A struct, or structure, in C programming languages is a container that holds variables of different data types that can be accessed together. Structs are helpful because they can categorize and group related data. Structs occur in C programming languages, which include C# and C++.
To initiate and use a struct, first declare the struct and place an optional title (or tag) before it:
struct Title { } ;
Then place a semicolon at the end of the struct.
Structs contain variables, which identify the specific piece of data with which they’re paired within the struct. Some common variables in C programming include int, char, and float, which indicate the data type they store. For example, if one struct holds data about one particular customer in a business, the variable char might relate to the customer’s name, while int (integer) contains their specific customer ID number. The specific information that a variable stores is known as a value. Structs provide a method of grouping related (or perhaps unrelated) data in an organized format.
To access data in a struct, use a member operator (often a period) between the variable and the specific data member. You can also use a pointer to locate data stored in a struct. Pointers use the memory address of a variable, which has been programmed within the struct, to locate that variable’s corresponding data.
