Understanding and Using C Pointers

Richard Reese has worked in the industry and academics for the past 29 years. For 10 years he provided software development support at Lockheed and at one point developed a C based network application. He was a contract instructor providing software training to industry for 5 years. Richard is currently an Associate Professor at Tarleton State University in Stephenville Texas.

Chapter 1 Introduction
Pointers and Memory
Pointer Size and Types
Pointer Operators
Common Uses of Pointers
Summary
Chapter 2 Dynamic Memory Management in C
Dynamic Memory Allocation
Dynamic Memory Allocation Functions
Deallocating Memory Using the free Function
Dangling Pointers
Dynamic Memory Allocation Technologies
Summary
Chapter 3 Pointers and Functions
Program Stack and Heap
Passing and Returning by Pointer
Function Pointers
Summary
Chapter 4 Pointers and Arrays
Quick Review of Arrays
Pointer Notation and Arrays
Using malloc to Create a One-Dimensional Array
Using the realloc Function to Resize an Array
Passing a One-Dimensional Array
Using a One-Dimensional Array of Pointers
Pointers and Multidimensional Arrays
Passing a Multidimensional Array
Dynamically Allocating a Two-Dimensional Array
Jagged Arrays and Pointers
Summary
Chapter 5 Pointers and Strings
String Fundamentals
Standard String Operations
Passing Strings
Returning Strings
Function Pointers and Strings
Summary
Chapter 6 Pointers and Structures
Introduction
Structure Deallocation Issues
Avoiding malloc/free Overhead
Using Pointers to Support Data Structures
Chapter 7 Security Issues and the Improper Use of Pointers
Pointer Declaration and Initialization
Pointer Usage Issues
Memory Deallocation Issues
Using Static Analysis Tools
Summary
Chapter 8 Odds and Ends
Casting Pointers
Aliasing, Strict Aliasing, and the restrict Keyword
Threads and Pointers
Object-Oriented Techniques
Summary
Colophon