#Lecture 002 — What Is Dart?

Before writing any code, we answer two questions: what kind of language Dart is, and why so many app developers pick it.

Contents

Prerequisites · Objectives · Lesson · Code Examples · Common Mistakes · Practice Questions · Answers · Takeaways

#Prerequisites

Lecture 001.

#Learning Objectives

• Say in one sentence what Dart is
• Name the main reasons developers choose Dart
• Know where Dart code can run
• Understand how Dart and Flutter are related

#1. What Dart Is

Dart is a general-purpose programming language made by Google. You write instructions in plain text files ending in .dart, and the Dart tools turn them into a program that runs.

It is:

• Typed — every value has a type (int, String, …), and many mistakes are caught before the program even runs.
• Null safe — a variable can only be empty (null) if you say so, which removes a whole family of crashes.
• Object-oriented — everything you work with is an object, built from a class.

#2. Why Use Dart

#3. Where Dart Runs

#4. Dart and Flutter

Flutter is not a language — it is a set of ready-made building blocks (buttons, lists, screens) written in Dart. Learning Dart first means that when you open Flutter, the only new thing is Flutter.

#Code Examples

#Example 1 — A Taste of Dart

You don't need to understand every line yet — just read it.

void main() {
  String name = 'Ayesha';
  int lecturesDone = 2;

  print('Hello, $name!');
  print('You have finished $lecturesDone lectures.');
}

Output

Hello, Ayesha!
You have finished 2 lectures.

Even without training you can guess what this does — that readability is one of Dart's strengths. Lecture 004 explains every part of it.

#Common Beginner Mistakes

1. Thinking Dart and Flutter are the same thing. Dart is the language; Flutter is a toolkit written in it.

2. Skipping the language and jumping to apps. Most Flutter problems beginners face are really Dart problems — types, null safety, functions. Learn those first.

#Practice Questions

1. Who created Dart?
2. What does "null safe" mean, in your own words?
3. Name three places Dart code can run.
4. Is Flutter a programming language?

#Practice Answers

1. Google.
2. A variable can't hold "nothing" (null) unless you declare that it may.
3. Any three of: terminal, Android, iOS, web browsers, desktop, servers.
4. No — Flutter is a toolkit written in Dart.

#Key Takeaways

• Dart is a typed, null-safe, object-oriented language from Google.
• It is fast while developing and fast when released.
• One Dart codebase can run almost everywhere; Flutter uses it for apps.
• This course writes terminal programs to learn the language itself.