Why is this Java code in curly braces ({}) outside of a method?

Borrowed from here – Normally, you would put code to initialize an instance variable in a constructor. There are two alternatives to using a constructor to initialize instance variables: initializer blocks and final methods. Initializer blocks for instance variables look just like static initializer blocks, but without the static keyword: { // whatever code is … Read more

PHP curly braces in array notation

It is mentioned in the manual. {} is just an alternative syntax to [] § Accessing array elements with square bracket syntax. This method is deprecated as of PHP 7.4.0 and no longer supported as of PHP 8.0.0. Note: Prior to PHP 8.0.0, square brackets and curly braces could be used interchangeably for accessing array … Read more

List of all unicode’s open/close brackets?

There is a plain-text database of information about every Unicode character available from the Unicode Consortium; the format is described in Unicode Annex #44. The primary information is contained in UnicodeData.txt. Open and close punctuation characters are denoted with Ps (punctuation start) and Pe (punctuation end) in the General_Category field (the third field, delimited by … Read more

What is the formal difference in Scala between braces and parentheses, and when should they be used?

I tried once to write about this, but I gave up in the end, as the rules are somewhat diffuse. Basically, you’ll have to get the hang of it. Perhaps it is best to concentrate on where curly braces and parenthesis can be used interchangeably: when passing parameters to method calls. You may replace parenthesis … Read more