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feat(curriculum): Add interactive examples to What Are Variables, and What Are Guidelines for Naming JavaScript Variables (#63172)
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@@ -5,7 +5,7 @@ challengeType: 19
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dashedName: what-are-variables
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---
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# --description--
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# --interactive--
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In JavaScript, variables act as containers for storing data that you can access and modify throughout your program.
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@@ -19,24 +19,57 @@ Here's an example of using `let` to declare a variable called `age`:
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let age;
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```
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Right now, the `age` variable does not have a value assigned to it. To assign a value to a variable you will need to use the assignment operator like this:
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Right now, the `age` variable does not have a value assigned to it. If you try to use it, it will return `undefined`, which means it has no value.
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Here is an example.
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**NOTE**: `console.log()` is a function that outputs information to the console, which is a part of your web browser used for debugging code. You will learn more about `console.log()` in future lessons. Also, the `//` symbols are used to add comments in your code. Comments are notes for yourself or other programmers that are ignored when the code runs.
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:::interactive_editor
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```js
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let age;
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console.log(age); // undefined
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```
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:::
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To assign a value to a variable you will need to use the assignment operator like this:
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```js
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let age = 25;
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```
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Now when you use the `age` variable, it will return the value of `25`.
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:::interactive_editor
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```js
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let age = 25;
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console.log(age); // 25
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```
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:::
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The assignment operator looks like an equals sign (`=`) but it doesn't check for equality. You'll learn about the correct operators for checking equality in future lessons.
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The assignment operator is used to assign a value to a variable. This process of assigning a value to a variable is known as initialization.
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One advantage of using the `let` keyword to declare variables is that you can reassign values to them. In programming, reassignment means giving a new value to a variable that already has one.
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Here is an example of reassigning the value for the `age` variable:
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Here is an example of reassigning the value for the `age` variable.
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:::interactive_editor
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```js
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let age = 25;
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console.log(age); // 25
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age = 30;
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console.log(age); // 30
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```
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:::
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Now the `age` variable holds the value of `30`. Notice that the `let` keyword wasn't needed again because the `age` variable was already declared, so there's no need to declare it a second time.
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When using reassignment, you only need to reference the variable name. Reassignment is useful because it allows you to update and change the value stored in a variable as your program runs. A good example of this would be updating points in a game.
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@@ -45,16 +78,48 @@ Naming variables may seem straightforward, but there are some rules and best pra
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Your variable names should describe what the data represents. For example, instead of using a name like `x`, a more descriptive name such as `age` or `points` makes your code easier to understand.
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```js
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// Bad variable names
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let x = 10;
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let y = "John";
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// Good variable names
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let age = 10;
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```
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Variables in JavaScript must begin with a letter, an underscore (`_`), or a dollar sign (`$`). They cannot start with a number.
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```js
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// Valid variable names
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let age;
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let _score;
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let $total;
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// Invalid variable names
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let 1stPlace; // starts with a number
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```
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Variable names are case-sensitive, meaning the word `age` in all lowercase and the word `Age` with a capital `A` are considered different variables.
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:::interactive_editor
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```js
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let age = 25;
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let Age = 30;
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console.log(age); // 25
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console.log(Age); // 30
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```
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:::
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This is why it's important to stick with a consistent naming convention like camelCase. camelCase is where the first word is all lowercase and each subsequent word starts with an uppercase letter.
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Here is an example of using the camelCase naming convention for a variable:
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```js
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let thisIsCamelCase;
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let anotherExampleVariable;
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let freeCodeCampStudents;
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```
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There are certain keywords in JavaScript that you cannot use as variable names, such as `let`, `const`, `function`, or `return`, as they are reserved for the language itself.
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