title: How do I assign user input to a variable in Java? Should I be using scanner?
body: <p>I am completely new to Java, this is the first program I have ever attempted in the language. I've googled around a bit, but can't seem to find an understandable explanation of how to use scanner to assign user input to a variable. I'm not entirely sure what scanner is, which is probably part of the problem.</p>
  
  <p>I've read the documentation here (<a href="http://docs.oracle.com/javase/7/docs/api/java/util/Scanner.html" rel="nofollow">http://docs.oracle.com/javase/7/docs/api/java/util/Scanner.html</a>). It talks a lot about reg ex, which I do not need and makes me think I may be looking in the wrong direction. Any help would be much appreciated, thanks!</p>
  
  <pre><code>import java.util.*;
  
  public final class Chapter_02 {
      public static void main(String[] args) {
          //Declare variables to be used (Height, Width, and Area)
          double length;
          double width;
          double area;
  
          //User input of length and width
          System.out.print("Please input the length of the property in feet:");
          width = ;
          System.out.print("Please input the length of the property in feet:");
          length = ;
  
          //Calculate area based on user input
          //Divide by number of feet in one acre
          area = (length * width) / 43560;
  
          //Additional spacing for readability
          System.out.println();
          System.out.println();
  
          //Post calculation result
          System.out.println("The property is " + area + " acres!");
      }
  }    
  </code></pre>