Learning openCV : Use the pointer element to access cvptr2D to point to the middle 'green' channel. Draw the rectangle between 20,5 and 40,20 - c

Question

In the book learning opencv there's a question in chapter 3 :
Create a two dimensional matrix with three channels of type byte with data size 100-by-100 and initialize all the values to 0.
Use the pointer element to access cvptr2D to point to the middle 'green' channel.Draw the rectangle between 20,5 and 40,20.
I've managed to do the first part, but I can't get my head around second part. Here's what I've done so far :
/*
Create a two dimensional matrix with three channels of type byte with data size 100- by-100 and initialize all the values to 0.
Use the pointer element to access cvptr2D to point to the middle 'green' channel.Draw `enter code here`the rectangle between 20,5 and 40,20.
*/
void ex10_question3(){
CvMat* m = cvCreateMat(100,100,CV_8UC3);
CvSetZero(m); // initialize to 0.
uchar* ptr = cvPtr2D(m,0,1); // if RGB, then start from first RGB pair, Green.
cvAdd(m,r);
cvRect r(20,5,20,15);
//cvptr2d returns a pointer to a particular row element.
}
I was considering adding both the rect and matrix, but obviously that won't work because a rect is just co-ordinates, and width/height. I'm unfamiliar with cvPtr2D(). How can I visualise what the exercise wants me to do and can anyone give me a hint in the right direction? The solution must be in C.
From my understanding with interleaved RGB channels the 2nd channel will always be the channel of interest. (array index : 1,4,6..)

Answer 1

So that's the direction where the winds blow from...
First of all, the problem is the C API. This API is still present for legacy reasons, but will soon become obsolete. If you are serious about OpenCV please refer to C++ API. The official tutorials are great source of information.
To further target your question, this would be implementation of your question in C++.
cv::Mat canvas = cv::Mat::zero(100,100, CV_8UC3); // create matrix of bytes, filled with 0
std::vector<cv::Mat> channels(3); // prepare storage for splitting
split(canvas, channels); // split matrix to single channels
rectangle(channels[1], ...); // draw rectangle [I don't remember exact params]
merge(channels, canvas); // merge the channels together
If you only need to draw green rectangle, it's actually much easier:
cv::Mat canvas = cv::Mat::zero(100,100, CV_8UC3); // create matrix of bytes, filled with 0
rectangle(canvas, ..., Scalar(0,255,0)); // draw green rectangle
Edit:
To find out how to access single pixels in image using C++ API please refer to this answer:
https://stackoverflow.com/a/8139210/892914

Answer 2

Try this code:
cout<<"Chapter 3. Task 3."<<'\n';
CvMat *Mat=cvCreateMat(100, 100, CV_8UC3);
cvZero(Mat);
for(int J=5; J<=20; J++)
for(int I=20; I<40; I++)
(*(cvPtr2D(Mat, J, I)+1))=(uchar)(255);
cvNamedWindow("Chapter 3. Task 3", CV_WINDOW_FREERATIO);
cvShowImage("Chapter 3. Task 3", Mat);
cvWaitKey(0);
cvReleaseMat(&Mat);
cvDestroyAllWindows;