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iOS Objective-C Basics (Retired) Introduction to Objective-C From Structs to Objects

Posted by Mostafa Raafat
Mostafa Raafat
5,979 Points

Why "Everything" in Objective C is pointers. I mean why I should declare NSArray instance variables in pointers.

How is it different from Java or C#. Yes I know its different but I need to understand why NS Objects are declared as pointers. From the Inside Infrastructure please.

Thank you

1 Answer

Stone Preston
Stone Preston
42,016 Points
Stone Preston
Stone Preston
42,016 Points

objects are declared as pointers mainly because that makes it extremely easy for them to be passed around in your code.

If you create an object as a pointer, no matter how large the object is the pointer variable is just a memory address, which is a tiny amount of memory. This makes it easy on the computer. It saves memory and time. When you want to pass that object around in your code you dont reference the actual object (thats very large and cumbersome) you reference the pointer to that array, the teeny tiny memory adress.

If you created an array for instance that had 1000 items in it and was not a pointer and you passed it around to a method or something it would have to copy that whole array. That takes memory and time and that is not good

Michael Bowen
Michael Bowen
770 Points

VERY good answer