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What is a flag variable?

Recently I came across flag variables, but I have no idea what they do.

I am little unsure about when to use a flag variable and how to go about it.

I Googled it but there weren't any specific examples related to my context (of JavaScript).

Solution

  • Flag Variables Defined and Uses says:

    A flag variable, in its simplest form, is a variable you define to have one value until some condition is true, in which case you change the variable's value. It is a variable you can use to control the flow of a function or statement, allowing you to check for certain conditions while your function progresses.

    As an example:

    // errors is the flag variable
var errors = 0;

for(var i = 0; i < 10; i++) {
  if(i == 6) {  // Your error condition
    errors++;
  }
}

if(errors) {  // Is the flag "up"? (i.e. > 0)
  alert("There was a problem!");
}