For files that you just want to read, such as images used in your app's icons:
- Ship them the same way you ship your class files: In your jar or jmod file.
- Use
YourClassName.class.getResource or .getResourceAsStream to read these. They are not files, any APIs that need a File object can't work. Don't use those APIs (they are bad) - good APIs take a URI, URL, or InputStream, which works fine with this.
Example:
package com.foo;
public class MyMainApp {
public void example() {
Image image = new Image(MyMainApp.class.getResource("img/send.png");
}
public void example2() throws IOException {
try (var raw = MyMainApp.class.getResourceAsStream("/data/countries.txt")) {
BufferedReader in = new BufferedReader(
new InputStreamReader(raw, StandardCharsets.UTF_8));
for (String line = in.readLine(); line != null; line = in.readLine()) {
// do something with each country
}
}
}
}
This class file will end up in your jar as /com/foo/MyMainApp.class. That same jar file should also contain /com/foo/img/send.png and /data/countries.txt. (Note how starting the string argument you pass to getResource(AsStream) can start with a slash or not, which controls whether it's relative to the location of the class or to the root of the jar. Your choice as to what you find nicer).
For files that your app will create / update:
- This shouldn't be anywhere near where your jar file is. That's late 80s/silly windows thinking. Applications are (or should be!) in places that you that that app cannot write to. In general the installation directory of an application is a read-only affair, and most certainly should not be containing a user's documents. These should be in the 'user home' or possibly in e.g. `My Documents'.
Example:
public void save() throws IOException {
Path p = Paths.get(System.getProperty("user.home"), "navids-app.save");
// save to that file.
}
