In the last two chapters, you have learned how to put together a C++ program, learned about the files you use, and the ways to control execution flow. This chapter is about the data that you will use in your program: the type of data and the variables that will hold that data.
A variable can handle data of a particular format and with a particular behavior, and that is determined by the type of the variable. The type of the variable determines the operations you can perform on the data and on the format of the data when inputted or viewed by the user.
Essentially, you can view three general categories of types: built-in types, custom types, and pointers. Pointers in general will be covered in the next chapter, and custom types, or classes, and pointers to them, will be covered in Chapter 6, Classes. This chapter will cover the types that are provided as part...