1.1 Types of data

Computers work with different types of data. Knowing the main types helps you write code that does what you want.

The main types

Numbers

• Integers (int) — whole numbers: 3, 0, -7, 100
• Floats — numbers with a decimal: 3.14, 0.5, -2.1

You can use them in maths: 2 + 3, 10 / 4, 3 * 5.

Strings

Strings are text. In Python you put them in quotes (single or double):

"hello"
'coding club'
"I'm learning Python"

Booleans

Booleans are either True or False. They are used for yes/no decisions. In Python the capital T and F matter.

True
False

Checking the type

You can see what type something is with type():

type(42)        # <class 'int'>
type(3.14)      # <class 'float'>
type("hello")   # <class 'str'>
type(True)      # <class 'bool'>

Mini project: About you

Write a short program that prints your name (as a string) and your age (as a number). Use print() like this:

print("My name is Alex")
print(12)

Try printing a sentence that uses both text and a number (you can pass several things to print separated by commas).

---

Next: 1.2 Variables — storing values so we can use them again.