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What is the use of the asterik character in stream like functions, e.g. what does the following line of code actually do?<br />
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printf(&quot; %-*s &quot;, 50);<br />
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I saw this in some source code, but it just prints garbage characters. &nbsp;I can tell the integer parameter refers to the field length it prints, but I can't tell what the &quot;*s&quot; refers to.<br />
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What is the use of the asterik character in stream like functions, e.g. what does the following line of code actually do?

printf(" %-*s ", 50);

I saw this in some source code, but it just prints garbage characters.  I can tell the integer parameter refers to the field length it prints, but I can't tell what the "*s" refers to.




Asterik character in stream functions

C is a general-purpose, imperative computer programming language, supporting structured programming, lexical variable scope and recursion, while a static type system prevents many unintended operations. By design, C provides constructs that map efficiently to typical machine instructions, so it has found lasting use in applications that had formerly been coded in assembly language, including operating systems as well as various application software for computers ranging from supercomputers to embedded systems. It is distinct from C++ (which has its roots in C) and C#, and many later languages have borrowed directly or indirectly from C.