Control Structure in C-

controlling the program execution flow:

selection, repetition and branching-

1
 What are control structures?
• Our programs so far consist of just a list of
commands to be done in order
– The program cannot choose whether or not to
perform a command
– The program cannot perform the same command
more than once
– Such programs are extremely limited!
• Control structures allow a program to base its
behavior on the values of variables

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 PROGRAM CONTROL
 Program begins execution at the main() function.
 Statements within the main() function are then
executed from top-down style, line-by-line.
 The order of the execution within the main() body
may be branched.
 Changing the order in which statements are executed
is called program control.
 Accomplished by using program control statements.
 So we can control the program flows.

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 PROGRAM CONTROL

 There are three types of program controls:

1. Sequence control structure.
2. Selection structures such as if, if-else, nested if,
if-if-else, if-else-if and switch-case-break-goto.
3. Repetition (loop) such as for, while and do-
while.
 Certain C functions and keywords also can be
used to control the program flows.

4
 Control Structures

• Statements can be
executed in sequence
• One right after the other
• No deviation from the
specified sequence

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 PROGRAM CONTROL
 Take a look at the following example

Jump/branch to printf() Back to main() from printf()

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 PROGRAM CONTROL

float paidRate = 5.0, sumPaid, paidHours = 25; S1

sumPaid = paidHours * paidRate; S2
printf("Paid sum = $%.2f \n", sumPaid); S3
return 0; S4

 One entry point and one exit point.

 Conceptually, a control structure like this means a sequence
execution.

7
 Control Structures
• A selection
structure can be
used
• Which statement
is executed is
selected by
whether the
expression is true
or false

8
 PROGRAM CONTROL
Selection Control Structure

 Program need to select from the options given for

execution.
 At least 2 options, can be more than 2.
 Option selected based on the condition evaluation
result: TRUE or FALSE.

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 PROGRAM CONTROL
Selection: if, if-else, if-else-if

 Starting from the most basic if syntax,

if (condition) if (condition)
statement; { statements;}
next_statement; next_statement;

1. (condition) is evaluated.
2. If TRUE (non-zero) the statement is executed.
3. If FALSE (zero) the next_statement following the if statement
block is executed.
4. So, during the execution, based on some condition, some codes were
skipped.

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Flowchart for the if statement

true
condition? statement

false

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 PROGRAM CONTROL
For example:
if (hours > 70)
hours = hours + 100;
printf("Less hours, no bonus!\n");

 If hours is less than or equal to 70, its value will remain unchanged and the printf() will
be executed.
 If it exceeds 70, its value will be increased by 100.

if(jobCode == '1')
{
carAllowance = 100.00;
housingAllowance = 500.00;
entertainmentAllowance = 300.00;
}
printf("Not qualified for car, housing and entertainment allowances!");

The three statements enclosed in the curly braces { } will only be executed if jobCode is equal
to '1', else the printf() will be executed.
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 The if-else statement
• The if-else statement chooses which of two
statements to execute
• The if-else statement has the form:
if (condition) statement-to-execute-if-true ;
else statement-to-execute-if-false ;
• Either statement (or both) may be a compound
statement
• Notice the semicolon after each statement

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Flowchart for the if-else statement

true false
condition?

statement-1 statement-2

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 PROGRAM CONTROL
if (condition) if (condition)
statement_1; { a block of statements;}
else else
statement_2; { a block of statements;}
next_statement; next_statement;
Explanation:
1. The (condition) is evaluated.
2. If it evaluates to non-zero (TRUE), statement_1 is executed,
otherwise, if it evaluates to zero (FALSE), statement_2 is
executed.
3. They are mutually exclusive, meaning, either statement_1 is
executed or statement_2, but not both.
4. statements_1 and statements_2 can be a block of codes and
must be put in curly braces.

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 PROGRAM CONTROL
For example:
if(myCode == '1')
rate = 7.20;
else
rate = 12.50;

If myCode is equal to '1', the rate is 7.20 else, if

myCode is not equal to '1' the rate is 12.50.

