| Java defines eight primitive types of data: byte, short, int, long, char, float, double, and boolean. |
| The primitive types are also commonly referred to as simple types, and both terms will be |
| used in this book. These can be put in four groups: |
| • Integers This group includes byte, short, int, and long, which are for whole-valued |
| signed numbers. |
| • Floating-point numbers This group includes float and double, which represent |
| numbers with fractional precision. |
| • Characters This group includes char, which represents symbols in a character set, |
| like letters and numbers. |
| • Boolean This group includes boolean, which is a special type for representing |
| true/false values. |