title: Java IO fails to read text file
body: <p>when I try to read thesaurus.txt, it reads it as "ÿþ ", although the first entry is "<code>&lt;pat&gt;a cappella</code>". What could be causing this?</p>
  
  <pre><code>    File file = new File("thesaurus.txt");
      Scanner scan;
      try {
          scan = new Scanner(file);
      } catch (FileNotFoundException e) {
          // TODO Auto-generated catch block
          e.printStackTrace();
          scan = null;
      }
      String entry;
      ArrayList&lt;String&gt; thes = new ArrayList&lt;String&gt;();
      while(scan.hasNext())
      {
          entry = scan.nextLine();
          if(entry != "")
          {
               thes.add(entry);
          }
      }
      return thes;
  </code></pre>