A pointer to field - assignment error/warning - c

I need to work with 2d field which has always 2 columns. I have a pointer to field for that
int (*field)[2];
field = (int (*)[2]) malloc(rows * sizeof(*field)); /*further there will be also reallocating*/
The problem comes when I call this pointer to field to a different function. I call this function, but when assigning it to my original field in main, there comes an error/warning. I really tried already so many versions, none of them working.
int * function (int rows, int columns, int match, int **differentField) {
int i, j;
int (*field)[2];
int foundMatch = 0;
field = (int (*)[2]) malloc(rows * sizeof(*field));
for (i = 0; i < rows; i++) {
for (j = 0; j < colms; j++) {
if (match == differentField[i][j]) {
field[foundMatch][0] = i;
field[foundMatch][1] = j;
foundMatch ++;
}
int main (int argc, char ** argv) {
int (*field)[2];
int rows = 10;
int columns = 10;
int match = 1;
int **differentField;
/*creating different Field*/
field = function(rows, columns, match, differentField);
}
-> assignment from incompatible pointer type
Any idea how to properly work with this? Thank you really a lot...

You can not return a vector from a function. Instead, you can return a pointer:
int ** function (int rows, int columns, int match, int **differentField);
This means you declare field as:
int **field;

Well, the compiler is right; a int * is not the same as a int (*)[2]. Your code sample is incomplete as it stands right now. I assume you are intending to return field in the function function. However, you have another problem: You can't return an array. But, you CAN return a pointer to an array.
If it is field you are trying to return, then the way to declare your return value is:
int (**function(int rows, int columns, int match, int **differentField))[2]
Then when you return field, return the address instead (return &field;).
Then, in main, field = *function(rows, columns, match, differentField);
At least, that should all work. I think. It's pretty late and I've been up all night.
At some point you should really look into typedefs to make your life a lot easier.
typedef int (*field_t)[2];
Then you can field_t field; and field_t *function(int rows, int columns, int match, int **differentfield);. Isn't that a lot nicer?

Related

2D array (pointer to pointer)

I want to fill 2D array with random numbers and then call it in main function and print it. But I can't access the function FillMatrix from main.
#define R 12 //row
#define S 10 //column
void FillMatrix(int m[][S], int row);
int main(int argc, char *argv[])
{
int i, j;
time_t t;
// POINTER TO POINTER
int **mat = (int **)malloc(R * sizeof(int *));
if ((mat = (int**)malloc(R*sizeof(int))) == NULL)
{
printf("Error");
return 0;
}
for (i = 0; i<R; i++)
mat[i] = (int *)malloc(S * sizeof(int));
FillMatrix(mat, R); //<- This line is the problem
// RAND 0 - 1000
}
void FillMatrix(int m[][S], int row)
{
int i, j;
time_t t;
srand((unsigned)time(&t));
for (i = 0; i < row; i++)
for (j = 0; j < S; j++)
m[i][j] = rand() % 1000 + 0;
}
(mat = (int**)malloc(R*sizeof(int)) allocates the wrong amount of space; the type should be sizeof(int *) or equivalently sizeof *mat. Also you leak the memory you just allocated on the previous line.
To fix this, change if ((mat = (int**)malloc(R*sizeof(int))) == NULL) to if ( mat == NULL ) .
Also, int ** is not compatible with int[][S]. int ** represents an array where each line is a separate allocation, however int [][S] represents one contiguous memory block. You must choose which of those two approaches you want to use.
If you want to use the separate rows, then change the function to void FillMatrix(int **m, int row) (and it would be good style to have the number of columns as a parameter, instead of using the global S).
Or if you want to use the contiguous memory block, change the allocation line to int (*mat)[S] = malloc(R * sizeof *mat);
Well, you're code is off a bit. I'm going to assume that your main function starts right before int i, j; and ends after the call to FillMatrix(mat, R);.
If that is the case then you need to either move your function definition of FillMatrix before you start your main function OR you need to forward declare your FillMatrix function before your main function.
The issue is that your main function cannot "see" your FillMatrix function. Order is VERY important. If something has not been declared, defined, or in some way shown to exist AT THE POINT IN QUESTION then it doesn't exist as far as the compiler is concerned. Think of it like trying to access some variable before you declare it in a function.

