C++ pointers

[Damien019]

why?

really though just why?, what purpose do they serve?

[jkrohn]

Once you start to study data structures you will see just how important they are

Without them things like link lists, trees, graphs, etc all become much more difficult

Recursive link lists anyone?

Jkrohn

[originel]

actually they server many many purposes when you start getting into dynamic memory.

for example if you ever need a linked list or any sort of tree you will be using pointers out the behind (these types also have advantages over other data types, so they do need to be known).

also if you get into windows programming, especially directx or the API you'll be dealing a lot with pointers to the windows and such.

also if you don't want to declare any parameters of a certain variable, pointers allow you to put off doing that till later.

that's all i can think of at the moment...but there are a lot of other uses.

EDIT: oh god jkron...images of my data structures class are rushing back right now...make them stop!

[Damien019]

lol alright, because i am learning C++ now and was thinkin about doing pointers but they are quite confusing and not really relevant at the moment

[alansantino]

Originally posted by Damien019
lol alright, because i am learning C++ now and was thinkin about doing pointers but they are quite confusing and not really relevant at the moment

You try learning pointers after you get a good hold the language. Pointers are a very very important part of C/C++ although it may seem insignificant to those learning it for the first time.
I advice you to learn some assembly language and microprocessor architecture (just an outline) to get a better understanding on pointers.

[qball]

why?
really though just why?, what purpose do they serve?

but they are quite confusing and not really relevant at the moment

very relevant. Pointers, that is...

simple:

memory management

hard:

er, ah.. memory management