[javascript] Declaring a boolean in JavaScript using just var

If I declare a JavaScript boolean variable like this:

var IsLoggedIn;

And then initialize it with either true or 1, is that safe? Or will initializing it with 1 make the variable a number?

If you want IsLoggedIn to be treated as a boolean you should initialize as follows:

var IsLoggedIn=true;

If you initialize it with var IsLoggedIn=1; then it will be treated as an integer.

However at any time the variable IsLoggedIn could refer to a different data type:

 IsLoggedIn="Hello World";

This will not cause an error.

How about something like this:

var MyNamespace = {
    convertToBoolean: function (value) {
        //VALIDATE INPUT
        if (typeof value === 'undefined' || value === null) return false;

        //DETERMINE BOOLEAN VALUE FROM STRING
        if (typeof value === 'string') {
            switch (value.toLowerCase()) {
                case 'true':
                case 'yes':
                case '1':
                    return true;
                case 'false':
                case 'no':
                case '0':
                    return false;
            }
        }

        //RETURN DEFAULT HANDLER
        return Boolean(value);
    }
};

Then you can use it like this:

MyNamespace.convertToBoolean('true') //true
MyNamespace.convertToBoolean('no') //false
MyNamespace.convertToBoolean('1') //true
MyNamespace.convertToBoolean(0) //false

I have not tested it for performance, but converting from type to type should not happen too often otherwise you open your app up to instability big time!

You can use and test uninitialized variables at least for their 'definedness'. Like this:

var iAmNotDefined;
alert(!iAmNotDefined); //true
//or
alert(!!iAmNotDefined); //false

Furthermore, there are many possibilites: if you're not interested in exact types use the '==' operator (or ![variable] / !![variable]) for comparison (that is what Douglas Crockford calls 'truthy' or 'falsy' I think). In that case assigning true or 1 or '1' to the unitialized variable always returns true when asked. Otherwise [if you need type safe comparison] use '===' for comparison.

var thisMayBeTrue;

thisMayBeTrue = 1;
alert(thisMayBeTrue == true); //=> true
alert(!!thisMayBeTrue); //=> true
alert(thisMayBeTrue === true); //=> false

thisMayBeTrue = '1';
alert(thisMayBeTrue == true); //=> true 
alert(!!thisMayBeTrue); //=> true
alert(thisMayBeTrue === true); //=> false
// so, in this case, using == or !! '1' is implicitly 
// converted to 1 and 1 is implicitly converted to true)

thisMayBeTrue = true;
alert(thisMayBeTrue == true); //=> true
alert(!!thisMayBeTrue); //=> true
alert(thisMayBeTrue === true); //=> true

thisMayBeTrue = 'true';
alert(thisMayBeTrue == true); //=> false
alert(!!thisMayBeTrue); //=> true
alert(thisMayBeTrue === true); //=> false
// so, here's no implicit conversion of the string 'true'
// it's also a demonstration of the fact that the 
// ! or !! operator tests the 'definedness' of a variable.

PS: you can't test 'definedness' for nonexisting variables though. So:

alert(!!HelloWorld);

gives a reference Error ('HelloWorld is not defined')

(is there a better word for 'definedness'? Pardon my dutch anyway;~)

Variables in Javascript don't have a type. Non-zero, non-null, non-empty and true are "true". Zero, null, undefined, empty string and false are "false".

There's a Boolean type though, as are literals true and false.

The variable will become what ever type you assign it. Initially it is undefined. If you assign it 'true' it will become a string, if you assign it true it will become a boolean, if you assign it 1 it will become a number. Subsequent assignments may change the type of the variable later.

As this very useful tutorial says:

var age = 0;

// bad
var hasAge = new Boolean(age);

// good
var hasAge = Boolean(age);

// good
var hasAge = !!age;

No it is not safe. You could later do var IsLoggedIn = "Foo"; and JavaScript will not throw an error.

It is possible to do

var IsLoggedIn = new Boolean(false);
var IsLoggedIn = new Boolean(true);

You can also pass the non boolean variable into the new Boolean() and it will make IsLoggedIn boolean.

var IsLoggedIn = new Boolean(0); // false
var IsLoggedIn = new Boolean(NaN); // false
var IsLoggedIn = new Boolean("Foo"); // true
var IsLoggedIn = new Boolean(1); // true