> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://python4ai.codewithsiva.dev/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Strings

> Working with text in Python

## What are strings?

Strings are text - any characters inside quotes. Python doesn't care if you use single or double quotes, just be consistent.

```python theme={null}
name = "Alice"
message = 'Hello, World!'
```

## Creating strings

Three ways to make strings:

```python theme={null}
# Single quotes
first = 'Python'

# Double quotes  
second = "Python"

# Triple quotes for multiple lines
paragraph = """This is
a multi-line
string"""
```

<Tip>
  Use double quotes when your text contains apostrophes: `"It's Python!"`
</Tip>

## Combining strings

Join strings together with `+`:

```python theme={null}
first_name = "John"
last_name = "Doe"

# Concatenation
full_name = first_name + " " + last_name
print(full_name)  # John Doe

# Repetition
stars = "*" * 5
print(stars)  # *****
```

## String length

Use `len()` to count characters:

```python theme={null}
message = "Hello"
print(len(message))  # 5

empty = ""
print(len(empty))    # 0
```

## Converting to string

Turn other types into strings with `str()`:

```python theme={null}
age = 25
message = "I am " + str(age) + " years old"
print(message)  # I am 25 years old

# Or use f-strings (we'll learn more later)
message = f"I am {age} years old"
```

## Common mistakes

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="Mixing quotes">
    ```python theme={null}
    # Wrong - mismatched quotes
    text = "Hello'

    # Right - matching quotes
    text = "Hello"
    text = 'Hello'
    ```
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Can't add strings and numbers">
    ```python theme={null}
    # Wrong
    result = "Age: " + 25  # TypeError!

    # Right - convert number first
    result = "Age: " + str(25)
    ```
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Forgetting quotes entirely">
    ```python theme={null}
    # Wrong
    name = Alice  # Python looks for variable Alice

    # Right  
    name = "Alice"  # String literal
    ```
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

## What's next?

Let's explore True/False values - essential for making decisions in your code!

<Card title="Booleans" icon="toggle-on" href="/data-types/booleans">
  True and False values
</Card>