[Alphabetical Index | Tag Index]

Abstract value*

A value (of an Abstract data type) known only through the operations used to create it. The user of an abstract data type operates on abstract values; only the implementation of the abstract data type sees the concrete value. A single abstract value may have many different concrete representations (either because there are several implementations of the data type, or because several representations mean the same – for example, 1/2 = 2/4)