In Go, a pointer type with or without an asterisk can access its fields, because the Go compiler automatically dereferences the pointer to access its fields. There are several design reasons behind this behavior:
1. Automatic decimation
The design of Go language simplifies the use of pointers, and the compiler will automatically dereference pointers when needed. This means that if you have a pointer to a struct, the Go compiler will automatically dereference the pointer when accessing the field through the pointer.
For example:
type Person struct {
Name string
Age int
}
func main() {
p := &Person{Name: "Alice", Age: 30}
// Access fields directly through pointers without explicit dereference () // Output "Alice"
// Explicitly dereference pointer access field ((*p).Name) // Output "Alice"}
In this example,In fact, it is equivalent to(*p).Name. The Go language compiler will automatically handle this dereference operation, making the code more concise.
2. Simplify the code
By allowing direct access to fields with pointers, Go reduces the frequency of explicit dereference operations, thus simplifying the writing and reading of code. For developers, this means that the same functionality can be implemented with less code without worrying about explicit dereferences.
3. Consistency
This design also brings consistency, whether you use value types or pointer types to access the struct's fields, it is syntactically consistent. This reduces the cognitive burden on developers when writing code and reduces the possibility of errors.
4. Binding of method sets
In Go, binding of method sets is also related to this automatic dereference behavior. If you have a method set of structure types, then pointers of that type can also call these methods without explicit dereferences.
type Person struct {
Name string
Age int
}
func (p *Person) Greet() {
("Hello, my name is %s and I am %d years old.\n", , )
}
func main() {
p := &Person{Name: "Bob", Age: 25}
// Call the method directly through the pointer () // Output "Hello, my name is Bob and I am 25 years old."}
In this example,()Actually it's right(*p).Greet()simplification, Go automatically handles pointer dereferences.
Summarize
Go allows pointer types to be accessed without asterisks, because the compiler automatically dereferences the pointer. This design simplifies code, making pointers more intuitive and convenient while maintaining consistency. Developers can therefore implement functions in a more concise syntax without having to deal with the details of pointer dereferences frequently.
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