Subj : Re: only posting is rules
To : Jasen Betts
From : Scott Adams
Date : Fri Jan 23 2004 07:54 am
-=> Quoting Jasen Betts to Tony Master <=-
JB> @MSGID: 3:640/1042 314aecfc
JB> Hi Tony.
JB> 13-Jan-04 00:25:42, Tony Master wrote to Scott Adams
TM> Quoting message from Scott Adams to Tony Master
SA>> What level of knowledge do you know about them now? I ask so not
SA>> to go WAY basic on you :)
TM> i know they point to a spot in memory
JB> The trick is getting them to point to a convenient spot.
JB> there's a number of ways to do that
JB> NIL is a special pointer constant that is used wehn you want a
JB> pointer to point nowhere
JB> @ can be used to point one at an existing variable
JB> new can be used to create an anonymous variable and point a pointer
JB> at it
JB> dispose is the opposite of new and deestroys an anonymous variable if
JB> you have a pointer to it
JB> Where it gets interesting is when you make a record that contains a
JB> pointer to a record of the same type.... then you can create a chain
JB> of records, of any length and add or remove records at either end or in
JB> the middle of the chain, this is called a linked list.
JB> if you add more pointers to the record you can have a branching chain
JB> etc...
Yep. All precursors to the search engines used in most
efficient search systems. B-Trees and all that. Sorts.
Luckilly not had to do a Linked list thing since college :)
Simple today but back then it was like magic :)
... "Besides, I don't think we have the room." - Sheridan
--- Fringe BBS
* Origin: EWOG II - The Fringe - 904-733-1721 (1:112/91)
