Question

The default section of a switch statement performs a similar task similar to the

__________ portion of an if/else if statement.
a. conditional
b. break
c. trailing else
d. All of these
e. None of these

Answer 1

The default section of a switch statement serves a similar purpose as the trailing else portion of an if/else if statement, acting as a catch-all for when none of the specified conditions are met.

Step-by-step explanation:

The default section of a switch statement is analogous to the c. trailing else portion of an if/else if statement. While in an if/else if statement, the trailing else portion is executed when none of the preceding conditions are met, in a switch statement, the default section serves a similar purpose, acting as a fallback when none of the case conditions match the switch expression's value.

To illustrate, consider a switch statement that evaluates a variable and has several case conditions. If the variable's value doesn't match any of the case labels, the program then executes the code within the default section. This is akin to how, in an if/else if chain, if no conditions are satisfied, the code block following the final else is executed.

Here's a basic example to demonstrate:

switch (variable) {
case 'value1':
// Code for value1
break;
case 'value2':
// Code for value2
break;
default:
// Code if no case matches
}

This switch statement has the same logical structure as the following if/else if statement:

if (variable == 'value1') {
// Code for value1
} else if (variable == 'value2') {
// Code for value2
} else {
// Code if no condition matches
}