Variable Initialization

Setting variables to a known value before use.

How it Works

Initializing variables upon declaration ensures that the variable has a known quantity before use.

Considerations

• Default behavior when declaring variables varies by language.
• This is particularly important in programming languages that do not initialize variables to a default value upon declaration. In these instances, the value that a variable will contain after declaration is indeterminate which can cause issues. In fact, that value could be different each time the program is ran.
• Note: This resource should not be considered a definitive or exhaustive coding guideline.