types
| Kind of information | Name | Main type | Other types |
|---|---|---|---|
| whole numbers | integer | int | uint, sbyte, byte, short, ushort, long, ulong |
| decimals in scientific notation | floating point number | double | float |
| true/false | boolean | bool | |
| text | string | string | |
| individual letters, digits | character | char |
Integers are whole numbers: positive, negative or zero. When you declare an integer you need to tell the computer how much space (how many digits) you need. On most modern systems, the default kind of integer (usually called int) is a 32-bit signed integer, which can store numbers between -2,147,483,648 and 2,147,483,647. Unless you have a good reason to choose differently, this is usually the best bet.
| type | length | signed | range |
|---|---|---|---|
| sbyte | 8 bits | y | -128 to 127 |
| byte | 8 bits | n | 0 to 255 |
| short | 16 bits | y | -32,678 to 32,767 |
| ushort | 16 bits | n | 0 to 65,535 |
| int | 32 bits | y | -2,147,483,648 to 2,147,483,647 |
| uint | 32 bits | n | 0 to 4,294,967,295 |
| long | 64 bits | n | -9,223,372,036,854,775,808 to 9,223,372,036,854,775,807 |
| ulong | 64 bits | n | 0 to 18,446,744,073,709,551,615 |
| char | 16 bits | n | 0 to 65,535 |
Non-integer numbers in computers are usually stored as floating-point numbers, which are essentially numbers in scientific notation.
\[mantissa x 2^{exponent}\]