Variables in C

Topics
• What is Variable
• Naming Variables
• Declaring Variables
• Using Variables
• The Assignment Statement

CMSC 104, Version 9/01 1

 What Are Variables in C?
• Variables are the names that refer to sections of
memory into which data can be stored.
• Variables in C have the same meaning as
variables in algebra. That is, they represent some
unknown, or variable, value.
x=a+b
z + 2 = 3(y - 5)

• Remember that variables in algebra are

represented by a single alphabetic character.

CMSC 104, Version 9/01 2

 Naming Variables
• Rules for variable naming:
o Can be composed of letters (both uppercase and
lowercase letters), digits and underscore only.
o The first character should be either a letter or an
underscore(not any digit).
o Punctuation and special characters are not allowed
except underscore.
o Variable name should not be keywords.
o names are case sensitive.
o There is no rule for the length of a variable name.
However, the first 31 characters are discriminated by the
compiler. So, the first 31 letters of two name in a program
should be different.
CMSC 104, Version 9/01 3
 Reserved Words (Keywords) in C

• auto break int long

• case char register return
• const continue short
• default do signed
• double else sizeof static
• enum extern struct switch
• float for typedef union
• goto if unsigned void
volatile while
CMSC 104, Version 9/01 4
 Naming Conventions
• C programmers generally agree on the
following conventions for naming variables.
o Begin variable names with lowercase letters
o Use meaningful identifiers
o Separate “words” within identifiers with
underscores or mixed upper and lower case.
o Examples: surfaceArea surface_Area
surface_area
o Be consistent!

CMSC 104, Version 9/01 5

 Naming Conventions (con’t)
• Use all uppercase for symbolic constants
(used in #define preprocessor directives).
• Examples:
#define PI 3.14159
#define AGE 52

CMSC 104, Version 9/01 6

 Case Sensitivity

• C is case sensitive
o It matters whether an identifier, such as a
variable name, is uppercase or lowercase.
o Example:
area
Area
AREA
ArEa
are all seen as different variables by the
compiler.
CMSC 104, Version 9/01 7
 Which Are Legal Identifiers?

AREA area_under_the_curve
3D num45
Last-Chance #values
x_yt3 pi
num$ %done
lucky***

CMSC 104, Version 9/01 8

 Declaring Variables

• Before using a variable, you must give the

compiler some information about the
variable; i.e., you must declare it.
• The declaration statement includes the
data type of the variable.
• Examples of variable declarations:
int meatballs ;
float area ;

CMSC 104, Version 9/01 9

 Declaring Variables (con’t)
• When we declare a variable
o Space is set aside in memory to hold a value of
the specified data type
o That space is associated with the variable name
o That space is associated with a unique address
• Visualization of the declaration
int meatballs ;
meatballs

garbage

FE07
CMSC 104, Version 9/01 10
 More About Variables

C has three basic predefined data types:

• Integers (whole numbers)
o Int
• Floating point (real numbers)
o float,
o double
• Characters
o char

CMSC 104, Version 9/01 11

 Using Variables: Initialization
• Variables may be given initial values, or
initialized, when declared. Examples:
length
int length = 7 ; 7

diameter
float diameter = 5.9 ; 5.9

initial
char initial = ‘A’ ; ‘A’

CMSC 104, Version 9/01 12

 Using Variables: Initialization (con’t)

• Do not “hide” the initialization

o put initialized variables on a separate line
o a comment is always a good idea
o Example:
int height ; /* rectangle height */
int width = 6 ; /* rectangle width */
int area ; /* rectangle area */
NOT int height, width = 6, area ;

CMSC 104, Version 9/01 13

 Using Variables: Assignment
• Variables may have values assigned to them through
the use of an assignment statement.
• Such a statement uses the assignment operator =
• This operator does not denote equality. It assigns
the value of the righthand side of the statement (the
expression) to the variable on the lefthand side.
• Examples:
diameter = 5.9 ;
area = length * width ;
Note that only single variables may appear on the
lefthand side of the assignment operator.
CMSC 104, Version 9/01 14
 Example: Declarations and Assignments

#include <stdio.h> inches

garbage
int main( ) feet
{ garbage
fathoms
int inches, feet, fathoms ; garbage
fathoms
fathoms = 7 ; 7
feet = 6 * fathoms ; feet
42
inches = 12 * feet ; inches
• 504
•
•

CMSC 104, Version 9/01 15

 Example: Declarations and Assignments (cont’d)
•
•
•
printf (“Its depth at sea: \n”) ;
printf (“ %d fathoms \n”, fathoms) ;
printf (“ %d feet \n”, feet) ;
printf (“ %d inches \n”, inches) ;

return 0 ;
}

CMSC 104, Version 9/01 16

 Enhancing Our Example

• What if the depth were really 5.75 fathoms?

Our program, as it is, couldn’t handle it.
• Unlike integers, floating point numbers can
contain decimal portions. So, let’s use
floating point, rather than integer.
• Let’s also ask the user to enter the number
of fathoms, rather than “hard-coding” it in.

CMSC 104, Version 9/01 17

 Enhanced Program
#include <stdio.h>
int main ( )
{
float inches, feet, fathoms ;
printf (“Enter the depth in fathoms : ”) ;
scanf (“%f”, &fathoms) ;
feet = 6 * fathoms ;
inches = 12 * feet ;
printf (“Its depth at sea: \n”) ;
printf (“ %f fathoms \n”, fathoms) ;
printf (“ %f feet \n”, feet) ;
printf (“ %f inches \n”, inches) ;
return 0 ;
}
CMSC 104, Version 9/01 18
 Final “Clean” Program
#include <stdio.h>
int main( )
{
float inches ; /* number of inches deep */
float feet ; /* number of feet deep */
float fathoms ; /* number of fathoms deep */

/* Get the depth in fathoms from the user */

printf (“Enter the depth in fathoms : ”) ;
scanf (“%f”, &fathoms) ;
/* Convert the depth to inches */
feet = 6 * fathoms ;
inches = 12 * feet ;
CMSC 104, Version 9/01 19
 Final “Clean” Program (con’t)

/* Display the results */

printf (“Its depth at sea: \n”) ;
printf (“ %f fathoms \n”, fathoms) ;
printf (“ %f feet \n”, feet);
printf (“ %f inches \n”, inches);
return 0 ;
}

CMSC 104, Version 9/01 20

 Good Programming Practices
• Place each variable declaration on its own
line with a descriptive comment.
• Place a comment before each logical
“chunk” of code describing what it does.
• Do not place a comment on the same line as
code (with the exception of variable
declarations).
• Use spaces around all arithmetic and
assignment operators.
• Use blank lines to enhance readability.
CMSC 104, Version 9/01 21
 Good Programming Practices (con’t)

• Place a blank line between the last variable

declaration and the first executable
statement of the program.
• Indent the body of the program 3 to 4 tab
stops -- be consistent!

CMSC 104, Version 9/01 22