Learning Objectives: Boolean
Operators
Recognize the difference between = and ==
Understand the && and || operators’ functions
Evaluate boolean expressions
Equal To & Not Equal To
Boolean operators are operators that return a boolean value (true or
false).
Equal To
C++ uses the == operator to determine equality. Beginners often confuse the
= and the == operators. Remember, = is the assignment operator.
int a = 5;
int b = 5;
cout << boolalpha << (a == b) << endl;
challenge
What happens if you:
Assign b to 1?
Change a to bool a = true; and b to bool b = false;?
Not Equal To
The != operator checks to see if two values are not equal.
int a = 5;
int b = 5;
cout << boolalpha << (a != b) << endl;
challenge
What happens if you:
Assign b to 1?
Change a to bool a = true; and assign b to 1?
Change b to bool b = false;?
Less Than & Less Than or Equal To
Less Than
The < operator is used to check if one value is less than another value.
int a = 5;
int b = 7;
cout << boolalpha << (a < b) << endl;
challenge
What happens if you:
Assign b to 1?
Assign b to 5?
Assign b to false?
Hint(s)
It is possible to declare and assign int b = false; because false is just a
value of 0. Since 5 is not less than 0, false is returned.
Less Than or Equal To
The <= operator is used to check if one value is less than or equal to another
value.
int a = 5;
int b = 7;
cout << boolalpha << (a <= b) << endl;
challenge
What happens if you:
Assign b to 1?
Assign b to 5?
Assign a to false and assign b to true?
Hint(s)
false is less than true because 0 is less than 1.
Greater Than & Greater Than or
Equal To
Greater Than
The > operator is used to check if one value is greater than another value.
int a = 9;
int b = 17;
cout << boolalpha << (a > b) << endl;
challenge
What happens if you:
Assign b to 1?
Assign b to 9?
Assign b to false?
Assign b to true?
Hint(s)
9 is both greater than the value of false, which is 0, and the value of true,
which is 1.
Greater Than or Equal To
The >= operator is used to check if one value is greater than or equal to
another value.
int a = 9;
int b = 17;
cout << boolalpha << (a >= b) << endl;
challenge
What happens if you:
Assign b to 1?
Assign b to 9?
Assign a to true and assign b to false?
Hint(s)
true is greater than false.
And
The && Operator
The && (and) operator allows for compound (more than one) boolean
expressions. All boolean expressions must be true in order for the whole
thing to be true. If at least one boolean expressions is false, then the whole
thing is false.
bool a = true;
bool b = true;
bool c = false;
cout << boolalpha << (a && b) << endl;
How do I type &&?
It is located towards the top of the keyboard, on the same key as the
number 7. Hold shift and press the 7 key to type &.
challenge
What happens if you:
Replace (a && b) in the code above with (a && c)?
Replace (a && b) in the code above with (b && c)?
Multiple && Statements
You can chain several && expressions together. They are evaluated in a left-
to-right manner.
bool a = true;
bool b = true;
bool c = false;
cout << boolalpha << (a && b && c) << endl;
challenge
What happens if you:
Replace (a && b && c) in the code above with (a && b && a && b
&& a)?
Replace (a && b && c) in the code above with (a && b && a && b
&& c)?
Hint(s)
c is the only variable is that is false. Thus, if c is involved in an &&
expression, the entire thing will evaluate to false. Any combinations of as
and/or bs will result in true.
Or
The || Operator
The || (or) operator allows for compound (more than one) boolean
expressions. If at least one boolean expression is true, then the whole thing
is true. To be false, all boolean expressions must be false.
bool a = true;
bool b = true;
bool c = false;
bool d = false;
cout << boolalpha << (a || b) << endl;
How do I type ||?
It is towards the right-hand side, below the backspace or delete key and
above the enter or return key. The | symbol is located on the same key as
the </code> symbol. Hold shift and press the </code> key to type |.
challenge
What happens if you:
Replace (a || b) in the code above with (a || c)?
Replace (a || b) in the code above with (c || d)?
Multiple || Statements
You can chain several || expressions together. They are evaluated in a left-to-
right manner.
bool a = true;
bool b = true;
bool c = false;
cout << boolalpha << (a || b || c) << endl;
challenge
What happens if you:
Replace (a || b || c) in the code above with (a || c || c || c || c)?
Replace (a || b || c) in the code above with (c && c && c && c && c)?
Not
The ! Operator
The ! (not) operator produces the opposite result of the boolean expression
that it modifies.
cout << boolalpha << (! true) << endl;
challenge
What happens if you:
Replace (! true) in the code above with (! true && false)?
Replace (! true) in the code above with (! (true && false))?
Replace (! true) in the code above with (! ! true)?
Hint(s)
The ! operator works similarly to how a - (negative) sign works in
mathematics. The - of a positive number is a negative number and the - of
a negative number is a positive number.
Order of Boolean Operators
Much like how arithmetic operators are evaluated in a certain order,
boolean operators also work according to their priority level. Boolean
operations are evaluated in the following order from highest to lowest
priority:
1. Parentheses ()
2. Not !
3. And &&
4. Or ||
Short Circuiting
Short Circuiting
If C++ can determine the result of a boolean expression before evaluating
the entire thing, it will stop and return the value.
.guides/img/ShortCircuiting
cout << boolalpha << (false
&&
/*C++ never reaches this line*/ true) << endl;
cout << boolalpha << (true
||
/*C++ never reaches this line*/ false) << endl;
