Jagged Array Or Array Of Arrays In C

array[][]={{1,2,3},{4,56,7},{3,7,0},{4,7,9,6,0}}

The subsequent methods for executing the jagged array include:

1. Using an array and a pointer (Static Jagged Array)

• ✅ First, declare 1-D arrays with the total number of rows we'll need, and then use a pointer to access the array.
• ✅ The number of columns (or components) in the row will equal the size of each array (array for the items in the row).
• ✅ After that, define a 1-D array of pointers to contain the row addresses.
• ✅ The total number of rows in the jagged array is equal to the size of the 1-D array.

Example:

Let's consider a scenario to demonstrate the jagged array implementation using arrays and pointers in the C programming language.

#include <stdio.h> 

#include <stdlib.h> 

int main() 

{ 

	int row0s[4] = { 1, 5, 3, 8 }; 

	int row1s[2] = { 5, 9 }; 



	int* jaggedArray[2] = { row0s, row1s }; 



	// Array for storing the size 

	int Sizes[2] = { 4, 2 }, ke = 0; 



	// loop for displaying the elements

	for (int i = 0; i < 2; i++) { 



		// address is stored in the pointer

		int* ptrs = jaggedArray[i]; 



		for (int j = 0; j < Sizes[ke]; j++) { 

			printf("%d ", *ptrs); 



			//The pointer will move to the next element of the row

			ptrs++; 

		} 



		printf("\n"); 

		ke++; 



		//The pointer will move to the next row

		jaggedArray[i]++; 

	} 



	return 0; 

}

Output:

1 5 3 8 

5 9

2. By using the Pointer array

• ✅ Here, declare a pointer array (jagged array), the size of which will be the total number of rows necessary in the Jagged array.
• ✅ After that, allocate memory for the total amount of elements that are desired in this row for each reference in the array.

Example:

Let's consider an instance to demonstrate the jagged array using a pointer array in the C programming language.

#include <stdio.h> 

#include <stdlib.h> 

int main() 

{ 

	//declaration of the number of rows 

	int* jaggedArray[2]; 



	// memory allocation at 0 row

	jaggedArray[0] = malloc(sizeof(int) * 1); 



	// memory allocation at 1 row

	jaggedArray[1] = malloc(sizeof(int) * 3); 



	// an array which is used for storing the size

	int Sizes[2] = { 1, 3 }, ke = 0, numbers = 500; 



	// input array

	for (int i = 0; i < 2; i++) { 



		int* pt = jaggedArray[i]; 



		for (int j = 0; j < Sizes[ke]; j++) { 

			*pt = numbers++; 



			//The pointer moves over the array

			pt++; 

		} 

		ke++; 

	} 



	ke = 0; 



	// display the elements of the array

	for (int i = 0; i < 2; i++) { 



		int* pt = jaggedArray[i]; 

		for (int j = 0; j < Sizes[ke]; j++) { 



			printf("%d ", *pt); 

			// pointer moves to the next element

			pt++; 

		} 

		printf("\n"); 

		ke++; 

		// pointer moves to the next row

		jaggedArray[i]++; 

	} 



	return 0; 

}

Output:

500 

501 502 503

Advantages of Jagged Array or Array of Arrays in C:

Several advantages of Jagged array or Array of Arrays are as follows:

• ✅ Memory Efficiency: Jagged Array allows for the storage of arrays of variable lengths, decreasing memory use by allocating space only for the needed components.
• ✅ Flexibility: Jagged Array allows for differently shaped data structures with variable sub-array sizes.
• ✅ Dynamic nature: Jagged Array allows for dynamic scaling of specific arrays inside the structure without impacting others.
• ✅ Cache Locality: Jagged Array provides greater cache usage due to contiguous memory allocation, which could result in quicker access times as compared to jagged arrays.
• ✅ Regular Data Structures' Simplicity: Jagged Arrays are ideal for regular grid-style data with the same amount of columns in each row.
• ✅ Ease of use: Multidimensional arrays with identical dimensions are easier to view and operate.