java ternary operator can be replaced with Math.max call

Question

I have the following code delay = (delay>200) ? delay : 200;
Java issues a warning message Can be replaced with 'Math.max' call for this.
Here I see that Math.max(a, b) is actually the same as (a > b) ? a : b so ternary operator is not worse than Math.max
So why Java issues this warning message if there are no advantages replacing the ternary operator by Math.max method call?

Answer 1

I doubt that this is a real compiler warning, probably some IDE inspection/warning.

Nonetheless, you are correct, there are no hard technical reasons to prefer one over the other.

But: from the point of a human reader, using Math.max() has one major advantage: it is easier to read and understand. That simple.

Besides: do not duplicate code unless you have to.

Always remember: you write your code for your human readers. Compilers accept anything that is syntactically correct. But for your human readers, there is a difference between a condition and an assignment vs a very telling "take the maximum of two numbers".