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iOS Swift Basics (retired) Control Flow Switch Statement

Hudson Levy
Hudson Levy
512 Points
Posted by Hudson Levy
Hudson Levy
512 Points

If you have every "case" accounted for, why do you need a "default"?

In other words, if the "default" is never tapped then why is it required to be there?

2 Answers

Luke Glazebrook
Luke Glazebrook
13,564 Points
Luke Glazebrook
Luke Glazebrook
13,564 Points

Hey Hudson.

Default cases are usually there to be used if one of the specific pre-defined cases isn't selected by the program. Even if you are pretty sure that incorrect input can't be entered it is still best to include one just incase none of the other cases are picked.

Have fun programming,

-Luke

Patrick Cooney
Patrick Cooney
12,216 Points
Patrick Cooney
Patrick Cooney
12,216 Points

Swift aims to be a "safe" language. You may know that all the cases are covered but the compiler doesn't and all the compiler cares about is making sure your code minimizes the potential of crashes. If you use other languages at all you might notice that missing defaults can be a common cause for an issue. Swift does away with this by forcing you to put a default case whether you think you need it or not.