I’m getting rather hacked off seeing boolean properties typed as strings. Stringly typed is a phrase I learnt off a post from the excellent Coding Horror blog and it describes a phenomena whereby properties that are of a specific type, e.g. Boolean, Date, int, are stored needlessly as strings.
I’m working on a website that communicates with a money laundering service to check whether an individual is “bad” or not. Individuals can pass the test, but importantly it is possible to pass the test with some warning flags raised. If any of the warning flags are raised then an email should be sent off to compliance for them to do…whatever it is they do. Fair enough right?
The warning flags are obviously booleans. There was either a warning raised or there wasn’t – there are no two ways about it (no pun intended). In the serialized response, the warning flags are encoded as “Yes” or “No”…which is understandable. Now, upon receiving the response, it is parsed and turned into an internal representation. This is where things get really weird. The programmer that coded the object that stores the response from the service has decided to encode the warnings as strings, initialised to “”. Which is totally fucking bonkers.
Why?
Well, now our boolean warnings aren’t really booleans – they have WAY more than two possible values and the meaning of these values is subjective. One may consider “”, null, “No” as false, but could conceivably also consider “false” or “0″. We get the same sort of problem with true – “Yes”, “1″, “true” and then we get a whole load of unknown values which is every other possible string in the world. Which might be considered to be true.
So how the hell can any number of programmers work on this piece of code without introducing errors because of differing definitions of truthy and falsey values? Well, they can’t. To illustrate the problem further, even loosely typed languages differ in their boolean coercion, for example JavaScript and PHP:
<script>
if("0") alert('Opposite day!');
</script>
<?php
if("0") echo 'Opposite day!';
?>
JavaScript considers “0″ true but PHP considers it false. Personally I think JavaScript is “right” here, but as I said before, it is totally subjective.
The icing on the cake is of course the extra code you have to write to check the truthy or falsey string values. Something along the lines of “if x is not null and not empty and not the word No then it is probably true…probably”, which would otherwise have been coded as “if x then true” if x was a boolean – which is orders of magnitude shorter.
Of course, there are some bat shit crazy strongly typed languages that allow you to assign null to a Boolean, but that is a different story altogether.
reliable buying platform – Payments were simple and the site handled transactions very well.
getitnow – Works perfectly, completed my purchase without complications.
Travis handcrafted items – Beautiful and original, every piece shows attention to detail.
strategicpartners – Found helpful contacts that could boost business growth.
professionalnetworkinghub – Business bonding guidance is practical, supported efficient networking online.
7k casino предлагает удобный формат онлайн развлечений. Все игры доступны через браузер. Пользователь не тратит время на установку. Интерфейс быстро загружается. Это делает сервис практичным: 7к казино сайт
alliance planning page – Useful strategies that strengthened collaborative efforts over time.
clickglobalconnections – Building global connections is fast and easy, very professional environment.
trustybuyhub – Very dependable site, navigation and checkout went without any problems.
Inspire & Motivate – Encouraging and approachable, content makes change feel simple and exciting.
trusted online shopping – Easy to navigate, checkout was smooth and reassuring.
financebondshub – Very easy to follow guidance with useful insights for global business decisions.
I’ve been using it for a week for checking analytics, and the intuitive UI stands out.
Bathroom solutions portal – Nice presentation, each product is displayed with clear info.
professionalgrowthtools – Clear professional learning content, made skill development easy to follow.
corporatebondingtips – Useful corporate bonding advice, site makes teamwork and networking straightforward.
trusthubmarket – Reliable buying platform, made ordering online simple and fast.
Travel Texture Adventures – Colorful and immersive, posts capture experiences in a compelling way.
easy online shopping guide – Fast navigation and clear product display enhanced the shopping experience.
professionalnetworkhub – Advice here is actionable, strengthened work relationships effectively.
Creative Every Day – Fun and motivating, the site encourages regular creative exploration.
workflowoptimizer – Made managing multiple projects much simpler and faster.
enterprise growth alliances – Helpful advice that improved planning and partnership effectiveness.
alliancesresourcehub – Useful and actionable insights, makes connecting with enterprises fast and simple.
collaborationframeworkhub – Very clear guidance, helped organize tasks and improve team performance.
safeshopperzone – Secure checkout, shopping experience is smooth and reliable for all purchases.
strategic choice hub – Practical tips that simplified evaluating new business options.
Льготная ипотека для участников СВО в Москве – преимущества и условия контракта 2026 https://vc.ru/1480499
strategic asset bonds – The platform helps keep long-term bond planning organized.
dealnavigatorhub – Great bargains, very easy and fast to complete purchases.
FiatFive classics – Fun and nostalgic, the posts are well organized and enthusiastic.
Fast-loading website – Straightforward design, the content appears without delay.
digitalbazaar – Products are easy to find, checkout process was simple.
Creative Solutions Hub – Clear and engaging, content encourages innovative approaches to challenges.
teamwork optimization tips – Practical ideas enhanced coordination and improved overall outcomes.
corporateplanninghub – Practical and actionable solutions, perfectly suited for business strategy.
expertlearninghub – Helpful insights, made acquiring new skills simple and fast.
careerpathnavigator – Practical advice that clarified the best path for my goals.
business vision source – Helpful strategy notes that supported better future decisions.
trusted deals network – The platform handled purchases smoothly and felt reliable.
smartbargainhub – Fast transactions, lots of quality deals available.
Match schedule hub – Convenient and accurate, the timelines are easy to read.
trustedpartnershiptips – Very useful suggestions, improved collaborative strategies in our team.
projectconnectportal – Very helpful for team collaboration, interface is clean and intuitive.
businessvaluealliances – Value-driven partnerships are easy to understand, very helpful for decision-making.
Suiruan interactive page – Modern and engaging, curious about upcoming content.
alliance strategy center – Practical insights that helped organize enterprise collaborations.
smartshoppingzone – Smooth process, grabbing deals was hassle-free.
businesspartnershipguide – Very useful advice for forming strategic, reliable partnerships.
enterpriseinfrastructurezone – Infrastructure insights are clear, enabled smooth and fast application.