Structures in C
Programming
Structures are user-defined data types in C that allow you to group variables
of different data types under a single name. This helps you organize and
manage complex data in a more structured and efficient way.
by RAMESH N
What are Structures?
Grouping Variables User-Defined Data Organization
Structures provide a way to combine You create structures yourself to Structures enable you to organize
variables of different data types, like an represent specific data entities that may related data efficiently, making your
integer, a string, and a float, into a not be directly supported by built-in data code more readable, maintainable, and
single unit. types. easier to work with.
Declaring and
Initializing Structures
1 Defining a 2 Declaring
Structure Structure
Template Variables
Use the struct keyword to Once the template is defined,
create a structure template. It you can declare variables of
defines the name of the that structure type to store
structure and the data data. Think of it like creating
members it will hold. instances of a custom data
type.
3 Initializing Structure Variables
You can assign values to the members of a structure variable during
declaration using curly braces {} and separating the values with
commas.
Accessing Structure
Members
Dot Operator Member Access
Use the dot operator (.) to The syntax is
access the individual members structure_variable_name.me
of a structure variable. mber_name.
Member Modification
You can read, modify, or use structure members using this operator. For
example, you can modify the value of a member, display it, or perform
operations on it.
Nested Structures
Defining Relationships
Nested structures allow you to represent complex relationships between data entities within
your program. You can create structures within other structures.
Hierarchical Data
This can be useful when modeling hierarchical data, such as a student record with nested
information about their address, courses, and grades.
Enhanced Organization
Nested structures further improve data organization and representation, making your code
more understandable and manageable.
Arrays of Structures
1 Storing Multiple Records
Arrays of structures let you efficiently store a collection of
related data, such as a list of students or a database of
employees.
2 Consistent Data Type
All elements of the array must be of the same structure type.
3 Access and Manipulation
You can easily access and manipulate individual records
within the array by using index values.
Structures and Functions
Passing Structures Returning Structures Data Integrity
You can pass structures as arguments to Functions can also return structures, This is crucial for modularizing code,
functions to share data between different allowing you to return multiple values promoting reusability, and maintaining
parts of your program. from a function or complex data objects. data integrity.
Real-world Examples of Structures in C
Student Database
1 Store student information like name, ID, grades, and courses.
Employee Records
2 Maintain employee details including name, salary, department, and
address.
Inventory Management
3 Track product information such as product ID, description,
price, and quantity.
