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Loops
Controlling the Iteration

Sometimes we want to count backwards, or count by 2s, or both! Using certain functions alongside or instead of the normal range operator (..) can enhance the iterative abilities of our for loops. The functions downTo, until and step give us more control of a range and therefore more control of our loops.

The downTo function simply creates a reverse order group of values, where the starting boundary is greater than the ending boundary. To accomplish this, replace the range operator (..) with downTo:

for (i in 4 downTo 1) {
  println("i = $i")
}

We can see in the output that the first number in i is 4 and the last is 1:

i = 4
i = 3
i = 2
i = 1

The until function creates an ascending range, just like the (..) operator, but excludes the upper boundary:

for (i in 1 until 4) {
  println("i = $i")
}

The upper boundary, 4, is not included in the output:

i = 1
i = 2
i = 3

Up until now, each of these functions, including the range operator (..), have counted up or down by one. The step function specifies the amount these functions count by:

for (i in 1..8 step 2) {
  println("i = $i")
}

The loop variable i now increases by 2 for every iteration. The last number output is 7, since 2 steps up from that is 9 which is outside the defined range, 1..8:

i = 1
i = 3
i = 5
i = 7

Instructions

1.

Let’s look at how we can change the behavior of ranges in for loops by implementing a loop that counts backwards.

Create a for loop that contains:

  • i as the loop variable.
  • an iterator that starts at 10 and ends at 1.
  • a println() statement in the loop body with the string template "i= $i".
2.

Below the first loop, implement a for loop that counts up but stops just before the upper boundary of the range. Make sure it contains:

  • j as the loop variable.
  • the range 1 up to but not including 10 as the iterator.
  • a println() statement in the loop body with string template "j = $j".
3.

Finally, implement a for loop that iterates over a range in steps greater than 1. Make sure it contains:

  • k as the loop variable.
  • a range 1 through 10 as the iterator that counts up by 2.
  • a println() statement in the loop body with string template "k = $k".

Run the code and you will see that the new loop does not output the iterator’s upper boundary 10. Counting up by 2 from 1 does not include 10.

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