This lesson explains how to format numbers, currencies, dates, times, and text messages. Because end users can see these data elements, their format must conform to various cultural conventions. Following the examples in this lesson will teach you how to:

• Format data elements in a locale-sensitive manner
• Keep your code locale-independent
• Avoid the need to write formatting routines for specific locales

Numbers and Currencies

This section explains how to use the NumberFormat, DecimalFormat, and DecimalFormatSymbols classes.

Dates and Times

This section focuses on the DateFormat, SimpleDateFormat, and DateFormatSymbols classes.

Messages

This section shows how the MessageFormat and ChoiceFormat classes can help you solve some of the problems you might encounter when formatting text messages.