Programming Basics - Casting and Operators

Programming Basics - Casting and Operators

Introduction to Casting

  • In programming, casting is the process of transforming data from one type to another.
  • This is important when we want to perform operations that are not compatible with the existing data type.
  • For example, if we want to perform arithmetic operation on a string that contains a number, we need to cast that string to an integer or a float.
  • There are two types of casting, implicit casting (auto conversion by the compiler) and explicit casting (forced conversion by the programmer).
  • Implicit casting happens when the conversion is safe and no data will be lost, e.g., converting an integer to a float.
  • Explicit casting is necessary when there’s a possibility of data loss or when the conversion might not make sense without specific instruction, e.g., converting a float to an integer.

Introduction to Operators

  • Operators are special symbols in programming that perform specific operations on one, two, or three operands, and then return a result.
  • The basic types of operators in programming include:
    • Arithmetic operators for carrying out basic mathematical operations.
    • Relational operators for comparing values.
    • Logical operators for performing logical operations.
    • Bitwise operators for manipulating individual bits of a data.
  • The data that an operator works on are called operands. For example, in 4 + 5, 4 and 5 are the operands and ‘+’ is the operator.

Arithmetic Operators

  • Basic arithmetic operators include:
    • Addition (+)
    • Subtraction (-)
    • Multiplication (*)
    • Division (/)
    • Modulus (%) which gives the remainder of a division.
    • Exponentiation (**) which raises the first operand to the power of the second operand.

Relational Operators

  • Relational operators are used to compare two values and return a Boolean result. They include:
    • Greater than (>)
    • Less than (<)
    • Equal to (==)
    • Not equal to (!=)
    • Greater than or equal to (>=)
    • Less than or equal to (<=)

Logical Operators

  • Logical operators are used to combine or invert Boolean values. They include:
    • AND (&&) returns true if both operands are true.
    • OR (   ) returns true if at least one of the operands is true.
    • NOT (!) inverts the value of a single Boolean operand.

Bitwise Operators

  • Bitwise operators manipulate individual bits of data. They include:
    • Bitwise AND (&)
    • Bitwise OR ( )
    • Bitwise XOR (^)
    • Bitwise NOT (~)
    • Left shift («)
    • Right shift (»)

Logic of using Casting and Operators together

  • In many cases, you’ll need to cast data types before performing certain operations.
  • Always remember to consider the current data type and what you want to manipulate or calculate before deciding whether you need to cast.
  • When using operators, always be aware of operator precedence which dictates the order in which operations are performed. When in doubt, use brackets to make your intention clear.