2D Arrays
Computer Science: OCR A Level, topic 4.1.4
2D Arrays
A 2D array is the data structure which consists of an array of arrays.
2D Array
- A 2D array is a data structure where arrays are filled with other arrays.
- This can be used to represent a 2D surface, or records.
Accessing elements
- To access an individual array, we can access the array as usual:
- array = my2DArray[4]
- To access an individual element, we use this syntax:
- array[5][0]
- This would get the first element of the sixth array.
Applications of 2D arrays
- 2D arrays are often used to represent a 2D surface, for example a chess board:
- Each element of the 2D array could contain the chess piece in that location.
- 2D arrays can be used to represent a database:
- The outer array stores a collection of records.
- The inner arrays store a single record.
Test yourself on 2D Arrays
What would the command "array[5][3] = 0" do to a 2D array?