STRCMP()

this is used to compare two strings based on their lexicographical (dictionary) order. the comparison is based on ASCII values of characters from left to right; the first unmatched character decides the result. the function returns one of the following values:

• 0 if the strings are equal

• A negative value if the first (left) string is less than the second (right) string

• A positive value if the first (left) string is greater than the second (right) string

int strcmp(const char *str1, const char *str2);

#include <stdio.h>
#include <string.h>

int main() {
    char fruit1[] = "apple";
    char fruit2[] = "apricot";

    // Compare the two strings lexicographically
    // They match until the third character: 'p' in "apple" vs 'r' in "apricot"
    // Since 'p' < 'r' in ASCII, the result is negative
    int result = strcmp(fruit1, fruit2);  // Returns a negative value ('p' - 'r' = 112 - 114)

    // Show the comparison result
    printf("Comparison result: %d\n", result);  // Output: -2

    return 0;
}