Question

I have a while loop as below.

while (*d++ = *sc++)

As I wish to understand pointers in dept I would like to enter the while loop and understand how the while loop is working with the pointers.

I used step in gdb but it does not go into the while loop completely. Is there any way to get into the while loop and understand the manipulation in every step.

Answer 1

* binds tighter then postfix ++. ++ on the right side will be applied last, so:

while (*d++ = *sc++)

is the same as:

while (*d = *sc)
{
  d++;
  sc++;

The modification is much better to be traced in gdb.

Update:

Don’t code like this OP!

Although it might look cool, and prove you are smart. It’s difficult to be parsed by the common human brain and therefore error prone? Which we do not want, do we?

Better go for a more clear alternative like proposed above and let the compiler scramble the code.