Equal/not equal is not a value comparison, but a character comparison!!!

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 PROGRAM CONTROL
 The if-else constructs can be nested (placed one within another) to any depth.
 General forms: if-if-else and if-else-if.
 The if-if-else constructs has the following form (3 level of depth example),

if(condition_1)
if(condition_2)
if(condition_3)
statement_4;
else
statement_3;
else
statement_2;
else
statement_1;
next_statement;

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
PROGRAM CONTROL
In this nested form, condition_1 is evaluated. If it is zero
(FALSE), statement_1 is executed and the entire nested if
statement is terminated.
 If non-zero (TRUE), control goes to the second if (within the first
if) and condition_2 is evaluated.
 If it is zero (FALSE), statement_2 is executed; if not, control goes
to the third if (within the second if) and condition_3 is evaluated.
 If it is zero (FALSE), statement_3 is executed; if not, statement_4
is executed. The statement_4 (inner most) will only be executed if
all the if statement are TRUE.
 Again, only one of the statements is executed other will be
skipped.
 If the else is used together with if, always match an else with the
nearest if before the else.
 statements_x can be a block of codes and must be put in curly
braces.
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 PROGRAM CONTROL
 The if-else-if statement has the following form (3 levels example).

if(condition_1)
statement_1;
else if (condition_2)
statement_2;
else if(condition_3)
statement_3;
else
statement_4;
next_statement;
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 PROGRAM CONTROL
 condition_1 is first evaluated. If it is non zero (TRUE),
statement_1 is executed and the whole statement terminated
and the execution is continue on the next_statement.
 If condition_1 is zero (FALSE), control passes to the next else-
if and condition_2 is evaluated.
 If it is non zero (TRUE), statement_2 is executed and the
whole system is terminated. If it is zero (FALSE), the next
else-if is tested.
 If condition_3 is non zero (TRUE), statement_3 is executed; if
not, statement_4 is executed.
 Note that only one of the statements will be executed, others
will be skipped.
 statement_x can be a block of statement and must be put in
curly braces.
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 PROGRAM CONTROL
 If mark is less than 40 then grade 'F' will be
displayed; if it is greater than or equal to 40 but
less than 50, then grade 'E' is displayed.
 The test continues for grades 'D', 'C', and 'B'.
 Finally, if mark is greater than or equal to 80,
then grade 'A' is displayed.

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 The Switch Statement
• The switch statement provides
another way to decide which
statement to execute next switch ( expression ){
case value1 :
• The switch statement statement-list1
evaluates an expression, then case value2 :
attempts to match the result statement-list2
to one of several possible case value3 :
cases statement-list3
case ...
• The match must be an exact
match.
}

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 The Switch Statement

• Each case contains a

value and a list of switch ( expression ){
statements case value1 :
statement-list1
• The flow of control case value2 :
transfers to statement-list2
case value3 :
statement associated statement-list3
with the first case case ...
value that matches
}

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 Switch - syntax

• The general syntax of a switch statement is:

switch
switch ( expression ){
and
case value1 :
case
statement-list1
are
case value2 :
reserved
statement-list2
words
case value3 :
statement-list3
case ...
If expression
} matches value3,
control jumps
to here
 The Switch Statement

• The break statement can be switch ( expression ){

used as the last statement in case value1 :
each case's statement list statement-list1
break;
• A break statement causes case value2 :
control to transfer to the end statement-list2
of the switch statement break;
case value3 :
• If a break statement is not statement-list3
used, the flow of control will break;
continue into the next case case ...

}
 Switch Example

• Examples of the switch statement:

switch (option){
case 'A':
aCount++;
break;
case 'B':
bCount++;
break;
case 'C':
cCount++;
break;
}
 Switch – no breaks!!!

