Type Inference with `:=`

Part of the Fundamentals section of Coddy's GO journey — lesson 6 of 109.

Let's explore a convenient way to create and initialize values in Go using the := shorthand. This is called type inference, where Go automatically figures out what type your data should be.

To create a text message, use :=:

message := "Hello, Go!"
fmt.Println(message)

After running this code, you'll see Hello, Go! printed to the console. Go automatically knew that message should be a string type.

Let's create a number using :=:

age := 25
fmt.Println(age)

This prints 25 to the console. Go automatically made age an integer type.

Let's create a decimal number:

price := 19.99
fmt.Println(price)

This prints 19.99 to the console. Go automatically made price a floating-point type.

Challenge

Beginner

In this challenge, you'll practice using the := operator for type inference in Go.

The program already has some variables declared using the var keyword with explicit types. Your task is to declare two new variables using the := shorthand syntax that lets Go infer the types automatically.

Complete the TODOs in the code to make the program print the correct values.

Try it yourself

package main

import "fmt"

func main() {
    // Variables declared with explicit types
    var name string = "Gopher"
    var age int = 5
    
    // TODO: Declare a variable called 'language' with the value "Go" using := syntax
    language ? "Go"
    
    // TODO: Declare a variable called 'version' with the value 1.18 using := syntax
    version ? 1.18
    
    // Print all variables
    fmt.Println("Name:", name)
    fmt.Println("Age:", age)
    fmt.Println("Language:", language)
    fmt.Println("Version:", version)
}