String str2 = "String Literal" ;    // small difference

A good answer might be:

Now, since the second literal is not identical to the first, two literal string objects are created, and variables str1 and str2 refer to different objects.

The == determines if two names both refer to the same object. It is common in the real world (and in programs) for an object to have several names, for example "Mark Twain" and "Samuel Clemens" are two names for the same author.

Consider two strings:

    String strA = new String ("The Gingham Dog"); 
    String StrB = stringA;

• Since there is only one object, strA == strB
• Since both reference variables point to an object with the same data, strA.equals( strB)

For strings, it is always true that if == says true, then so will equals().

However, this is not neccesarily true for other object types. For example, you can define your own objects and define your own behavior for their equals() method.

QUESTION 22:

In the code that follows, will equal() report true or false?

    String lit1 = "String Literal" ; 
    String lit2 = "String Literal" ; 

    if ( lit1.equals( lit2 ) )
      System.out.println("TRUE");
    else
      System.out.println("FALSE");