Using an anonymous struct vs a named struct with typedef

Question

When should one of the following statements be used over the other?

typedef struct Foo {
    int a;
} Bar;

and

typedef stru         


        

Answer 1

One time where the former is required is if you're making a linked list:

typedef struct list {
    int data;
    struct list *next;
} list;

The typedef list is not visible inside of the struct definition, so you need to use the actual struct name to create a pointer to it.

If you don't have such a structure, you can use either one.

What you shouldn't do however is use a tag name that starts with an underscore, i.e.:

typedef struct _list {
    int data;
    struct list *next;
} list;

Because names starting with a underscore are reserved by the implementation.