Variable types and values
Every variable has a name, a type, a value and an optional description. The type is chosen when you create the variable and cannot be changed afterwards.
#Types
Type | What it accepts | How pages show it |
|---|---|---|
Text | A single line of up to 500 characters. | Exactly as entered. |
Number | An optional minus sign, up to 15 digits, and optionally a dot followed by up to 10 decimal places. Use a dot for decimals, for example 4.2. | Exactly as entered. 4.20 stays 4.20; nothing is rounded or reformatted. |
User | One person, chosen with Choose a user. | As that person's name, for each reader. The account ID is never shown. |
Date | A calendar day between the years 1000 and 9999, chosen with a date picker. No time and no time zone. | Day, short month and year, for example 14 Oct 2026 or 4 Oct 2026. The same everywhere: on the page, in exports and on published sites. |
#Names
Free text, spaces and capitals included, up to 100 characters. Spaces at either end are trimmed and runs of spaces are collapsed to one.
Cannot contain
<or>.Unique within its scope, ignoring case. The check runs while you type.
Pages show the value, never the name. Renaming a variable never breaks a page.
#Descriptions
Optional, up to 250 characters. Descriptions are searchable in the catalogue, so they are a good place for context such as Update on release day.
#Messages you may see
Message | Meaning |
|---|---|
Enter a name / Enter a value | The field is empty. |
Use 100 characters or fewer | The name is too long. |
A name cannot contain < or > | Remove those characters. |
Use a single line / Use 500 characters or fewer | A Text value has a line break or is too long. |
Enter a number, for example 42 or -4.25 | The Number value is not a valid number. |
Use a dot for decimals, for example 4.2 | A comma was used as the decimal separator. |
Choose a user / Choose a date | No person or date has been picked. |
Use 250 characters or fewer | The description is too long. |
#A few things that catch people out
The type is fixed. To switch a Text variable to a Number, create a new Number variable and point the pages at it.
Numbers are not formatted for your locale. Type the value exactly as you want readers to see it.
User values are not published on Capable Sites. See Capable Sites.
#Related
Four types, shown the same everywhere.
