Thread: reverse

  1. #1
    Burning in Hell! Luigi's Avatar
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    reverse

    I found this code..
    It works just fine.
    but I really dont know how can it reverse the string?
    shouldnt it end at the middle of the string? (target < e)
    and what char tmp does?

    Code:
    void rev(char* target)
    {
          for(char* e = target+length(target)-1; target < e; ++target, --e)  //length is the same as strlen.
          {
    	  char tmp = *target;
    	  *target = *e;
    	  *e = tmp;
          }
    }
    Luigi

  2. #2
    Just because ygfperson's Avatar
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    Basically, what this code does is it swaps the beginning and the end bytes, and keeps moving inward until it reaches the middle. By then, all the bytes have been swapped with a byte the same distance from the end, and the string has been reversed. That's why it's supposed to end at the middle.

    char tmp acts as a temporary variable. Often, when programmers swap two variables, a and b, they do this:
    Code:
    int tmp;
    
    tmp = a;
    a = b;
    b = tmp;
    Or something along those lines. You can't do this kind of swap (safely) without a temporary variable.

  3. #3
    Burning in Hell! Luigi's Avatar
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    the way I see it..
    lets say I input "abcd"

    target will end up like this : "dccd"
    and e this way : "abba"

    Code:
              char tmp = *target;
              *target = *e;   //target = end of target
              *e = tmp;   // e = begining of target
                                // but e is not target?
                                // so why does it work anyway?
    Luigi

  4. #4
    Registered User rmullen3's Avatar
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    ~

    Very similiar to my own strreverse:

    Code:
    __inline void strreverse (char* str)
    {
    	char *last = str + (strlen(str) - 1);
    	for (char *p = last; str < p; ++str, --p)
    	{
    		char t = *str;
    		*str = *p;
    		*p = t;
    	}
    }
    "He who makes a beast of himself, gets rid of the pain of being a man." Dr. Johnson

  5. #5
    Registered User rmullen3's Avatar
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    ~

    Luigi:

    for abcd,

    it first swaps the first and the last, becoming

    dbca

    then moves inward 1, and swaps the second from the first and the second from the last, becoming

    dcba

    Which is the string reversed.
    "He who makes a beast of himself, gets rid of the pain of being a man." Dr. Johnson

  6. #6
    Burning in Hell! Luigi's Avatar
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    ho I think I get it.
    when u do this:

    *e = tmp;

    you do change target since e is a pointer to target.
    thats why, right?

    Luigi

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