Question

I’m really not sure what it is (if it’s an array of pointers, or an array of pointer arrays???), but when I step on it via the Debugger it gives me 0xCDCDCDCD, meaning the memory is allocated, but uninitialized. Can anyone show me how to initialize it?

Thanks.

char* (*vars)[4];

I’ve tried stuff like this, but it gives compile errors:

for (int i = 0; i < 4; i++)
    vars[i] = new char*[new char*][4]; // error C2440: 'initializing' : cannot convert from 'char **' to 'unsigned int'

Answer 1

Firstly, you need to use cdecl:

declare vars as pointer to array 4 of pointer to char

How you initialise it depends on what your aim is. But, for instance:

// Create a new array
vars = new (char *[1][4]);
// Each element of the array in turn points to an array
for (int i = 0; i < 4; i++) {
    (*vars)[i] = new char[27];
}

...

// Cleanup
for (int i = 0; i < 4; i++) {
    delete [] (*vars)[i];
}
delete [] vars;

Lastly, you should never write code like this in C++. There’s always a better way to do whatever it is you’re trying to do (usually involving containers and smart pointers).