Data Field Types in Datameer

When importing data into Datameer, it is important to know which type of data you are importing or need to import. When using your data within workbooks, certain Datameer functions only work with certain types of data. Congruently, certain functions return only a specific type of data.
Also there are data requirements when using dashboard widgets to visualize your data.

Field Type	Description	Internal representation
integer	64-Bit integer value	Java Long
big integer	Unlimited integer value	Java BigInteger
float	64-Bit float value	Java Double
big decimal	High-precision float value	Java BigDecimal
date	Date object	Java Date
string	String object	Java String
boolean	Boolean object	Java Boolean
number	float, big decimal, integer or big integer
any	float, big decimal, integer, big integer, date, string or Boolean

Integer

In mathematics integers (aka whole numbers) are made up of the set of natural numbers including zero (0,1,2,3, ...) along with the negatives of natural numbers (-1,-2,-3, ...). When talking about Integers in computer programming, it is necessary to define a minimum and maximum value. Datameer uses a 64-bit integer which allows the user to represent whole numbers between -9,223,372,036,854,775,808 to 9,223,372,036,854,775,807.

Big Integer

Big integers are like integers, but they are not limited to 64 bits. They are represented using arbitray-precision arithmetic. Big integers represent only whole numbers.

Float

In mathematics we have real numbers so that we can represent factions (1/2, 12/68) or numbers with decimal places (12.75, -18.35). In Datameer we use double precision floating-point representation (aka float) to manipulate and represent real numbers. The complete range of numbers that can be represented this way is approximately 2 ^-1022 through (1+(1-2 ^-52))x2 ¹⁰²³.

Big Decimal

Big decimals are similar to float values. The main advantage of this data field type is that they are exact to the number of decimal places for which they are configured, float values may be inaccurate in certain cases. If a number has more decimal places than big decimal was configured for, then the number will be rounded. The number of decimal places can be configured in conf/default.properties:

# Maximum precision used for BIG_DECIMAL types. Precision is equal to the maximum number of digits a BigDecimal 
# can have.
system.property.das.big-decimal.precision=32

32 digits is the default precision used by Datameer for big decimal values.

Date

In Datameer date and times are always represented as numerals starting with the Day of the month, the month of the year, the year than with the time in 24 hour format including seconds, e.g. 22.08.2011 15:56:39. If the dates you use are not in this format, then they must be parsed so that Datameer can represent them correctly.

String

When using information other than numbers or dates in Datameer, it is represented as a string. This includes text, unparsed date patterns, URLs, JSON arrays, etc.

Boolean

Boolean data in computing has two values, either TRUE or FALSE. It is used in many logical expressions and is derived from Boolean algebra created by George Boole in the 19th century.

Number

In Datameer integers, big integers, floats and big decimals are considered to be numbers.

Any

Some visualizations and functions are able to use data represented by any data field type. These can be either a number, a string, a date or a Boolean.