Pointers to Dynamic Arrays in C

I am trying to learn how to create a function that will take a dynamic int array (int arrayPtr = (int) malloc...) and replace it with another dynamic array. This new array will not simply be of different values, but potentially a different number of elements.
From my research, I've learned that I need to pass into this function a reference to my array pointer, rather than the pointer itself (&arrayPtr). That means the function signature needs to have int **arrayPtr instead of int *arrayPtr.
I feel like it makes sense to me; We need to tell arrayPtr to point to a different location in memory, so we need the memory address of arrayPtr rather than its value (the memory address of the original array);
I wrote a little test program to see if I understood, but I cannot get it to work. Using debugging, I've observed the following: From within the function, the (int **arrayPtr) doesn't represent the entire array, but just the first element. That is, I can get the value 500 if I do *arrayPtr[0], but *arrayPtr[1] is inaccessible memory.
Here is my test program:
#include <stdlib.h>
void replaceArray(int **arrayPtr, unsigned int arrayLength) {
int i;
int *tempArrayPtr;
tempArrayPtr = (int *)malloc(sizeof(int) * arrayLength);
for (i = 0; i < arrayLength; ++i) {
tempArrayPtr[i] = *arrayPtr[i] * 2;
}
free(arrayPtr);
arrayPtr = &tempArrayPtr;
return;
}
int main(int argc, char **argv) {
int i;
int arrayLength = 2;
int *arrayPtr;
arrayPtr = (int*)malloc(sizeof(int) * arrayLength);
for (i = 0; i < arrayLength; ++i) {
arrayPtr[i] = i + 500;
}
replaceArray(&arrayPtr, arrayLength);
exit(EXIT_SUCCESS);
}
The function is supposed create a new array with the value of each element of the original array doubled, and have the arrayPtr variable in the calling function refer to the new array instead. As i have written it, however, it gets SIGSEGV when the replaceArray function tries to access *arrayPtr[1].
I realize that this little demonstration program is not doing anything that requires the behavior that I'm testing. It is just so that I can understand the concept with a simple example.
Since this is a tiny, trivial, program, I feel justified in that the answer that I accept will contain the complete working version of this code.
There have to be three changes in you code:
void replaceArray(int **arrayPtr, unsigned int arrayLength) {
int i;
int *tempArrayPtr;
tempArrayPtr = malloc(sizeof(int) * arrayLength);
for (i = 0; i < arrayLength; ++i) {
tempArrayPtr[i] = (*arrayPtr)[i] * 2;//In this if you use the without braces it will acts array of pointers that is pointing to a array. So we have to get the value from that using that braces.
}
free(*arrayPtr);//<< here we have to free the memory of arrayPtr not the address of the &arrayPtr.
*arrayPtr = tempArrayPtr; // Here you have to assign the address to that value of arrayPtr.
return;
}
There is no need the type cast the return value of malloc.
Both of these lines are wrong:
free(arrayPtr);
arrayPtr = &tempArrayPtr;
The first line passes the address of your variable to free(), rather than the address of the actual allocated array. Since the variable is on the stack rather than mallocated, free() will crash or abort here. What you want to do instead is free(*arrayPtr):.
The second line merely sets the local variable arrayPtr to the address of the variable tempArrayPtr. What you want to do instead is *arrayPtr = tempArrayPtr;.
See the below code and the inline comments.
#include <stdlib.h>
void replaceArray(int **arrayPtr, unsigned int arrayLength) {
int i;
int *tempArrayPtr;
tempArrayPtr = malloc(sizeof(int) * arrayLength); //do not cast
for (i = 0; i < arrayLength; ++i) {
tempArrayPtr[i] = (*arrayPtr)[i] * 2;
}
free(*arrayPtr); // free the *arrayPtr, [which is `arrayPtr` from `main`]
*arrayPtr = tempArrayPtr; //copy tempArrayPtr and put it into *arrayPtr
return;
}
int main(int argc, char **argv) {
int i;
int arrayLength = 2;
int *arrayPtr;
arrayPtr = malloc(sizeof(int) * arrayLength); // do not cast
for (i = 0; i < arrayLength; ++i) {
arrayPtr[i] = i + 500;
}
replaceArray(&arrayPtr, arrayLength);
exit(EXIT_SUCCESS);
}

