Java tutorial
//package com.java2s; public class Main { public static String computePhraseShape(String x) { StringBuilder buf = new StringBuilder(); char lastc = 0; for (int i = 0; i < x.length(); i++) { char c = x.charAt(i); if (Character.isDigit(c)) c = '0'; else if (Character.isLetter(c)) c = Character.isLowerCase(c) ? 'a' : 'A'; else if (Character.isWhitespace(c) || Character.isSpaceChar(c)) c = ' '; if (c != lastc) buf.append(c); lastc = c; } return buf.toString(); } }