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API / Apache FreeMarker Interview questions

What is the difference between FreeMarker's #switch/#case and a chain of #if/#elseif directives?

<#switch value> tests a single expression for equality against each <#case constant> in order and renders the matching block, with an optional <#default> for no match; unlike a Java switch, each case implicitly stops at the next #case/#default with no fall-through, though an explicit <#break> can still exit a case early before its natural end.

<#switch user.role>
  <#case "ADMIN">Administrator<#break>
  <#case "EDITOR">Editor<#break>
  <#default>Guest
</#switch>

A chain of <#if>/<#elseif> can test entirely different, arbitrary boolean expressions in each branch - ranges, multiple combined conditions, method calls - not just equality of one value against constants, which makes it strictly more flexible. #switch/#case trades that flexibility for readability: when the logic really is "pick one branch based on this single value," it communicates that intent more clearly than an equivalent stack of #elseif value == "X" comparisons.

Does FreeMarker's #switch fall through to the next #case by default, like a plain Java switch without breaks?
What can a chain of <#if>/<#elseif> test that #switch/#case cannot?

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