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Input Output

printf() and scanf()

Ans to the Q2(a)

Purpose of printf() and scanf()Âļ

Both printf() and scanf() are built-in library functions (āĻ˛āĻžāĻ‡āĻŦā§āĻ°ā§‡āĻ°āĻŋ āĻĢāĻžāĻ‚āĻļāĻ¨) defined in the standard input-output header file <stdio.h>. They are used for formatted input and output operations.

1. Purpose of printf():
The printf() function stands for "print formatted". Its main purpose is to display (āĻĒā§āĻ°āĻĻāĻ°ā§āĻļāĻ¨ āĻ•āĻ°āĻž) data or messages on the standard output device, which is usually the monitor screen.

  • It allows us to format the output (āĻĢāĻ˛āĻžāĻĢāĻ˛) using special characters and format specifiers.
  • Syntax: printf("format string", variable_list);

2. Purpose of scanf():
The scanf() function stands for "scan formatted". Its main purpose is to read (āĻĒā§œāĻž/āĻ—ā§āĻ°āĻšāĻŖ āĻ•āĻ°āĻž) input from the standard input device, which is usually the keyboard.

  • It takes input from the user and stores it in the specified variable (āĻšāĻ˛āĻ•).
  • It requires the address of the variable, so we use the ampersand & symbol.
  • Syntax: scanf("format string", &variable_list);

Datatype Format SpecifiersÂļ

Format Specifiers (āĻŦāĻŋāĻ¨ā§āĻ¯āĻžāĻ¸ āĻ¨āĻŋāĻ°ā§āĻĻā§‡āĻļāĻ•) tell the compiler what type of data is being input or output. Below is the list of appropriate format specifiers for common data types.

Data Type Format Specifier for scanf() (Input) Format Specifier for printf() (Output)
Integer (int) %d %d
Character (char) %c %c
Floating Point (float) %f %f
Double (double) %lf %lf (or %f)
String (char[]) %s %s