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Robyn,
Variables and Arrays are terms known very well to Programmers, but maybe not
to non-nerds--
A Variable is simply a location in computer memory that is used to store a
value -- it's called a "variable" because the value stored there can be
varied-- depending on what the software chooses to place at that location.
i.e. in the following examples
A=5
B=7
C=3
A, B, and C are all variables which can contain any value that the software
assigns to them, in this case, 5, 3, and 7 respectively.
An Array is simply a collection of Variables in a specific order -- Think of
an Array with three elements as "pigeon-holes" that will contain values that
will vary, depending on what the software stores there.
i.e. in the following example, an Array named "X" has 3 elements, and the
same values from the above example are assigned to the three elements of the
"X" Array-- First the Array must be dimensioned-- this syntax varies with
different programming languages:
Dim X(3)
X(1) = 5
X(2) = 7
X(3) = 3
It gets more complex with multi-dimensional arrays, but this should provide
a starting point-- If you find this stuff interesting, I would suggest
picking up an entry-level computer programming book.
_______________________________________
At 07:30 PM 3/29/99 -0500, you wrote:
>I know this is going to sound like a dumb request - but here it goes (better to
>ask stupid questions than stay stupid).
>
>When I was taught to program in EL - as a non-technical person - I learned by
>rote (i.e., if I wanted to do this - I wrote this code - if I wanted to do that
>- I wrote that code).
>
>But I never learned the technical definitions of what I was doing. Judging
from
>what I read in messages here - I'm using variables and arrays - but I'm not
sure
>exactly what they are in a technical definitional sense. Sometimes - when I
>want to answer a question about how to code this, that or the other thing - I
>don't - because I can't explain the code in the technical terms you're using.
>And - sometimes - I think I'd understand a lot of messages here better if I
>understood what the coding I'm doing is called - using the precise scientific
>terms you're using.
>
>Could someone give me the definition of a variable - of an array - and the
>definitions of any other related concepts that you think are important in
>dealing with coding these kinds of things? Robyn
>
>
>
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