# Variables types Data types are used in programming to assign concrete semantics to memory areas. These memory areas are called variables or constants. Elementary, composed and abstract data types are differentiated between.
| Elementary data types:
Elementary (simple) data types can contain only one date of the corresponding value range. They have a defined number of values (discretes) and a fixed upper and lower limit. A distinction is made between ordinal and non-ordinal data types.
| Ordinal data types:
Ordinal data types are characterized by an unambiguous ordinal number that is assigned to their value. That means that every value, except for the first one, has a direct predecessor and every value, except for the last one, has a direct successor (ordered set). Ordinal data types are countable and, among other things: Integers Designation: INTEGER or INT Value range: usually 32 bits Natural numbers Designation: NATURAL, UNSIGNED INT or WORD Value range: usually 32 bits Enumeration types Freely definable: Value range: Freely selectable, for example (RED, BLACK, YELLOW) Designation: Boolean Value range: (TRUE, FALSE) Characters Designation: CHAR Value range: All elements of the character set (e.g., letters)
| Further topics:
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