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How can I swap two values without using a temporary?
C Interview Questions and Answers
(Continued from previous question...)
How can I swap two values without using a temporary?
The standard hoary old assembly language programmer's trick is:
a ^= b;
b ^= a;
a ^= b;
But this sort of code has little place in modern, HLL programming. Temporary variables are essentially free, and the idiomatic code using three assignments, namely
int t = a;
a = b;
b = t;
is not only clearer to the human reader, it is more likely to be recognized by the compiler and turned into the most-efficient code (e.g. perhaps even using an EXCH instruction). The latter code is obviously also amenable to use with pointers and floating-point values, unlike the XOR trick.
(Continued on next question...)
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