Chapter 2
Understanding Variables
IN THIS CHAPTER
Getting your head around variables
Assigning names to variables
Introducing JavaScript data types
Figuring out numbers
Stringing strings together
You should imagine variables as tentacles, rather than boxes. They do not contain values; they grasp them.
—MARIJN HAVERBEKE
You may have heard about — or perhaps even know — someone who, through mishap or misfortune, has lost the ability to retain short-term memories. If you introduce yourself to one of these folks, they’ll be asking you your name again five minutes later. They live in a perpetual present, seeing the world anew every minute of every day.
What, I’m sure you’re asking yourself by now, can any of this possibly have to do with coding? Just that, by default, your JavaScript programs also live a life without short-term memory. The web browser executes your code one statement at a time, until no more statements are left to process. It all happens in the perpetual present. Ah, ...
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