Primitive

In pc science, a primitive is a elementary information kind that can’t be damaged down right into a more easy information kind. For instance, an integer is a primitive information kind, whereas an array, which might retailer a number of information sorts, just isn’t.

Some programming languages assist more information sorts than others and never all languages implement information sorts the identical method. However, most high-level languages share a number of frequent primitives.

Java, for example, has eight primitive information sorts:

1. boolean – a single TRUE or FALSE worth (usually solely requires one bit)
2. byte – 8-bit signed integer (-127 to 128)
3. quick – 16-bit signed integer (-32,768 to 32,767)
4. int – 32-bit signed integer (-2³¹ to -2³¹ -1)
5. lengthy – 64-bit signed integer (-2⁶³ to -2⁶³ -1)
6. float – 32-bit floating level quantity
7. double – 64-bit floating level quantity
8. char – 16-bit Unicode character

Primitives supported by every programming language are generally known as “built-in data types” since they retailer values instantly in reminiscence. Non-primitive information sorts retailer references to values fairly than the values themselves. Examples of non-primitive Java information sorts embrace arrays and lessons.