Final answer:
The < operator between two pointers compares their memory addresses to determine which address comes first in memory.
Step-by-step explanation:
When the less than (<) operator is used between two pointer variables, the expression is testing whether the address of the first variable comes before the address of the second variable in the computer's memory. This comparison does not evaluate the values pointed to by the pointers, nor does it consider when the variables were declared. It strictly compares the memory addresses.