Added in [API level 1](https://developer.android.com/guide/topics/manifest/uses-sdk-element#ApiLevels) Summary: [Inherited Constants](https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/CharacterData#inhconstants) \| [Methods](https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/CharacterData#pubmethods) \| [Inherited Methods](https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/CharacterData#inhmethods)

# CharacterData

` public interface CharacterData `   
` implements https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node `

|---|
| org.w3c.dom.CharacterData |

Known indirect subclasses [CDATASection](https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/CDATASection), [Comment](https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Comment), [Text](https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Text) [CDATASection](https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/CDATASection) CDATA sections are used to escape blocks of text containing characters that would otherwise be regarded as markup. [Comment](https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Comment) This interface inherits from `CharacterData` and represents the content of a comment, i.e., all the characters between the starting ' `<!--`' and ending '`-->`'. [Text](https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Text) The `Text` interface inherits from `CharacterData` and represents the textual content (termed [character data](http://www.w3.org/TR/2004/REC-xml-20040204#syntax) in XML) of an `Element` or `Attr`.   

*** ** * ** ***

The `CharacterData` interface extends Node with a set of attributes and methods for accessing character data in the DOM. For clarity this set is defined here rather than on each object that uses these attributes and methods. No DOM objects correspond directly to `CharacterData`, though `Text` and others do inherit the interface from it. All `offsets` in this interface start from `0`.

As explained in the `DOMString` interface, text strings in the DOM are represented in UTF-16, i.e. as a sequence of 16-bit units. In the following, the term 16-bit units is used whenever necessary to indicate that indexing on CharacterData is done in 16-bit units.

See also the [Document Object Model (DOM) Level 3 Core Specification](http://www.w3.org/TR/2004/REC-DOM-Level-3-Core-20040407).

## Summary

### Inherited constants

From interface `https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node` `short` `https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node#ATTRIBUTE_NODE`

The node is an `Attr`.
`short` `https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node#CDATA_SECTION_NODE`

The node is a `CDATASection`.
`short` `https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node#COMMENT_NODE`

The node is a `Comment`.
`short` `https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node#DOCUMENT_FRAGMENT_NODE`

The node is a `DocumentFragment`.
`short` `https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node#DOCUMENT_NODE`

The node is a `Document`.
`short` `https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node#DOCUMENT_POSITION_CONTAINED_BY`

The node is contained by the reference node.
`short` `https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node#DOCUMENT_POSITION_CONTAINS`

The node contains the reference node.
`short` `https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node#DOCUMENT_POSITION_DISCONNECTED`

The two nodes are disconnected.
`short` `https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node#DOCUMENT_POSITION_FOLLOWING`

The node follows the reference node.
`short` `https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node#DOCUMENT_POSITION_IMPLEMENTATION_SPECIFIC`

The determination of preceding versus following is implementation-specific.
`short` `https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node#DOCUMENT_POSITION_PRECEDING`

The second node precedes the reference node.
`short` `https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node#DOCUMENT_TYPE_NODE`

The node is a `DocumentType`.
`short` `https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node#ELEMENT_NODE`

The node is an `Element`.
`short` `https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node#ENTITY_NODE`

The node is an `Entity`.
`short` `https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node#ENTITY_REFERENCE_NODE`

The node is an `EntityReference`.
`short` `https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node#NOTATION_NODE`

The node is a `Notation`.
`short` `https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node#PROCESSING_INSTRUCTION_NODE`

The node is a `ProcessingInstruction`.
`short` `https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node#TEXT_NODE`

The node is a `Text` node.

| ### Public methods ||
|---|---|
| ` abstract void` | ` https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/CharacterData#appendData(java.lang.String)(https://developer.android.com/reference/java/lang/String arg) ` Append the string to the end of the character data of the node. |
| ` abstract void` | ` https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/CharacterData#deleteData(int,%20int)(int offset, int count) ` Remove a range of 16-bit units from the node. |
| ` abstract https://developer.android.com/reference/java/lang/String` | ` https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/CharacterData#getData()() ` The character data of the node that implements this interface. |
| ` abstract int` | ` https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/CharacterData#getLength()() ` The number of 16-bit units that are available through `data` and the `substringData` method below. |
| ` abstract void` | ` https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/CharacterData#insertData(int,%20java.lang.String)(int offset, https://developer.android.com/reference/java/lang/String arg) ` Insert a string at the specified 16-bit unit offset. |
| ` abstract void` | ` https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/CharacterData#replaceData(int,%20int,%20java.lang.String)(int offset, int count, https://developer.android.com/reference/java/lang/String arg) ` Replace the characters starting at the specified 16-bit unit offset with the specified string. |
| ` abstract void` | ` https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/CharacterData#setData(java.lang.String)(https://developer.android.com/reference/java/lang/String data) ` The character data of the node that implements this interface. |
| ` abstract https://developer.android.com/reference/java/lang/String` | ` https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/CharacterData#substringData(int,%20int)(int offset, int count) ` Extracts a range of data from the node. |

