catflap.org Online Dictionary Query

  explicit type conversion
       
           (Or "cast" in C and elsewhere).  A programming
          construct ({syntax) to specify that an expression's value
          should be converted to a different type.
       
          For example, in C, to convert an integer (usually 32 bits)
          to a char (usually 8 bits) we might write:
       
          	int i = 42;
          	char *p = &buf;
          	*p = (char) i;
       
          The expression "(char)" (called a "cast") converts i's value
          to char type.  Casts (including this one) are often not
          strictly necessary, due to automatic coercions performed by
          the compiler, but can be used to make the conversion obvious
          and to avoid warning messages.
       
          (1999-09-19)