Function types

Lecture 1 - Slide 23 : 34

Function types

Functions in C can be used as data of function type

Only two possible operations on a function
- Calling the function
- Take the address of the function
Functions as types and data
- Dealt with by means of function pointers
- Use of the dereference operator and the address operator is often implicit
- Functions are first class data in C, but they are not closures
- The declaration syntax is obscure - difficult to read

C program with function pointer.

Same program - without explicit use of the address and dereferencing operators.

Same program - using a typedef to capture the function type.

An array of functions

C++ supports lambda expressions (closures)

C++ also supports function objects (by overload of operator() such that an object my be used as a function