Omit an initial value

A declaration that states its type can sometimes omit the value after =. Silex then initializes the variable with that type's intrinsic value. The variable therefore always receives a deterministic value.

Use the intrinsic value

This program lets Silex initialize three common values:

func main() {
    let count:int
    let ratio:float
    let ready:bool

    print(count)
    print(ratio)
    print(ready)
}

It prints:

0
0.0
false

The annotation is required when the initial value is absent: without it, the compiler cannot determine which type to create.

Find common intrinsic values

Initialize a class

A class has no intrinsic instance. A class variable must receive an instance, as in var player = Player(). If the absence of an instance is valid, declare an optional instead with var selected:Player?; its initial value is null.

Inside a constructor, this rule does not force a field without an intrinsic value to become optional. The field may remain pending and receive its first value through self.field = value, provided every normal path initializes it before any read or use of self.

Back to values · Choose a built-in type