A new operator was added to the C language in the last revision, one that I don’t cover in my books. (I’m not sure how that happened.) Anyway, it’s the Elvis operator. Unless you’re a fan of the ternary operator, you’ll probably never use it.
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Last week’s Lesson showed how to shift a column of numbers in an array grid. The array just happens to be a magic square. So the puzzle is to run the array through the confirm_magic() function, which was presented in a previous week’s Lesson. Seems easy.
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Before moving off the topic of arrays and their bogus dimensions, I want to play further with a magic square. Specifically, it intrigues me that you can shift rows or columns within the square and it doesn’t affect the magical properties.
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Suppose you have an array of integers which represents a magic square: All the rows and columns — even the two diagonals — add to the same total. To prove it, you create a function, confirm_magic() that processes the array and validates the math. You have just one problem . . .
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Multi-dimension array notation is just a handy shortcut for you, the human programmer. Internally, an array is a single-file line of values, one marching after another. The dimensional aspect helps humans organize the array’s data, but all that organization is superficial.
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Do C language pointers frighten you? Good! They’re supposed to, mostly because few instructors bother explaining them well, but also because of the nomenclature: “Pointers point.” Regardless, if you shun pointers, as many C programmers do, you can fall back on array notation. It’s a useful alternative and a handy shortcut, but it’s completely bogus.
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Though it’s possible to guess the byte size of a structure, it’s bad practice to do so. Even advanced C programmers, who know variable widths by heart, rely upon the sizeof operator to obtain a structure’s size.
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A structure is a multi-variable, containing several variable types, all members of the same unit. Two declarations are required for a structure: The structure itself and the variable. Programmers get into trouble with structures when determining the variable’s size, using typedef as a structure shortcut, and when declaring structure pointers.
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It’s a common question beginning programmers ask: “Why use different types of variables when every number can be expressed as a float?”
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Being a C nerd, I occasionally browse the C library to discover new functions. Such an exercise is a must, not just for C but for any programming language. That’s because programmers can become complacent and rely upon the same old tricks. Only by reviewing the libraries, or by looking at other programmers’ code, can you learn new things.
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