Checking for null

[John McDonald]

I am retrieving a value from a web page with req.getParameter("value"). How do I check if the string is null without getting a null pointer exception. Any ideas would be helpful.     John D. McDonald CipherStream Systems Phone: 925.373.8700 Fax:     413.793.6603 email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] web: www.cipherstream.com ------------------------------------------------------- Secure E-Business Is Our Business -------------------------------------------------------