code: public static boolean convertToBoolean(Object o)
    {
      if(o == null)
        return false;
  
      if(o instanceof Boolean)
      {
        return (Boolean) o;
      }
  
      return convertToBoolean(o.toString());
    }
docs: Converts the object into a boolean value.
  
  @param o the object to convert
  @return a <code>boolean</code>