Go Programming Language For Dummies

Chapter 3

Making Decisions

IN THIS CHAPTER

Making decisions with the if/else statement

Evaluating multiple conditions with the switch statement

To make a program really useful, you need to be able to make decisions based on the values of variables and constants. Go offers a few constructs for making decisions:

• If/else statements
• Switch statements
• Select statements

The third construct — the select statement — is for channel communication. I cover that subject in Chapter 12, where I explain more about channels.

In this chapter, I explain how to make decisions in Go using the if/else and switch statements.

Using If/Else Statements to Make Decisions

The first method of making decisions in Go is the if/else statement. An if/else statement basically says, “Do x if such-and-such is true; otherwise, do y.” In the following sections, I walk you through how to use the if/else statement, starting with the foundation of decision making: logical and comparison operators.

Laying the foundation for the if/else statement: Logical and comparison operators

Before I get to the if/else statement, though, you need to know a little bit about how programming works. In Go, a Boolean (bool) variable can take on a value of true or false. This seemingly simple concept is the cornerstone of programming. ...