
Understanding DataType in Dart
30 March, 2023
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What is Dart?
Dart is a cutting-edge, object-oriented programming language created by Google that is effective for creating web, mobile, desktop, and backend applications and is simple to learn. Dart's wide collection of built-in types, which offer a range of ways to represent and manipulate data in your applications, is one of its distinguishing characteristics.
We'll examine several of the most popular built-in Dart types in this tutorial, including numbers, strings, booleans, and lists. We'll also go through some of the more complex types, such sets and maps, and talk about how to use them to solve issues and create effective applications.
Why Dart?
Google created the programming language Dart, which is used to create desktop, server, online, and mobile apps. It was developed to be an application development language that is simple to learn, effective, and scalable.
The fact that Dart enables programmers to create high-performance, aesthetically pleasing programs that work without a hitch on a multitude of devices is one of the primary reasons it is utilized for Flutter. Dart is a compiled language, which means that rather than being translated by a virtual machine, it is converted into native code that can be executed directly on a device's processor. Because of this, Dart-based apps are quick and effective, have a tiny footprint, and have little overhead.
Dart is made to be simple to learn and use in addition to its performance advantages. It has a straightforward syntax that is comparable to other well-known languages like Java and C++, and it contains features like type inference and garbage collection that make writing and maintaining code simpler.
Overall, Dart is the perfect language for creating Flutter applications due to its performance, usability, and support for a variety of platforms.
What are datatypes
In computer programming, a data type is a classification of data based on the type of value that it can hold. Data types determine the kind of operations that can be performed on the data and the type of storage required to hold it in memory.
Several common data types are used in dart, includes:
- Integer: A whole number that can be positive, negative, or zero.
- Floating point: A number with a decimal point used to represent fractional values.
- Boolean: A data type with only two values: true or false.
- String: A sequence of characters used to represent text.
- Array: A collection of values of the same data type.
- Object: A data type representing a complex data structure consisting of properties and methods.
- Maps: The Map object is a simple key/value pair. Keys and values in a map may be of any type. A Map is a dynamic collection. In other words, Maps can grow and shrink at runtime.
In addition to these basic data types, many programming languages also support more advanced data types, such as structures, enumerations, and classes, which allow developers to define their custom data types.
Numbers:
Dart supports two types of numbers: integers (whole numbers) and doubles (decimal numbers). You can use the int
and double
types to declare variables that hold these values, respectively. For example:
int x = 42;
double y = 3.14;
You can use the usual arithmetic operators (such as +
, -
, *
, and /
) to perform calculations on numbers. Dart also provides a number of helpful methods and functions for working with numbers, such as abs()
for taking the absolute value, round()
for rounding to the nearest integer, and pow()
for raising a number to a power.
Strings:
In Dart, strings are used to represent text data. You can define a string in dart using single or double quotes, like this:
String s1 = 'Hello, World!';
String s2 = "Welcome to Dart";
You can use the +
operator to concatenate (join) two strings together, or you can use string interpolation to insert the value of a variable or expression into a string. For example:
String name = 'Alice';
String anotherName = 'Alice' + 'in the wonderland';
String greeting = 'Hello, $name!';
Dart also provides a number of useful methods for working with strings, such as length
for getting the number of characters in a string, toLowerCase()
and toUpperCase()
for converting a string to lower or upper case, and substring()
for extracting a portion of a string.
Booleans:
In Dart, boolean values are used to represent true or false. You can use the bool
type to declare a boolean variable, like this:
bool isTrue = true;
bool isFalse = false;
You can use the usual logical operators (such as &&
, ||
, and !
) to perform boolean operations, and you can use the ?
and :
operators to create ternary expressions that evaluate to one of two values depending on a boolean condition.
bool isTrue = true;
String result = isTrue ? 'Yes' : 'No';
print(result); // Output: 'Yes'
In this example, the ternary operator ?
checks the value of isTrue
and returns 'Yes' if isTrue
is true
and 'No' if isTrue
is false
. This is equivalent to the following if
-else
statement:
bool isTrue = true;
String result;
if (isTrue) {
result = 'Yes';
} else {
result = 'No';
}
print(result); // Output: 'Yes'
You can use the ternary operator in many situations in Flutter where you would normally use an if
-else
statement, such as when setting the value of a variable based on a condition, when returning a value from a function, or when defining the contents of a widget.
Lists:
In Dart, lists (also known as arrays) store an ordered collection of items. You can use the List
type to declare a list variable, like this:
List<int> numbers = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5];
In this case, the type parameter (<int>
in this case) specifies the type of elements the list can hold. You can use the []
operator to access elements in a list by their index, and you can use the length
property to get the number of elements in the list. Dart also provides a number of useful methods for working with lists, such as sort()
for sorting the elements, `
Maps
In Flutter, the maps datatype is a powerful tool for storing and manipulating data in a key-value format. Maps are particularly useful for working with data that can be easily represented as a set of properties or attributes. In this article, we'll explore how to use the maps datatype in Flutter, including how to create, access, and modify maps.
Creating a Map in Flutter
Creating a map in Flutter is easy. The basic syntax for creating a map is as follows:
Map<String, dynamic> myMap = {
'key1': value1,
'key2': value2,
'key3': value3
};
In this example, we're creating a map called myMap
that has three key-value pairs. Each key-value pair is separated by a comma, and the entire map is enclosed in curly braces {}
. The key is a string, while the value can be any data type, including strings, numbers, and even other maps.
You can also create an empty map and add key-value pairs later. Here's an example:
Map<String, dynamic> myEmptyMap = {};
myEmptyMap['key1'] = value1;
myEmptyMap['key2'] = value2;
myEmptyMap['key3'] = value3;
Accessing Map Values
Once you've created a map, you can access its values using the keys. To access a value in a map, you simply need to use the key in square brackets. Here's an example:
Map<String, dynamic> myMap = {
'name': 'John',
'age': 25,
'city': 'New York'
};
String name = myMap['name'];
int age = myMap['age'];
String city = myMap['city'];
In this example, we're accessing the values of the name
, age
, and city
keys in the myMap
map. We're assigning these values to variables of the appropriate data types.
Modifying Map Values
You can modify the values of a map by accessing them using the key and then assigning a new value. Here's an example:
Map<String, dynamic> myMap = {
'name': 'John',
'age': 25,
'city': 'New York'
};
String name = myMap['name'];
int age = myMap['age'];
String city = myMap['city'];
In this example, we're accessing the values of the name
, age
, and city
keys in the myMap
map. We're assigning these values to variables of the appropriate data types.
Modifying Map Values
You can modify the values of a map by accessing them using the key and then assigning a new value. Here's an example:
Map<String, dynamic> myMap = {
'name': 'John',
'age': 25,
'city': 'New York'
};
myMap['name'] = 'Jane';
myMap['age'] = 30;
myMap['city'] = 'Los Angeles';
In this example, we're modifying the values of the name
, age
, and city
keys in the myMap
map.
Iterating Through a Map
You can iterate through a map in Flutter using a for
loop. Here's an example:
Map<String, dynamic> myMap = {
'name': 'John',
'age': 25,
'city': 'New York'
};
myMap.forEach((key, value) {
print('$key: $value');
});
In this example, we're using the forEach()
method to iterate through the myMap
map. For each key-value pair in the map, we're printing the key and the value.
Conclusion
Maps are a powerful datatype in Flutter that allow you to store and manipulate data in a key-value format. You can create maps using curly braces, and you can access and modify map values using square brackets. You can also iterate through a map using a for
loop. By using maps in your Flutter app, you can make it easier to work with and manage data.