JS Definitions Flashcards
Introduction to Javascript: Definitions
What is Programming?
telling the computer to manipulate data
What is a Variable?
named location for storing a value
What are Comments?
section of code that the computer ignores
i.e. for humans to read
//
/* comment */
What are Functions?
prime mechanism with which to manipulate data and usually returns a value
Functions are one of the fundamental building blocks in JS
A function is a JavaScript procedure, which is:
A set of statements that perform a task or calculate a value
A function definition (or declaration) consists of a function keyword, followed by:
The name of the function
A list of parameters to the function, enclosed in parentheses and separated by commas
The JS statements that define the function, enclosed in curly braces { }
What is Undefined?
Data type in Javascript
variable is not assigned to a particular value
what are Booleans?
logical value type
can be true or false
What are Numbers?
only one number type in JS,
positive, negative, integer, floating point (decimal)
+Infinity ; -Infinity ; NaN
What are some primary JS Operations / Operators?
\+ ; - ; * ; / % Modulus (division remainder) \++ Increment -- Decrement = \+= ; -= ; *= ; /= ; %= ; example x += y is x = x + y
Explain Function vs Arguments
function addTwo(num) { return num + 2; }
function "takes" as its parameter is num; actual "call" to the function is addTwo(6) 6 is the "argument"
What is a String?
primitive and scalar data type stores a series of characters "string is between quotes" double or single quotes index starts at 0
What are the Primitive Data Types?
There are 6 primitive data types:
- Boolean — true or false
- Null — no value
- Undefined — a declared variable but hasn’t been given a value
- Number — integers, floats, etc
- String — an array of characters i.e words
- Symbol — a unique value that’s not equal to any other value
What are the Collection Data Types?
arrays
objects
What is an Array?
The array is used to store an ordered list of multiple values in a single variable
Arrays are considered “objects” in JS
What is an Object?
An object is a collection of properties
A property is an association between a name (key) and a value (some data type)
A property’s value can be any of the types we have gone over, as well as being another object, or even a function
In the case where the value of a property is a function, we refer to the property as a method
What is typeof operator?
One very useful tool in programming is the typeof operator
Its functionality is rather simple, and when applied to a value, it will tell you the type of value in question