Passing entire array to the function in C

I have written a program for insertion shot like following:
int _tmain(int argc, _TCHAR* argv[])
{
int arr[10] = {1,2,3,10,5,9,6,8,7,4};
int value;
cin >> value ;
int *ptr;
ptr = insertionshot(arr); //here Im passing whole array
BinarySearch(arr,value);
return 0;
}
int * insertionshot(int arr[])
{
//Changed after a hint (now, its fine)
int ar[10];
for(int i =0;i < 10; i++)
{
ar[i] = arr[i];
}
//Changed after a hint
int arrlength = sizeof(ar)/sizeof(ar[0]); //here array length is 1, it should be 10
for(int a = 1; a <= arrlength -1 ;a++)
{
int b = a;
while(b > 0 && ar[b] < ar[b-1])
{
int temp;
temp = ar[b-1];
ar[b-1] = ar[b];
ar[b] = temp;
b--;
}
}
return ar;
}
The problem is after passing the whole array to the function, my function definition only shows 1 element in array and also "arraylength" is giving 1.
int arr[] in a function formal parameter list is a syntax quirk, it is actually processed as int *arr. So the sizeof trick doesn't behave as you expect.
In C it is not possible to pass arrays by value; and furthermore, at runtime an array does not remember its length.
You could include the length information by passing a pointer to the whole array at compile time:
int * insertionshot(int (*arr)[10])
Of course, with this approach you can only ever pass an array of length 10. So if you intend to be able to pass arrays of differing length, you have to pass the length as another parameter.

Random matrix struct creation

I'm trying to make a struct that generates a random matrix and am getting "error: expected â=â, â,â, â;â, âasmâ or â_attribute_â before âmatrixâ" when compiling. How can I get this to work effectively and efficiently?
I guess expected errors usually are caused by typos but I don't see any.
I'm very new to C so pointers and malloc are quite foreign to me. I really appreciate your help.
/* It's called RandomMatrixMaker.c */
#include <stdio.h>
#include <stdlib.h>
typdef struct {
char* name;
int MID;
int MRows;
int MCols;
long[][]* MSpace;
} matrix;
matrix makeRIDMatrix(char* name, int MID, int MRows, int MCols) {
matrix m;
static int i, j, r;
m.name = name;
m.MID = MID;
m.MRows = MRows;
m.MCols = MCols;
for (i=0; i<m.MRows; i++) {
for (j=0; i<m.MCols; j++) {
r = random(101);
*(m.MSpace[i][j]) = r;
}
}
return m;
}
int main(void) {
makeRIDMatrix("test", 1, 10, 10);
return 0;
}
There is indeed a typo. You misspelled typedef:
typdef struct {
should be:
typedef struct {
EDIT:
Also, there's no reason to use static here:
static int i, j, r;
You can just get rid of the static modifier.
int i, j, r;
As another poster mentioned, there's a typo, but even with that corrected, it wouldn't compile, due to the definition of matrix.MSpace.
Let's begin in makeRIDMatrix(). You've declared an automatic (stack) variable of type "matrix". At the end of the function, you return that object. Whilst this is permissible, it's not advisable. If the struct is large, you will be copying a lot of data unnecessarily. Better to pass a pointer to a matrix into makeRIDMatrix(), and have makeRIDMatrix() fill in the contents.
The test in the inner loop is against i, but should be against j.
Next, let's look at the definition of "matrix". The definition of "MSpace" is a mess, and wouldn't even compile. Even if it did, because you haven't defined the length of a row, the compiler would not be able to calcuate the offset to any given item in the array. You want a two-dimensional array without giving the row length, but you can't do that in C. You can in other languages, but not C.
There's a lot more I could point out, but I'd be missing the real point. The real point is this:
C Is Not Java.
(It's also not one of the interpreted languages such as JavaScript, PHP, Python, Ruby and so on.)
You don't get dynamically-expanding arrays; you don't get automatic allocation of memory; you don't get garbage collection of unreferenced memory.
What you need is something more like this:
#include <stdio.h>
#include <stdlib.h>
#include <time.h>
typedef struct {
char* name;
int MID;
unsigned int MRows;
unsigned int MCols;
long *MSpace;
} matrix;
void makeRIDMatrix(matrix *pmx, char* name, int MID,
unsigned int MRows, unsigned int MCols) {
int i, j;
long *MSpace = malloc(sizeof(*MSpace)*MRows*MCols);
if (MSpace == NULL) {
return;
}
pmx->name = name;
pmx->MID = MID;
pmx->MRows = MRows;
pmx->MCols = MCols;
pmx->MSpace = MSpace;
srandom((unsigned int)time(NULL));
for (i=0; i<MRows; i++) {
for (j=0; i<MCols; j++) {
long int r = random() % 101L;
*(MSpace++) = r;
}
}
}
inline long * item_addr(const matrix *pmx,
unsigned int row, unsigned int col) {
if (pmx == NULL || pmx->MSpace == NULL
|| row >= pmx->MRows || col >= pmx->MCols) {
return NULL;
}
return &(pmx->MSpace[row * pmx->MCols + col]);
}
long get_item(const matrix *pmx, unsigned int row, unsigned int col) {
long *addr = item_addr(pmx, row, col);
return addr == NULL ? 0L : *addr;
}
void set_item(matrix *pmx,
unsigned int row, unsigned int col,
long val) {
long *addr = item_addr(pmx, row, col);
if (addr != NULL) {
*addr = val;
}
}
int main(void) {
matrix m;
makeRIDMatrix(&m, "test", 1, 10, 10);
return 0;
}
Note a few things here. Firstly, for efficiency, I fill the array as if it were one-dimensional. All subsequent get/set of array items should be done through the getter/setter functions, for safety.
Secondly, a hidden nasty: makeRIDMatrix() has used malloc() to allocate the memory - but it's going to be job of the calling function (or its successors) explciitly to free() the allocated pointer when it's finished with.
Thirdly, I've changed the rows/cols variables to unsigned int - there's little sense in definining an array with negative indices!
Fourthly: little error checking. For example, makeRIDMatrix() neither knows nor cares whether the parameter values are sensible (e.g. the matrix pointer isn't checked for NULLness). That's an exercise for the student.
Fifthly, I've fixed your random number usage - after a fashion. Another exercise for the student: why is the way I did it not good practice?
However - all of this is moot. You need to get yourself a good C textbook, or a good online course, and work through the examples. The code you've given here shows that you're punching above your weight at the moment, and you need to develop some more C muscles before going into that ring!
In relation to your question about "variable sized arrays", you could have something like:
/* can stick this into your struct, this is just an example */
size_t rows, cols;
long **matrix;
/* set the values of rows, cols */
/* create the "array" of rows (array of pointers to longs) */
matrix = (long**)malloc(rows * sizeof(long*));
/* create the array of columns (array of longs at each row) */
for (i = 0; i < rows; i++)
matrix[i] = (long*)malloc(cols * sizeof(long));
/* ... */
/* free the memory at the end */
for (i = 0; i < rows; i++)
free(matrix[i]);
free(matrix);
Then you can just access the dynamically allocated matrix similar to any other array of arrays.
ie. to set element at the first row (row 0) and fourth column (column 3) to 5:
matrix[0][3] = 5;

