What is the difference between pointer array and array pointer

Pointer array and array pointer are two different types of concepts, which are different in definition and use: 1. Pointer array is an array, each element of which is a pointer type, while array pointer is A pointer, which points to the first address of an array; 2. The declaration method of pointer array is "type *array[]", and the declaration method of array pointer is "type (*ptr)[size]".

# Operating system for this tutorial: Windows 10 system, Dell G3 computer.

Pointer Array and Array Pointer are two different types of concepts, and they are different in definition and use.

1. Pointer array: A pointer array is an array in which each element is a pointer type. That is to say, the pointer array stores the addresses of multiple pointers, which can point to different types of data or objects. The declaration method of pointer array is: type *array[], where type is the data type pointed by the pointer. For example, int *ptrArray[5] represents an array containing 5 pointers to integer type data.

   In a pointer array, each element can point to a different memory space independently and can be used to store data of different types or locations, so it has greater flexibility.

2. Array pointer: An array pointer is a pointer that points to the first address of an array. The declaration method of an array pointer is: type (*ptr)[size], where type is the data type of the elements in the array, and size is the size of the array. For example, int (*ptr)[5] represents a pointer to an array containing 5 elements of integer type.

   The array pointer parses the entire array, so all elements of the array can be accessed through pointer traversal. Array pointers are often used to handle multidimensional arrays.

In general, a pointer array is an array, and each element is a pointer type, while an array pointer is a pointer that points to an array. Arrays of pointers provide flexibility and can store data of different types or locations, while array pointers are used to deal with the entire array and can traverse to access all elements of the array.

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