• Another Example:
switch (option){
case 'A': switch (option){
aCount++; case 'A':
break; aCount++;
case 'B': case 'B':
bCount++; bCount++;
break; case 'C':
case 'C': cCount++;
cCount++; }
break;
}
 Switch - default
• A switch statement can have an optional default case
• The default case has no associated value and simply
uses the reserved word default
• If the default case is present, control will transfer to it
if no other case value matches
• If there is no default case, and no other value
matches, control falls through to the statement after
the switch
 The switch Statement

• Switch
switch (option){
with case 'A':
aCount++;
default break;
case: case 'B':
bCount++;
break;
case 'C':
cCount++;
break;
default:
otherCount++;
break;
}
 switch Example
switch ( day )
{
case 0: printf (“Sunday\n”) ;
break ;
case 1: printf (“Monday\n”) ;
break ;
case 2: printf (“Tuesday\n”) ;
break ;
case 3: printf (“Wednesday\n”) ;
break ;
case 4: printf (“Thursday\n”) ;
break ;
case 5: printf (“Friday\n”) ;
break ;
case 6: printf (“Saturday\n”) ;
break ;
default: printf (“Error -- invalid day.\n”) ;
break ;
}
 Why Use a switch Statement?
• A nested if-else structure is just as efficient as
a switch statement.
• However, a switch statement may be easier to
read.
• Also, it is easier to add new cases to a switch
statement than to a nested if-else structure.
 To Switch or not to Switch
• The expression of a switch statement must result in an
integral type, meaning an integer (byte, short, int, long)
or a char
• It cannot be a boolean value or a floating point value
(float or double)
• The implicit boolean condition in a switch statement is
equality
• You cannot perform relational checks with a switch
statement
 Iterations/Loops
• The purpose of a loop is to repeat the same action a number of
times
• We continue repeating the action until a terminating condition
is satisfied.
• This terminating condition is called a loop guard
• The loop guard is represented by a boolean expression in the
same way as the condition of an IF statement.
• Before the loop starts we initialise variables involved in the
loop
• In C there are a number of ways to represent loops
 Repetition: The for statement
 Executes a code block for a certain number of times.
 The code block may have no statement, one statement or more.
 The for statement causes the for loop to be executed in a fixed number of
times.
 The following is the for statement form,

for(initial_value;condition(s);increment/decr
ement)
statement(s);
next_statement;

 initial_value, condition(s) and

increment/decrement are any valid C expressions.
 The statement(s) may be a single or compound C
statement (a block of code).
. 34
 PROGRAM CONTROL
 The for loop flow chart should be something like the following.

Start

Evaluate initial_value

Do increment/ decrement

Evaluate Execute statement(s)

condition(s)

T
F

Stop

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 PROGRAM CONTROL
 A Simple for example, printing integer 1 to 10.
#include <stdio.h>
void main(void)
{
int nCount;
// display the numbers 1 to 10
for(nCount = 1; nCount <= 10; nCount++)
printf("%d ", nCount);
printf("\t");
}
Printf(“Press any key to continue . . . “);

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PROGRAM CONTROL
 Its flow chart…
Start

nCount = 1

nCount++

nCount printf("…");
<=10?
T

Stop

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 PROGRAM CONTROL
 for loop is a very flexible construct.
 Can use the decrementing counter instead of
incrementing. For example,
for (nCount = 100; nCount > 0; nCount--)

 Can use counter other than 1, for example 3,

for(nCount = 0; nCount < 1000; nCount += 3)

 initial_value can be omitted if the test variable has been

initialized beforehand.
 However the semicolon must still be there. For example,
nCount=1;
for( ; nCount < 1000; nCount ++)

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 PROGRAM CONTROL
 The condition(s) expression that terminates the loop can
be any valid C expression.
 As long as it evaluates as TRUE (non zero), the for
statement continues to execute.
 Logical operators can be used to construct more complex
condition(s) expressions.

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 PROGRAM CONTROL

 The for statement(s) can be followed by a null (empty)

statement, so that task is done in the for loop itself.
 Null statement consists of a semicolon alone on a line. For
example,
for(count = 0; count < 20000; count++)
;
 This statement provides a pause (delay) of 20,000
milliseconds.

