code: public static InetAddress parse(final String ip)
  	{
  		if (ip == null || ip.isEmpty())
  			throw new IllegalArgumentException("A null or empty string is not a valid IP address!");
  
  		try
  		{
  			return InetAddress.getByName(ip);
  		}
  		catch (Throwable t)
  		{
  			throw new IllegalArgumentException("Not a valid IP address: " + ip, t);
  		}
  	}
docs: Parses an IP address, throwing an {@link IllegalArgumentException} (rather than an {@link UnknownHostException}) if it is
  invalid
  
  @param ip
  the IP - must not be null or an empty string. should be a valid IP address (eg. 1.2.3.4)
  
  @return an InetAddress