Translator hashtable

[editor35]

I've been working on a simple translator that replaces words in a short typed sentence. How do I make the hash table able to read an outside list so I don't have to add words one-by-one as I have been doing so far?

Here's the code:

package compSci;
import java.util.*;

public class Translator {

public static void main(String[] args) {

String sentence;
String translatedSentence;
String word1 = "";
String word2 = "";
String word3 = "";
String word4 = "";
String tWord1 = "";
String tWord2 = "";
String tWord3 = "";
String tWord4 = "";




Hashtable list = new Hashtable();

list.put("you", "tu");
list.put("are", "estas");
list.put("how", "como");
list.put ("hello", "hola");


sentence = Keyboard.readString();

StringTokenizer translate = new StringTokenizer(sentence);

if (translate.countTokens() == 3)
{
word1 = translate.nextToken();
word2 = translate.nextToken();
word3 = translate.nextToken();
}
if (translate.countTokens() == 4)
{
word1 = translate.nextToken();
word2 = translate.nextToken();
word3 = translate.nextToken();
word4 = translate.nextToken();
}


tWord1 = (String) list.get(word1);
tWord2 = (String) list.get(word2);
tWord3 = (String) list.get(word3);
tWord4 = (String) list.get(word4);

translatedSentence = tWord1 + " " + tWord2 + " " + tWord3 + " " + tWord4 + ".";

System.out.println(translatedSentence);
}

}

[Steve11235]

I assume this is a school assignment. Put all the hashTable.put() statements in method like initHashTable(). Make one statement, copy it, then paste it a bunch of times. You have to type your words somewhere, so you might as well type it there.

Normally, that sort of information would be stored in a database, and there would be a maintenance application to allow pairs to be added or modified.