Creating an array of int arrays in C?

Let us say I have the following method prototype:
void mix_audio(int *vocal_data_array, int *instrumental_data_array, int *mixed_audio_array, FOURTH ARGUMENT)
{
}
How would I:
Initialize an array_of_arrays before the above argument so as to pass it as the fourth argument?
In the method, make it so that the first value of my array_of_arrays is the array called vocal_data, that the second value of my array is instrumental_data_array and the third value is mixed_audio_array.
How would I later then loop through all the values of the first array within the array_of_arrays.
I hope I'm not asking too much here. I just thought it would be simple syntax that someone could spit out pretty quickly :)
Thanks!
EDIT 1
Please note that although I've showed by my example an array_of_arrays of length 3 I'm actually looking to create something that could contain a variable length of arrays.
Simple array of arrays and a function showing how to pass it. I just added fake values to the arrays to show that something was passed to the function and that I could print it back out. The size of the array, 3, is just arbitrary and can be changed to whatever sizing you want. Each array can be of a different size (known as a jagged array). It shows your three criteria:
Initialization, Assigning values to each index of arrayOfArrays, The function demonstrates how to extract the data from the array of arrays
#include <stdio.h>
void mix_audio(int *arr[3]);
int main() {
int *arrayOfArrays[3];
int vocal[3] = {1,2,3};
int instrumental[3] = {4,5,6};
int mixed_audio[3] = {7,8,9};
arrayOfArrays[0] = vocal;
arrayOfArrays[1] = instrumental;
arrayOfArrays[2] = mixed_audio;
mix_audio(arrayOfArrays);
return(0);
}
void mix_audio(int *arr[3]) {
int i;
int *vocal = arr[0];
int *instrumental = arr[1];
int *mixed_audio = arr[2];
for (i=0; i<3; i++) {
printf("vocal = %d\n", vocal[i]);
}
for (i=0; i<3; i++) {
printf("instrumental = %d\n", instrumental[i]);
}
for (i=0; i<3; i++) {
printf("mixed_audio = %d\n", mixed_audio[i]);
}
}
From your question it sounds like you actually want a struct containing your arrays, something like:
struct AudioData {
int* vocal_data_array;
unsigned int vocal_data_length;
int* instrumental_data_array;
unsigned int instrumental_data_length;
int* mixed_audio_array;
unsigned int mixed_audio_length;
};
For the array allocation using the example of an array of integers:
int** x = malloc (sizeof (int*) * rows);
if (! x) {
// Error
}
for (int i = 0; i < rows; ++i) {
x[i] = malloc (sizeof (int) * columns);
if (! x[i]) {
// Error
}
}

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