### Inherited methods

From interface ` https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node ` ` abstract https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node` ` https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node#appendChild(org.w3c.dom.Node)(https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node newChild) `

Adds the node `newChild` to the end of the list of children of this node.
` abstract https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node` ` https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node#cloneNode(boolean)(boolean deep) `

Returns a duplicate of this node, i.e., serves as a generic copy constructor for nodes.
` abstract short` ` https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node#compareDocumentPosition(org.w3c.dom.Node)(https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node other) `

Compares the reference node, i.e.
` abstract https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/NamedNodeMap` ` https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node#getAttributes()() `

A `NamedNodeMap` containing the attributes of this node (if it is an `Element`) or `null` otherwise.
` abstract https://developer.android.com/reference/java/lang/String` ` https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node#getBaseURI()() `

The absolute base URI of this node or `null` if the implementation wasn't able to obtain an absolute URI.
` abstract https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/NodeList` ` https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node#getChildNodes()() `

A `NodeList` that contains all children of this node.
` abstract https://developer.android.com/reference/java/lang/Object` ` https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node#getFeature(java.lang.String,%20java.lang.String)(https://developer.android.com/reference/java/lang/String feature, https://developer.android.com/reference/java/lang/String version) `

This method returns a specialized object which implements the specialized APIs of the specified feature and version, as specified in .
` abstract https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node` ` https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node#getFirstChild()() `

The first child of this node.
` abstract https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node` ` https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node#getLastChild()() `

The last child of this node.
` abstract https://developer.android.com/reference/java/lang/String` ` https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node#getLocalName()() `

Returns the local part of the qualified name of this node.
` abstract https://developer.android.com/reference/java/lang/String` ` https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node#getNamespaceURI()() `

The namespace URI of this node, or `null` if it is unspecified (see ).
` abstract https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node` ` https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node#getNextSibling()() `

The node immediately following this node.
` abstract https://developer.android.com/reference/java/lang/String` ` https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node#getNodeName()() `

The name of this node, depending on its type; see the table above.
` abstract short` ` https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node#getNodeType()() `

A code representing the type of the underlying object, as defined above.
` abstract https://developer.android.com/reference/java/lang/String` ` https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node#getNodeValue()() `

The value of this node, depending on its type; see the table above.
` abstract https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Document` ` https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node#getOwnerDocument()() `

The `Document` object associated with this node.
` abstract https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node` ` https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node#getParentNode()() `

The parent of this node.
` abstract https://developer.android.com/reference/java/lang/String` ` https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node#getPrefix()() `

The namespace prefix of this node, or `null` if it is unspecified.
` abstract https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node` ` https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node#getPreviousSibling()() `

The node immediately preceding this node.
` abstract https://developer.android.com/reference/java/lang/String` ` https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node#getTextContent()() `

This attribute returns the text content of this node and its descendants.
` abstract https://developer.android.com/reference/java/lang/Object` ` https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node#getUserData(java.lang.String)(https://developer.android.com/reference/java/lang/String key) `

Retrieves the object associated to a key on a this node.
` abstract boolean` ` https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node#hasAttributes()() `

Returns whether this node (if it is an element) has any attributes.
` abstract boolean` ` https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node#hasChildNodes()() `

Returns whether this node has any children.
` abstract https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node` ` https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node#insertBefore(org.w3c.dom.Node,%20org.w3c.dom.Node)(https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node newChild, https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node refChild) `

Inserts the node `newChild` before the existing child node `refChild`.
` abstract boolean` ` https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node#isDefaultNamespace(java.lang.String)(https://developer.android.com/reference/java/lang/String namespaceURI) `

