Address operator and pointers, Operating System

Assignment Help:

  We are use to using variables within C without thinking about where they are stored. Most variables are dynamic i.e. can change, therefore they are stored in Ram, unlike a program once developed is static i.e. doesn't change; this is often storage in EPROM or Rom. We can directly access the address where the variable is stored by means of the address operator '&' .This returns the address of the variable followed i.e.

printf("The address of var A is %lx and the contents of var A is %x",&a,a) 
 
This address is often fixed by the compiler and cannot be altered easily, very often we want initialize the address of a variable and vary it, C uses the concept of the pointer to handle this. A pointer is a variable which holds an address (This is in fact an address register on the 68Hc11 i.e. X, Y). We can explicitly load up the variable with any number (address which we like) and perform simple mathematical functions on it i.e. add, mul, sub etc. In order to declare the variable as a pointer we need to prefix it with a * in its declarations i.e.

      int *point;  
      char *point; 
      float *point;

The type of pointer  used describes the size of the data to be read  i.e. a char pointer reads 7 bits of data , unsigned char 8 bits i.e. (some programmers use sizeof function to get actual machine size).

    char * point  == 7 bits
     unsigned char * point  == 8 bits
     int * point  == 15 bits
     unsigned int  * point  == 16 bits
     float * point  == 31 bits
     unsigned float  * point  == 32 bits


Related Discussions:- Address operator and pointers

Virtualization, What factors are involved in choosing the host operating sy...

What factors are involved in choosing the host operating system?

Explain the purpose of command-line application, Question: a) The follo...

Question: a) The following questions refers to Windows XP networking: i) Briefly, explain how a host joins a network using DHCP? ii) Which IP address could be assigned to a

What is the use of fork and exec system calls, What is the use of fork and ...

What is the use of fork and exec system calls? Fork is a system call by which a latest process is created. Exec is also a system call, which is used after a fork by one of the

What are a safe state and an unsafe state, What are a safe state and an uns...

What are a safe state and an unsafe state? Answer:  A state is safe if the system can allocate resources to every process in some order and still avoid a deadlock. A system is

Linux os, Introduction of linux

Introduction of linux

What are files and explain the access methods for files, What are files and...

What are files and explain the access methods for files? File definition Attributes, operations and types Direct access Sequential access with diagram Other access

Write Your Message!

Captcha
Free Assignment Quote

Assured A++ Grade

Get guaranteed satisfaction & time on delivery in every assignment order you paid with us! We ensure premium quality solution document along with free turntin report!

All rights reserved! Copyrights ©2019-2020 ExpertsMind IT Educational Pvt Ltd