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 PROGRAM CONTROL
 We can also create an infinite or never-ending loop by
omitting all the expressions or by using a non-zero constant
for condition(s) as shown in the following two code snippets,

for( ; ; )
printf("This is an infinite loop\n");

 or

for( ; 1 ; )
printf("This is an infinite loop\n");

 In both cases, the message "This is an infinite

loop" will be printed repeatedly, indefinitely.
 All the repetition constructs discussed so far can be nested
to any degree.
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 While loops
• The most basic loop in C is the while loop.
• The general syntax of a while loop is
while( expression )
statement

The expression represents the loop guard.

• While it is true repeat the statement.

Terminate when the expression evaluates to false
 Repetition: The while loop

 Executes a block of statements as long as a specified condition is TRUE.

 The general while loop construct,

while (condition)
statement(s);
next_statement;

 The (condition) may be any valid C expression.

 The statement(s) may be either a single or a compound
(a block of code) C statement.

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 PROGRAM CONTROL
 The while statement flow chart is shown below.

Start

Evaluate T Execute
condition statement(s)

Stop

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 PROGRAM CONTROL
 A simple example
// simple while loop example
#include <stdio.h>
int main(void)
{
int nCalculate = 1;
// set the while condition
while(nCalculate <= 12)
{
// print
printf("%d ", nCalculate);
// increment by 1, repeats
nCalculate++;
}
// a newline
printf("\n");
return 0;
}

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 PROGRAM CONTROL
 The same task that can be performed using the for statement.
 But, while statement does not contain an initialization
section, the program must explicitly initialize any variables
beforehand.
 As conclusion, while statement is essentially a for statement
without the initialization and increment components.
 The syntax comparison between for and while,

for( ; condition; ) vs while(condition)

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 PROGRAM CONTROL
 Just like for and if statements, while statements can also be
nested.
 The nested while example

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www.tenouk.com, ©
 PROGRAM CONTROL
 The nested for and while program example

48
 Repetition: The do-while loop
 Executes a block of statements as long as a specified condition is true at
least once.
 Test the condition at the end of the loop rather than at the beginning, as
demonstrated by the for and while loops.
 The do-while loop construct is,
do
statement(s);
while (condition)
next_statement;

 (condition) can be any valid C expression.

 statement(s) can be either a single or compound (a block
of code) C statement.

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 PROGRAM CONTROL
 A flow chart for the do-while loop
 The statement(s) are
Start
always executed at least
once.
Execute  for and while loops
statement(s) evaluate the condition at
the start of the loop, so the
associated statements are
T not executed if the
Evaluate
condition
condition is initially
FALSE.
F

Stop
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 continue keyword

 continue keyword forces the next iteration to take place

immediately, skipping any instructions that may follow it.
 The continue statement can only be used inside a loop
(for, do-while and while) and not inside a switch-case
selection.
 When executed, it transfers control to the condition (the
expression part) in a while or do-while loop, and to the
increment expression in a for loop.
 Unlike the break statement, continue does not force the
termination of a loop, it merely transfers control to the
next iteration.

51
 continue keyword example
// using the continue in for structure
#include <stdio.h>
int main(void)
{
int iNum;
for(iNum = 1; iNum <= 10; iNum++)
{ // skip remaining code in loop only if iNum == 5
if(iNum == 5)
continue;
printf("%d ", iNum);
}
printf("\nUsed continue to skip printing the value 5\n");
return 0;
}

52
 goto keyword
 The goto statement is one of C unconditional jump or
branching.
 When program execution encounters a goto statement,
execution immediately jumps, or branches, to the location
specified by the goto statement.
 The statement is unconditional because execution always
branches when a goto statement is came across, the
branching does not depend on any condition.
 However, using goto statement strongly not
recommended.
 Always use other C branching statements.
 When program execution branches with a goto statement,
no record is kept of where the execution is coming from.
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• Syntax
goto label;
... .. ...
... .. ...
... .. ...
label:
statement;

