using pointers to pointers in c

use_pointers_to_pointers.c

//taken from http://stackoverflow.com/questions/894604/passing-dynamically-allocated-integer-arrays-in-c


#include <stdio.h>
#include <stdlib.h>
#include <string.h>

#define ELEMENTS 5

/*
 * A string is an array of characters, say char c[]. Since we will be creating
 * an array of those, that becomes char *(c[]). And since we want to store the
 * memory we allocate somewhere, we must be given a pointer. Hence char
 * **(c[]).
 *
 * An int doesn't require a complete array, just int i. An array of those is
 * int i[]. A pointer to those is then int *(i[]).
 */
void
make(char **(chars[]), int *(ints[]), size_t len)
{
    static char hw[] = "Hello, World!";
    size_t i = 0;

    /*
     * Allocate the memory required to store the addresses of len char arrays.
     * And allocate the memory required to store len ints.
     */
    *chars = malloc(len * sizeof(char *));
    *ints = malloc(len * sizeof(int));

    /* Fill each element in the array... */
    for (i = 0; i < ELEMENTS; i++) {
        /* ... with a *new copy* of "Hello world". strdup calls malloc under
         * the hood! */
        (*chars)[i] = strdup(hw);
        /* ...with a multiple of 10. */
        (*ints)[i] = i * 10;
    }
}

int
main(void)
{
    /* A string c is a character array, hence char c[] or equivalently char *c.
     * We want an array of those, hence char **c. */
    char **chars = NULL;
    /* An array of ints. */
    int *ints = NULL;
    size_t i = 0;

    /* Pass *the addresses* of the chars and ints arrays, so that they can be
     * initialized. */
    make(&chars, &ints, ELEMENTS);
    for (i = 0; i < ELEMENTS; ++i) {
        printf("%s and %d\n", chars[i], ints[i]);
        /* Don't forget to free the memory allocated by strdup. */
        free(chars[i]);
    }

    /* Free the arrays themselves. */
    free(ints);
    free(chars);

    return EXIT_SUCCESS;
}