About variables

A variable is basically a keyword that points to specific location in your computer's memory. This location contains data that you decide to place in it, by assigning that data to the variable name.

There are four types of variables that can be used in PReS Workflow:

• Global variables are available to all processes and tasks within the configuration, and any modification made to them affects all tasks and configurations. For more information see Global variables.
• Local variables are specific to an instance of a process. That is to say, when a process changes the information in a local variable, it changes it only for that process and only for that specific instance of the process. For more information see Local variables.
• Job Infos are also specific to an instance of a process, however their use is different. Just after an initial or secondary input task, Job Infos contain information about the job file itself. They are generally used to gather information from the input task, or to transfer information to a Connect template or PlanetPress Design document. For more information see Job Info variables.

• System variables are standard variables, created and managed directly by PlanetPress Workflow. These variables are read-only and cannot be modified. They provide information about the job, process, and PlanetPress Workflow environment. For more information see System variables.

All the variables in PReS Workflow are considered strings, even if the information itself can be a number. There are no other types of variables (such as arrays, floating point numerical values or booleans) in PReS Workflow.