The latter. The scanf results in the memory you passed being written to. That memory "lives" in main so of course the change is visible there.Originally Posted by zach
If you insist on creation an array inside a function and returning it, you'll usually want to allocate heap memory (malloc).
Salem, what I don't understand is how the character array, present in main, gets into the function, without being listed as a parameter of the call. As I understand it, instead, a pointer to the array is in the call, but the array is in the parameter list of the array. And how does str get back from the function to main? I find this rather spooky.
Do you understand how str gets passed to scanf here, and how the result gets back into the local array 'str'?
This is no different.Code:int main(void) { char str[5]; printf("Enter security code: "); scanf("%4s", str); printf("Code=%s\n",str); return 0; }
There is only ONE array, and that's the one declared in main.Code:void security(char []); int main(void) { char str[5]; security(str); printf("Code=%s\n",str); return 0; } void security(char str[]) { printf("Enter security code: "); scanf("%4s", str); }
Every other function down the chain is just dealing with a pointer to that array.
If you really want to emphasis the "pointer" side of things, you could equally have written.
Code:void security(char *); // absolutely no difference with char[] int main(void) { char str[5]; security(str); printf("Code=%s\n",str); return 0; } // The name you use here has NO relation to the name(s) // of any parameters you choose to call it with void security(char *word) { printf("Enter security code: "); scanf("%4s", word); }
If you dance barefoot on the broken glass of undefined behaviour, you've got to expect the occasional cut.
If at first you don't succeed, try writing your phone number on the exam paper.
Salem, my confusion derived from the nomenclature in my query. Apologies for keeping on about one thing for so long. Thank you for your patience. Your explanation is excellent. Zach K.
Yes what abut it?
I was hoping you knew.
"without goto we would be wtf'd"
