C Program to Find Largest of Two Numbers using Ternary Operator

1. Introduction

Comparison operations are fundamental in computer programming. One common operation is determining the larger of two numbers. In this guide, we'll create a C program that finds the larger of two numbers, leveraging the concise ternary operator.

2. Program Overview

Our program will:

1. Prompt the user to input two numbers.

2. Utilize the ternary operator to establish which number is larger.

3. Display the result to the user.

3. Code Program

#include <stdio.h>  // Incorporate the Standard I/O library

int main() {  // Initiate the program

    int num1, num2;  // Declare two integer variables

    // Prompt the user for two numbers
    printf("Enter first number: ");
    scanf("%d", &num1);  // Store the first number
    printf("Enter second number: ");
    scanf("%d", &num2);  // Store the second number

    // Use the ternary operator to determine the larger number and display the result
    int largest = (num1 > num2) ? num1 : num2;
    printf("The largest number is: %d\n", largest);

    return 0;  // Conclude the program
}

Output:

Enter first number: 45
Enter second number: 89
The largest number is: 89

4. Step By Step Explanation

1. #include <stdio.h>: This line imports the standard input and output library for our program.

2. int main(): The primary function that marks the commencement of our program.

3. Variable Declaration:

- num1 and num2: Variables to keep the two numbers inputted by the user.

4. User Input:

- We solicit two numbers from the user.

- Using the scanf function, we capture and store these numbers in num1 and num2 respectively.

5. Ternary Operator:

- The ternary operator is a shorthand for the if-else condition and has the format: (condition) ? (value_if_true) : (value_if_false).

- In our case, (num1 > num2) ? num1 : num2 checks if num1 is greater than num2. If true, num1 is assigned to the largest; otherwise, num2 is assigned.

6. Display the Result: We then inform the user which number is the largest.

The ternary operator provides a succinct and effective way to carry out conditional assignments, making our code cleaner and more readable.