How are delegates in C# better than function pointers in C/C++?

Question

The delegates in C# offer similar functionality as function pointers in C. I heard someone saying \"C# delegates are actually better than function pointers in C\". How come?

Answer 1

One thing that a delegate provides that a C/C++ function pointer doesn't is type safety. That is, in C/C++, you can shove a function pointer into a function pointer variable declared with the wrong function signature (or even an int a double or worse with appropriate coaxing), and the compiler will be happy to produce code that calls the function completely incorrectly. In C#, the type signature of the function must match the type signature of the delegate and also the way the delegate is ultimately called.