If else seems to be ignored in my java application
<p>I just started programming in java and i am creating a simple waiting list.
it al seems to work well but i decided to include a if else construction to check the textfield not beeing empty. the problem is that it seems to be ignored because i don't get a error or something.. and i googled alot for the if else example and i can't solve the problem somehow.. what am i doing wrong? below you can find the relevant code. Thanks in advance.</p>

<pre><code>public void actionPerformed(ActionEvent e) {

    // check if veld1 is filled in.
    if ( veld1 == null || veld1.equals( "" ) ) { 
        // give error
        System.out.println("U heeft niets ingevuld in veld1");
    }
    else {
        veld4.setText( veld3.getText() );
        veld3.setText( veld2.getText() );
        veld2.setText( veld1.getText() );
        textveld1.append( veld4.getText() + "\n" );
        veld1.setText("");
    }
}
</code></pre>
