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Introduction to Strings in C

In C, strings are arrays of characters terminated by a null character '\0'. They are used to store text and are essential for handling textual data.

Key Topics

1. Declaring Strings

Strings can be declared as arrays of characters.

char str[50];

2. Initializing Strings

Strings can be initialized in several ways:

Example: Using Character Array

char str1[] = {'H', 'e', 'l', 'l', 'o', '\0'};

Example: Using String Literal

char str2[] = "Hello";

3. Accessing Characters in a String

You can access individual characters using indices.

char str[] = "World";
printf("First character: %c\n", str[0]);
str[0] = 'M';
printf("Modified string: %s\n", str);

Output:

First character: W
Modified string: Morld

Best Practices

  • Ensure strings are properly null-terminated.
  • Use strlen() to find the length of a string.
  • Be cautious with buffer sizes to prevent overflow.

Don'ts

  • Don't forget to include the null character when initializing strings manually.
  • Don't access indices beyond the null character.
  • Don't assign strings using the = operator after declaration; use functions like strcpy().

Key Takeaways

  • Strings are arrays of characters ending with a null character '\0'.
  • Proper initialization and null-termination are essential.
  • Understanding how to manipulate strings is fundamental in C programming.
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