code: public static <IN> PaddedList<IN> valueOf(List<IN> list, IN padding) {
      return new PaddedList<IN>(list, padding);
    }
docs: A static method that provides an easy way to create a list of a
  certain parametric type.
  This static constructor works better with generics.
  
  @param list The list to pad
  @param padding The padding element (may be null)
  @return The padded list