Splitting a Comma-Separated String in Scala: Missing Trailing Empty Strings?

Question

I have a data file in csv format. I am trying to split each line using the basic split command line.split(',') But when I get a string like this "2,,", instead of returning an array as thus Array(2,"","") I just get an Array: Array(2). I am most definitely missing something basic, could someone help point out the correct way to split a comma separated string here?

Answer 1

This is inherited from Java. You can achieve behavior you want by using the split(String regex, int limit) overload:

"2,,".split(",", -1) // = Array(2, "", "")

Note the String instead of Char.

As explained by the Java Docs, the limit parameter is used as follows:

The limit parameter controls the number of times the pattern is applied and therefore affects the length of the resulting array. If the limit n is greater than zero then the pattern will be applied at most n - 1 times, the array's length will be no greater than n, and the array's last entry will contain all input beyond the last matched delimiter. If n is non-positive then the pattern will be applied as many times as possible and the array can have any length. If n is zero then the pattern will be applied as many times as possible, the array can have any length, and trailing empty strings will be discarded.

Source

Using split(separator: Char) will call the overload above, using a limit of zero.