Difference between this,var and variables

Thank you Tariq as well

Consider this:

X.CFC
==========================
<cfcomponent>
___<cfset this.foo = "foo"> <--- Public
___<cfset Variables.bar = "bar"> <--- Private

___<cffunction name="tryme">
_____<cfoutput>
______#this.foo#<P>
______#Variables.bar#
_____</cfoutput>
___</cffunction>
</cfcomponent>
==========================

Example 1: You can do this:
<cfobject type="component" component="x" name="xObj">
<cfoutput>#xObj.tryme()#</cfoutput>

It'll output "foo bar"

Example 2: You can't do this:
<cfobject type="component" component="x" name="xObj">
<cfoutput> #xObj.foo# #xObj.bar#</cfoutput>

It'll get upset on the #xObj.bar# part because it's private - meaning only the CFC can access and manipulate a Variables variable inside it's CFC.

However #xObj.foo# works because it's public, the CFC can access and manipulate it's own this variable, and anything outside of it can too.

Thank you Dan...

var is a keyword. It's used inside a function and ensures that the variable remains local to the function.

this and variables are scopes.

The variables scope can be used anywhere. They are generally set by code. For example,
<cfset x = 1>
creates a variable in the variables scope. Other scopes people often encounter are form, url, and cgi.

The this scope can only be used in a cfc (I think). It can be set either inside or outside a function. Once it is set, it's available to all the functions in that cfc.

Similarly, if you do this
<cfset x = 1>
in a cfc but not inside a function, that variable will also be available to all the functions. One difference between doing this, and using the this scope, is that variables in the this scope can have there values changed by the calling template.