AppleScript Programming/Numbers and strings

Variables, Numbers, and Strings: In the last section, the "set" command was used to set a variable, in this case "theVariable" to the string "Support Wikibooks!". In this chapter, you will learn about variables, numbers, and strings.

Variables

Variables, if you are unfamiliar to programming or algebra, are words that represent some function. For example, in Algebra, the variable x in the equation x-5=1 must equal 6. Variables in AppleScript can be most single letters or any word that is not a command. However, since many normal words are commands in AppleScript, the easiest way to pick a sure-fire variable is to use CamelCase, or to have capitalization insideTheSentence likeThis. Variables are always set using the set command or copy command.

Numbers

Now let's use the three commands we know to write a simple number-based program. Try putting this into your Script Editor:

set firstVariable to 5
set secondVariable to 3
display dialog firstVariable - secondVariable

The result is a message box displaying the result (2).

Strings

Numbers are very useful for mathematical computations by nature. However, what if you want a script to tell you text? This is where strings come in. A string is a type of data stored by a variable that contains a simple line or lines of text.

By putting this in your Script Editor, you can say, you're working with String Variables:

set firstString to "Hello, "
set secondString to "User!"
display dialog firstString & secondString

The result is a message box displaying the result (Hello, User!).

Now put:

set firstString to "Hello, "
set secondString to "User!"
display dialog firstString & secondString default answer "3"

Now the user can define the variable.