This method checks if the specified `namespaceURI` is the default namespace or not.
` abstract boolean` ` https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node#isEqualNode(org.w3c.dom.Node)(https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node arg) `

Tests whether two nodes are equal.
` abstract boolean` ` https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node#isSameNode(org.w3c.dom.Node)(https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node other) `

Returns whether this node is the same node as the given one.
` abstract boolean` ` https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node#isSupported(java.lang.String,%20java.lang.String)(https://developer.android.com/reference/java/lang/String feature, https://developer.android.com/reference/java/lang/String version) `

Tests whether the DOM implementation implements a specific feature and that feature is supported by this node, as specified in .
` abstract https://developer.android.com/reference/java/lang/String` ` https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node#lookupNamespaceURI(java.lang.String)(https://developer.android.com/reference/java/lang/String prefix) `

Look up the namespace URI associated to the given prefix, starting from this node.
` abstract https://developer.android.com/reference/java/lang/String` ` https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node#lookupPrefix(java.lang.String)(https://developer.android.com/reference/java/lang/String namespaceURI) `

Look up the prefix associated to the given namespace URI, starting from this node.
` abstract void` ` https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node#normalize()() `

Puts all `Text` nodes in the full depth of the sub-tree underneath this `Node`, including attribute nodes, into a "normal" form where only structure (e.g., elements, comments, processing instructions, CDATA sections, and entity references) separates `Text` nodes, i.e., there are neither adjacent `Text` nodes nor empty `Text` nodes.
` abstract https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node` ` https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node#removeChild(org.w3c.dom.Node)(https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node oldChild) `

Removes the child node indicated by `oldChild` from the list of children, and returns it.
` abstract https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node` ` https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node#replaceChild(org.w3c.dom.Node,%20org.w3c.dom.Node)(https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node newChild, https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node oldChild) `

Replaces the child node `oldChild` with `newChild` in the list of children, and returns the `oldChild` node.
` abstract void` ` https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node#setNodeValue(java.lang.String)(https://developer.android.com/reference/java/lang/String nodeValue) `

The value of this node, depending on its type; see the table above.
` abstract void` ` https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node#setPrefix(java.lang.String)(https://developer.android.com/reference/java/lang/String prefix) `

The namespace prefix of this node, or `null` if it is unspecified.
` abstract void` ` https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node#setTextContent(java.lang.String)(https://developer.android.com/reference/java/lang/String textContent) `

This attribute returns the text content of this node and its descendants.
` abstract https://developer.android.com/reference/java/lang/Object` ` https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/Node#setUserData(java.lang.String,%20java.lang.Object,%20org.w3c.dom.UserDataHandler)(https://developer.android.com/reference/java/lang/String key, https://developer.android.com/reference/java/lang/Object data, https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/UserDataHandler handler) `

Associate an object to a key on this node.

## Public methods

### appendData

Added in [API level 1](https://developer.android.com/guide/topics/manifest/uses-sdk-element#ApiLevels)

```
public abstract void appendData (String arg)
```

Append the string to the end of the character data of the node. Upon success, `data` provides access to the concatenation of `data` and the `DOMString` specified.

<br />

| Parameters ||
|---|---|
| `arg` | `String`: The `DOMString` to append. <br /> |

| Throws ||
|---|---|
| `https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/DOMException` | NO_MODIFICATION_ALLOWED_ERR: Raised if this node is readonly. |

### deleteData

Added in [API level 1](https://developer.android.com/guide/topics/manifest/uses-sdk-element#ApiLevels)

```
public abstract void deleteData (int offset, 
                int count)
```

Remove a range of 16-bit units from the node. Upon success, `data` and `length` reflect the change.

<br />

| Parameters ||
|---|---|
| `offset` | `int`: The offset from which to start removing. <br /> |
| `count` | `int`: The number of 16-bit units to delete. If the sum of `offset` and `count` exceeds `length` then all 16-bit units from `offset` to the end of the data are deleted. <br /> |

| Throws ||
|---|---|
| `https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/DOMException` | INDEX_SIZE_ERR: Raised if the specified `offset` is negative or greater than the number of 16-bit units in `data`, or if the specified `count` is negative. NO_MODIFICATION_ALLOWED_ERR: Raised if this node is readonly. |

### getData

Added in [API level 1](https://developer.android.com/guide/topics/manifest/uses-sdk-element#ApiLevels)

```
public abstract String getData ()
```

The character data of the node that implements this interface. The DOM implementation may not put arbitrary limits on the amount of data that may be stored in a `CharacterData` node. However, implementation limits may mean that the entirety of a node's data may not fit into a single `DOMString`. In such cases, the user may call `substringData` to retrieve the data in appropriately sized pieces.