54
 if(number < 0.0)
# include <stdio.h> goto jump;

int main() sum += number; // sum =

sum+number;
{
}
const int maxInput = 5;
int i;
jump:
double number, average,
sum=0.0;
average=sum/(i-1);
for(i=1; i<=maxInput; ++i) printf("Sum = %.2f\n", sum);
{ printf("Average = %.2f", average);
printf("%d. Enter a number: ",
i); return 0;
scanf("%lf",&number); }

55
 break keyword
 Already discussed in switch-case constructs.
 The break statement terminates the execution of the nearest
enclosing loop or conditional statement in which it appears.
Control passes to the statement that follows the terminated
statement, if any.
 Used with the conditional switch statement and with the do, for,
and while loop statements.
 In loops, break terminates execution of the nearest enclosing do,
for, or while statement. Control passes to the statement that follows
the terminated statement, if any.
 Within nested statements, the break statement terminates only the
do, for, switch, or while statement that immediately encloses it.

56
 Some loop programs
• 1: Read in 10 integers and output their sum
• 2: Read in 10 integers and output the largest
of them
• 3: Keep reading in integers until one is input
which is larger than 100
 Sum of 10 Integers
#Include <stdio.h>
main()
{ int i, a,sum;
sum = 0;
for (i=0;I < 10; i++)
{ printf(“enter number \n”);
scanf(“%d”,&a);
sum = sum + a;
};
printf(“total is %d”,sum);
}
 Largest of 10 Integers
#include <stdio.h>
main()
{ int i, a,max;
printf(“enter number \n”);
scanf(“%d”,&a);
max = a;
for (i=1;I < 10; i++)
{ printf(“enter number \n”);
scanf(“%d”,&a);
If (a > max) max = a;
};
printf(“largest is %d”,max);
Return 0;
}
Loop until one input is larger than 100
#Include <stdio.h>
main()
{ int a,

do
{ printf(“enter number \n”);
scanf(“%d”,&a);
};
while (a < 100)
printf(“The number which ended the loop is %d”,a);
}
 While
#Include <stdio.h>
main()
{ int a,
a= 0;
while (a < 100)
{ printf(“enter number \n”);
scanf(“%d”,&a);
}
printf(“The number which ended the loop is %d”,a);
}
 Example of a while loop
#include <stdio.h>
main()
{
int x
x = 2;
while(x < 1000)
{ printf("%d\n", x);
x = x * 2; }
}

This program repeatedly prints out powers of two until we

generate a number greater than or equal to 1000
The terminating condition is thus when the power of two equals
or exceeds 1000
 loop questions
2: Use a Do while loop to calculate the minimum
of 100 integers being read in.
 1: Write a program which continually reads in integers until
45 is read in

#include <stdio.h>
main()
{int x;
x =1;
while(x != 45)
{ printf(“enter no”);
scanf(“%d", &x);
}
}
 Read until 45
#include <stdio.h>
main()
{int x;
do
{ printf(“enter no”);
scanf(“%d", &x);
}
while(x != 45) ;
}
 More questions
• Read in 20 integers
and count the even
numbers
• Write a program to
calculate

N 100
Xn

N 1 ( X 2n )
 Sum of function Example
#include <stdio.h> enum = n-1;
#include <math.h> denom = fac*pow(n,2);
If (denom == 0) printf(“sum not
main() defined”)
{ int n,i, fac; sum = sum + (enum/denom);
float enum,denom,sum;
sum = 0.0; };
for (n=1;n <= 100; n++) printf(“total %f”,sum);
{
fac = 1; }
for (i=1, i <=n, i++)
{ fac = fac*i;
}
 Remember Loops Consist of
• Initialization
• Terminating Condition (Guard)
• Loop Body
• Terminating Action
• For Counted Loops Iterations use a For loop
• Otherwise use a while or a do while loop