Scala FAQ: Can you share some examples of the Scala try/catch/finally syntax? Also, can you show how to catch multiple exceptions, and just one exception with the Scala wildcard operator (_)?
The general Scala try/catch/finally syntax looks like this:
try
{
// your scala code here
}
catch
{
case foo: FooException => handleFooException(foo)
case bar: BarException => handleBarException(bar)
case _ => println("Got some other kind of exception")
}
finally
{
// your scala code here, such as to close a database connection
}
As you can see, the Scala try-catch-finally syntax is similar to the Java try-catch-finally syntax, except for the catch area, which uses Scala's pattern matching capabilities to handle the different exceptions you might run into.
In that example, I'm intentionally catching a FooException and a BarException, and then I'm using the Scala "_" wildcard operator to catch any other exceptions that might occur.
Using the Scala _ wildcard operator in a catch clause
One drawback of using Scala's wildcard character (_) in a catch clause is that you can't refer to it in your code, such as if you want to print the exception.
In the excellent book, Programmming Scala, the authors suggest naming your exception variable instead of using the wildcard, which you can then refer to in your own code, something like this:
try
{
// your scala code here
}
catch
{
case foo: FooException => handleFooException(foo)
case bar: BarException => handleBarException(bar)
// handling any other exception that might come up
case unknown => println("Got this unknown exception: " + unknown)
}
finally
{
// your scala code here, such as to close a database connection
}
As you can see from that code, I just name a variable "unknown", which I can then refer to by name.
Printing a Scala exception's stack trace
Finally, here's another Scala try/catch example, where I demonstrate how to print the stack trace from an exception:
def runAppleScriptCommand(c: AppleScriptCommand) {
val scriptEngineManager = new ScriptEngineManager
val appleScriptEngine = scriptEngineManager.getEngineByName("AppleScript")
try {
appleScriptEngine.eval(c.command)
} catch {
case e: ScriptException => e.printStackTrace
}
}
Scala try/catch/finally examples - Summary
I hope these examples of the Scala try/catch/finally syntax have been helpful. As usual, if you have any questions, comments, corrections, or better examples, just leave a note in the comments section below.
