, which simplifies to m = 1.

In other words, if m is equal to 1, then the two code segments will print the same number of "A"s and "B"s. If m is greater than 1, then code segment I will print more "A"s than code segment II will print "B"s. If m is less than 1, then code segment II will print more "B"s than code segment I will print "A"s.