Datatypes (and variables)

Before looking into datatypes in C++, we will first see what a variable is.

Variables are containers for storing data values.
In C++, there are different types of variables (defined with different keywords)

1. int - stores integers (whole numbers), without decimals, such as 123 or -123
2. double - stores floating point numbers, with decimals, such as 19.99 or -19.99
3. char - stores single characters, such as 'a' or 'B'. Char values are surrounded by single quotes
4. string - stores text, such as "Hello World". String values are surrounded by double quotes
5. bool - stores values with two states: true or false

Declaring (Creating) Variables
To create a variable, specify the type and assign it a value:
int myNum = 5; // Integer (whole number without decimals) double myFloatNum = 5.99; // Floating point number (with decimals) char myLetter = 'D'; // Character string myText = "Hello"; // String (text) bool myBoolean = true; // Boolean (true or false)

Display Variables
The cout object is used together with the << operator to display variables.
To combine both text and a variable, separate them with the << operator
int myAge = 35; cout << "I am " << myAge << " years old.";

C++ User Input
cin is a predefined variable that reads data from the keyboard with the extraction operator (>>).
In the following example, the user can input a number, which is stored in the variable x. Then we print the value of x:
int x; cout << "Type a number: "; // Type a number and press enter cin >> x; // Get user input from the keyboard cout << "Your number is: " << x; // Display the input value