Operators & Expressions

Operators are symbols that perform operations on values. They're the building blocks for creating logic and calculations in your code!

1. What are Operators? ⚙️

What is it? Operators are special symbols (like +, -, =, !) that perform operations on one or more operands (values/variables).

Why use it? They allow you to manipulate data—add numbers, compare values, combine logic, and assign results.

How it works: Operand1 Operator Operand2 (e.g., 5 + 3).

2. Arithmetic Operators ➕➖

Used for performing mathematical calculations.

• + (Addition)
• - (Subtraction)
• * (Multiplication)
• / (Division)
• % (Modulus/Remainder)
• ** (Exponentiation)

3. Comparison Operators 🔍

Used to compare two values. They always return a Boolean (true or false).

Strict vs Loose Equality ⚠️

• == (Loose Equality): Converts types before comparing. Avoid this.
• === (Strict Equality): Checks value AND type. Use this.

4. Logical Operators 🧠

Used to combine multiple conditions.

• && (AND): True if both are true.
• || (OR): True if at least one is true.
• ! (NOT): Inverts the value.

Short-Circuit Evaluation ⚡

JavaScript stops evaluating as soon as the result is known.

• false && ... -> Stops (Result is false)
• true || ... -> Stops (Result is true)

5. Assignment Operators 📝

Used to assign values to variables.

• = (Assign)
• += (Add and assign)
• -= (Subtract and assign)
• ++ (Increment)
• -- (Decrement)

6. Ternary Operator ❓

A shorthand for if-else statements.

Syntax: condition ? trueValue : falseValue

7. Operator Precedence 📊

The order in which operators are evaluated.

1. () (Parentheses) - Highest
2. ** (Exponentiation)
3. *, /, % (Multiplication/Division)
4. +, - (Addition/Subtraction)
5. =, += (Assignment) - Lowest

8. Nullish Coalescing (??) 🎯

(Covered in ES6+ Features, but relevant here) Returns the right side ONLY if the left side is null or undefined.

Practical Example: Shopping Cart Logic 🛒

Quiz

Key Takeaways

✅ Arithmetic: +, -, *, /, % (Remainder), ** (Power).
✅ Comparison: Always use === (Strict) over == (Loose).
✅ Logical: && (AND), || (OR), ! (NOT).
✅ Short-Circuit: || can provide default values.
✅ Ternary: condition ? true : false is a one-line if-else.

What's Next?

Now that you can manipulate values, let's learn about Strings & Template Literals to handle text like a pro!

Keep coding! 🚀