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Javascript – Variables

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7 views

Javascript – Variables

Uploaded by

ibrahimdahir162
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Kenyatta university

JAVASCRIPT – VARIABLES

JavaScript Data Types


One of the most fundamental characteristics of a programming language is the set
of data types it supports. These are the type of values that can be represented and
manipulated in a programming language.
JavaScript allows you to work with three primitive data types:
Numbers, e.g., 123, 120.50 etc.
Strings of text, e.g. "This text string" etc.
Boolean, e.g. true or false.
JavaScript also defines two trivial data types, null and undefined, each of which
defines only a single value. In addition to these primitive data types, JavaScript
supports a composite data type known as object. We will cover objects in detail in a
separate chapter.
Note: Java does not make a distinction between integer values and floating-point
values. All numbers in JavaScript are represented as floating-point values. JavaScript
represents numbers using the 64-bit floating-point format defined by the IEEE 754
standard.

JavaScript Variables

Like many other programming languages, JavaScript has variables. Variables can be
thought of as named containers. You can place data into these containers and then
refer to the data simply by naming the container.
Before you use a variable in a JavaScript program, you must declare it. Variables are
declared with the var keyword as follows.
<script type="text/javascript">
<!--
var money;
var name;

/-->
</script>
You can also declare multiple variables with the same var keyword as follows:
<script type="text/javascript">
<!--
var money, name;
//-->
</script>
Storing a value in a variable is called variable initialization. You can do variable
initialization at the time of variable creation or at a later point in time when you need
that variable.
For instance, you might create a variable named money and assign the value
2000.50 to it later. For another variable, you can assign a value at the time of
initialization as follows.
<script type="text/javascript">
<!--
var name = "Ali";
var money;
money = 2000.50;
//-->
</script>
Note: Use the var keyword only for declaration or initialization, once for the life of
any variable name in a document. You should not re-declare same variable twice.
JavaScript is untyped language. This means that a JavaScript variable can hold a
value of any data type. Unlike many other languages, you don't have to tell JavaScript
during variable declaration what type of value the variable will hold. The value type
of a variable can change during the execution of a program and JavaScript takes care
of it automatically.

JavaScript Variable Scope

The scope of a variable is the region of your program in which it is defined. JavaScript
variables have only two scopes.
Global Variables: A global variable has global scope which means it can be
defined anywhere in your JavaScript code.
Local Variables: A local variable will be visible only within a function where it
is defined. Function parameters are always local to that function.
Within the body of a function, a local variable takes precedence over a global variable
with the same name. If you declare a local variable or function parameter with the
same name as a global variable, you effectively hide the global variable. Take a look
into the following example.
<script type="text/javascript">
<!--
var myVar = "global"; // Declare a global variable
function checkscope( ) {
var myVar = "local"; // Declare a local variable
document.write(myVar);
}
//-->
</script>
It will produce the following result:
Local
JavaScript Variable Names

While naming your variables in JavaScript, keep the following rules in mind. You should not use
any of the JavaScript reserved keywords as a variable
name. These keywords are mentioned in the next section. For example, break
or boolean variable names are not valid.
JavaScript variable names should not start with a numeral (0-9). They must
begin with a letter or an underscore character. For example, 123test is an
invalid variable name but _123test is a valid one.
JavaScript variable names are case-sensitive. For example, Name and name
are two different variables.

JavaScript Reserved Words


A list of all the reserved words in JavaScript are given in the following table. They
cannot be used as JavaScript variables, functions, methods, loop labels, or any object names.

abstract boolean break. byte


case catch char class
const continue. debugger default
delete do. double. else
enum. export. extends. false
final finally. float for
function goto. if. implements
import in. Instanceof. int
interface. long. native. new
null package private protected
public. return short. static
super switch synchronized this
throw. throws. transient true
try typeof var void volatile. while. with

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