PROGRAMMING CONCEPTS

VARIABLES
A variable is nothing but a name given to a storage area that our programs can manipulate. Each
variable in C has a specific type, which determines the size and layout of the variable's memory;
the range of values that can be stored within that memory; and the set of operations that can be
applied to the variable.

Basically, a variable used to store some form of data. Different types of variables require
different amounts of memory, and have some specific set of operations which can be applied
on them.

The name of a variable can be composed of letters, digits, and the underscore character. It must
begin with either a letter or an underscore. Upper and lowercase letters are distinct because C is
case-sensitive.

Based on the basic types there will be the following basic variable types –

Sr.No. Type & Description

1
char
Typically a single octet(one byte). It is an integer type.

2
int
The most natural size of integer for the machine.

3
float
A single-precision floating point value.

4
double
A double-precision floating point value.

5
void
Represents the absence of type.
Variable Definition in C

A variable definition tells the compiler where and how much storage to create for the variable.
A variable definition specifies a data type and contains a list of one or more variables of that
type as follows −
type variable_list;
Here, type must be a valid C data type including char, w_char, int, float, double, bool, or any
user-defined object; and variable_list may consist of one or more identifier names separated by
commas. Some valid declarations are shown here −
int i, j, k;
char c, ch;
float f, salary;
double d;
The line int i, j, k; declares and defines the variables i, j, and k; which instruct the compiler to
create variables named i, j and k of type int.
Variables can be initialized (assigned an initial value) in their declaration. The initializer
consists of an equal sign followed by a constant expression as follows −
type variable_name = value;
Some examples are −
extern int d = 3, f = 5; // declaration of d and f.
int d = 3, f = 5; // definition and initializing d and f.
byte z = 22; // definition and initializes z.
char x = 'x'; // the variable x has the value 'x'.
For definition without an initializer: variables with static storage duration are implicitly
initialized with NULL (all bytes have the value 0); the initial value of all other variables are
undefined.

Variable Declaration in C

A variable declaration provides assurance to the compiler that there exists a variable with the
given type and name so that the compiler can proceed for further compilation without requiring
the complete detail about the variable. A variable definition has its meaning at the time of
compilation only, the compiler needs actual variable definition at the time of linking the
program.
A variable declaration is useful when you are using multiple files and you define your variable
in one of the files which will be available at the time of linking of the program. You will use the
keyword extern to declare a variable at any place. Though you can declare a variable multiple
times in your C program, it can be defined only once in a file, a function, or a block of code.
Example
Try the following example, where variables have been declared at the top, but they have been
defined and initialized inside the main function
#include <stdio.h>

// Variable declaration:
extern int a, b;
extern int c;
extern float f;

int main () {

/* variable definition: */
int a, b;
int c;
float f;

/* actual initialization */
a = 10;
b = 20;

c = a + b;
printf("value of c : %d \n", c);

f = 70.0/3.0;
printf("value of f : %f \n", f);

return 0;
}
When the above code is compiled and executed, it produces the following result −
value of c : 30
value of f : 23.333334

Difference b/w variable declaration and definition

Variable declaration refers to the part where a variable is first declared or introduced before its
first use. Variable definition is the part where the variable is assigned a memory location and a
value. Most of the times, variable declaration and definition are done together.
See the following C program for better clarification:

#include <stdio.h>
int main()
{
// declaration and definition of variable 'a123'
char a123 = 'a';

// This is also both declaration and definition as 'b' is allocated

// memory and assigned some garbage value.
float b;

// multiple declarations and definitions

int _c, _d45, e;

// Let us print a variable

printf("%c \n", a123);

return 0;
}

Output:
a

Rules for defining variables

• A variable can have alphabets, digits, and underscore.
• A variable name can start with the alphabet, and underscore only. It can’t start with a
digit.
• No whitespace is allowed within the variable name.
• A variable name must not be any reserved word or keyword, e.g. int, goto , etc.
Types of Variables in C

1. Local_Variable
A variable that is declared and used inside the function or block is called local variable.
It’s scope is limited to function or block. It cannot be used outside the block.Local variables
need to be initialized before use.

Example –
#include <stdio.h>
void function() {
int x = 10; // local variable
}

int main()
{
function();
}
In the above code x can be used only in the scope of function() . Using it in main function will give
error.

2. Global_Variable
A variable that is declared outside the function or block is called a global variable.
It is declared at the starting of program. It is available to all the functions.

Example –
#include <stdio.h>
int x = 20;//global variable
void function1()
{
printf("%d\n" , x);
}
void function2()
{
printf("%d\n" , x);
}
int main() {

function1();
function2();
return 0;
}

Output
20
20
In the above code both the functions can use global variable x as we already global variables are
accessible by all the functions.
3.Static_Variable
A variable that retains its value between multiple function calls is known as static variable.
It is declared with the static keyword.

Example-
#include <stdio.h>
void function(){
int x = 20;//local variable
static int y = 30;//static variable
x = x + 10;
y = y + 10;
printf("\n%d,%d",x,y);
}
int main() {

function();
function();
function();
return 0;
}

Output
30,40
30,50
30,60
In the above example , local variable will always print same value whenever function will be called
whereas static variable will print the incremented value in each function call.

4.Automatic_Variable
All variables in C that are declared inside the block, are automatic variables by default. We
can explicitly declare an automatic variable using auto keyword.Automatic variables are
similar as local variables.

Example –
#include <stdio.h>
void function()
{
int x=10;//local variable (also automatic)
auto int y=20;//automatic variable
}
int main() {

function();
return 0;
}
In the above example both x and y are automatic variables .The only difference is that variable y is
explicitly declared with auto keyword.
5.External_Variable
External variable can be shared between multiple C files.We can declare external variable
using extern keyword.

Example:

myfile.h

extern int x=10;//external variable (also global)

program1.c
#include "myfile.h"
#include <stdio.h>
void printValue(){
printf("Global variable: %d", global_variable);
In the above example x is an external variable which is used in multiple files.

Lvalues and Rvalues in C

There are two kinds of expressions in C −

• lvalue − Expressions that refer to a memory location are called "lvalue" expressions. An
lvalue may appear as either the left-hand or right-hand side of an assignment.
• rvalue − The term rvalue refers to a data value that is stored at some address in memory.
An rvalue is an expression that cannot have a value assigned to it which means an rvalue
may appear on the right-hand side but not on the left-hand side of an assignment.
Variables are lvalues and so they may appear on the left-hand side of an assignment. Numeric
literals are rvalues and so they may not be assigned and cannot appear on the left-hand side.
Take a look at the following valid and invalid statements −
int g = 20; // valid statement

10 = 20; // invalid statement; would generate compile-time error