<br />

| Returns ||
|---|---|
| `https://developer.android.com/reference/java/lang/String` | <br /> |

| Throws ||
|---|---|
| `https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/DOMException` | DOMSTRING_SIZE_ERR: Raised when it would return more characters than fit in a `DOMString` variable on the implementation platform. |

### getLength

Added in [API level 1](https://developer.android.com/guide/topics/manifest/uses-sdk-element#ApiLevels)

```
public abstract int getLength ()
```

The number of 16-bit units that are available through `data` and the `substringData` method below. This may have the value zero, i.e., `CharacterData` nodes may be empty.

<br />

| Returns ||
|---|---|
| `int` | <br /> |

### insertData

Added in [API level 1](https://developer.android.com/guide/topics/manifest/uses-sdk-element#ApiLevels)

```
public abstract void insertData (int offset, 
                String arg)
```

Insert a string at the specified 16-bit unit offset.

<br />

| Parameters ||
|---|---|
| `offset` | `int`: The character offset at which to insert. <br /> |
| `arg` | `String`: The `DOMString` to insert. <br /> |

| Throws ||
|---|---|
| `https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/DOMException` | INDEX_SIZE_ERR: Raised if the specified `offset` is negative or greater than the number of 16-bit units in `data`. NO_MODIFICATION_ALLOWED_ERR: Raised if this node is readonly. |

### replaceData

Added in [API level 1](https://developer.android.com/guide/topics/manifest/uses-sdk-element#ApiLevels)

```
public abstract void replaceData (int offset, 
                int count, 
                String arg)
```

Replace the characters starting at the specified 16-bit unit offset with the specified string.

<br />

| Parameters ||
|---|---|
| `offset` | `int`: The offset from which to start replacing. <br /> |
| `count` | `int`: The number of 16-bit units to replace. If the sum of `offset` and `count` exceeds `length`, then all 16-bit units to the end of the data are replaced; (i.e., the effect is the same as a `remove` method call with the same range, followed by an `append` method invocation). <br /> |
| `arg` | `String`: The `DOMString` with which the range must be replaced. <br /> |

| Throws ||
|---|---|
| `https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/DOMException` | INDEX_SIZE_ERR: Raised if the specified `offset` is negative or greater than the number of 16-bit units in `data`, or if the specified `count` is negative. NO_MODIFICATION_ALLOWED_ERR: Raised if this node is readonly. |

### setData

Added in [API level 1](https://developer.android.com/guide/topics/manifest/uses-sdk-element#ApiLevels)

```
public abstract void setData (String data)
```

The character data of the node that implements this interface. The DOM implementation may not put arbitrary limits on the amount of data that may be stored in a `CharacterData` node. However, implementation limits may mean that the entirety of a node's data may not fit into a single `DOMString`. In such cases, the user may call `substringData` to retrieve the data in appropriately sized pieces.

<br />

| Parameters ||
|---|---|
| `data` | `String` <br /> |

| Throws ||
|---|---|
| `https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/DOMException` | NO_MODIFICATION_ALLOWED_ERR: Raised when the node is readonly. |

### substringData

Added in [API level 1](https://developer.android.com/guide/topics/manifest/uses-sdk-element#ApiLevels)

```
public abstract String substringData (int offset, 
                int count)
```

Extracts a range of data from the node.

<br />

| Parameters ||
|---|---|
| `offset` | `int`: Start offset of substring to extract. <br /> |
| `count` | `int`: The number of 16-bit units to extract. <br /> |

| Returns ||
|---|---|
| `https://developer.android.com/reference/java/lang/String` | The specified substring. If the sum of `offset` and `count` exceeds the `length`, then all 16-bit units to the end of the data are returned. <br /> |

| Throws ||
|---|---|
| `https://developer.android.com/reference/org/w3c/dom/DOMException` | INDEX_SIZE_ERR: Raised if the specified `offset` is negative or greater than the number of 16-bit units in `data`, or if the specified `count` is negative. DOMSTRING_SIZE_ERR: Raised if the specified range of text does not fit into a `DOMString`. |