You use the comparison operators to compare values. For example, when you are building a filter you can compare the value in a variable with a specified value. The behavior of the operators depends on which types of variables are involved.

When a comparison operator is used to compare values of different data types, the Evaluate component automatically attempts to convert the values to the same data type. However, this is not always possible, and when it is, the results are not always sensible. The following table shows each combination of data types and the data type that the Evaluate component uses for the comparison.

The table is followed by examples of using the comparison operators. The examples are based on the variables in the Museum sample data set.

1 Only if conversion from text to numeric is possible.

2 Operation occurs on the date's double value representation.

3 Only if conversion from text to long or categorical is possible.

4 Only if conversion from text to date is possible.