What does double[,,] represent?

Question

In answering a question about double[,], I added a screenshot of LINQPad's output for that data structure:

double[,]

However, I got to wondering what a double[,,] looks like, and LINQPad won't visualize it for me. Additionally, I don't understand the format of the data which goes into it:

   int[,,] foo = new int[,,]
   { 
     { 
        { 2, 3}, 
        { 3, 4}
     },
     { 
        { 3, 4},
        { 1, 5} 
     }
   };

Can anyone visualize this for me?

I think the most direct way to visualize it would be with a 3D cube. I don't know if anyone wants to suggest a complicated 2D model...? — Katana314, Jul 22 '13 at 19:35
@Katana314, see http://stackoverflow.com/a/18304657/129164 for what I think would technically be considered a *1D* model. — devuxer, Aug 19 '13 at 17:09

score 19 · Accepted Answer · answered Jul 22 '13 at 19:44

19

You can think of this has having a set of tables stacked on top of each other. So you would need to specify a triplet to retrieve the item, which would specify which table, column, and row to get the value from.

Here's what a 3x3x3 array can be visualized as:

enter image description here

answered Jul 22 '13 at 19:44

Nathan Dace

1,545
9
21

And each box holds one number of the input? **Edit:** Based on @Servy's comment on his answer, I know the answer to my question is "Yes". – Bobson Jul 22 '13 at 19:45
Correct. Each box is an array location, which would then hold a value (a double if you used your example). – Nathan Dace Jul 22 '13 at 19:47
3

Please visualize `double[,,,,,,]` as well ;-) – Jeppe Stig Nielsen Jul 22 '13 at 22:25
@JeppeStigNielsen: `double[,,,]` can be visualized as a group of the 3D tables PocketDews drew for us. `double[,,,,]` can be visualized as a group of those groups. `double[,,,,,]` can be seen as a group of *those* groups (perhaps organized as a cube made up of PocketDew's cubes). `double[,,,,,,]` can be visualized as a group of *those* groups - and so on, indefinitely. – Kevin Jul 22 '13 at 23:04
1

Nothing easier to visualize than a 7-dimensional structure! – Janis F Jul 23 '13 at 06:25

score 9 · Answer 2 · answered Jul 22 '13 at 19:37

9

It's a Rectangular Cuboid.

It's a three dimensional solid with 6 faces, all being rectangles.

You can further imagine that cuboid being broken up into a number of cubes, and each of those cubes having a single value.

answered Jul 22 '13 at 19:37

Servy

202,030
26
332
449

So where is the pair `{2, 3}` (for instance)? A pair of adjoining cubes? The line between two corners? – Bobson Jul 22 '13 at 19:41
@Bobson In your example you have 8 different values, which is a 2x2x2 cube. `{ 2, 3}, { 3, 4}` represents the bottom half of the cube, and `{ 2, 3}` represents to adjoining cubes (making up 1/4 of the entire cube). – Servy Jul 22 '13 at 19:44
1

Ah, that makes sense now. – Bobson Jul 22 '13 at 19:45

Cédric Bignon · Answer 3 · 2013-07-22T19:48:12.023

8

It's a 3D array. So you have to do a 3D representation to visualize it.

You can think of creating a cube (or more correctly a Rectangular cuboid) with multiple Lego bricks where each brick contains 1 integer.

edited Jul 22 '13 at 19:48

answered Jul 22 '13 at 19:35

Cédric Bignon

12,892
3
39
51

3

It's not a cube, as the dimensions don't all need to be equal. It's a cuboid. – Servy Jul 22 '13 at 19:38
2

Yes, but I don't now if everybody knows what a cuboid is. – Cédric Bignon Jul 22 '13 at 19:40
1

If you can use another term to represent what you mean, then by all means, but saying that it is a cube is not correct. – Servy Jul 22 '13 at 19:41
Actually if you represent the array values as cuboids rather than cubes, it would be possible to squash them to fit a cube-shaped container even if the dimensions of the array are unequal. Just sayin' :P – Jonathan Graef Jul 22 '13 at 21:12
@JonathanGraef Just change the size of the Lego bricks :D – Cédric Bignon Jul 22 '13 at 21:13

Janis F · Answer 4 · 2013-10-22T22:33:15.693

3

That would be a cuboid (3-dimensional Array)- this goes as deep as you like (dimension wise), but visualization becomes really hard after the 3rd dimension.

You could imagine it as a stack of tables of the given kind; that analogy works recursively.

edited Oct 22 '13 at 22:33

answered Jul 22 '13 at 19:36

Janis F

2,637
1
25
36

score 3 · Answer 5 · answered Jul 22 '13 at 19:48

3

It's 3D array (array of 2D arrays) as others said. You can use this extension for visualization.

answered Jul 22 '13 at 19:48

Vano Maisuradze

5,829
6
45
73

1

Ooooh, that looks fun to play with. – Bobson Jul 22 '13 at 19:49

score 1 · Answer 6 · answered Aug 18 '13 at 23:31

1

It's also quite possible to represent an n-dimensional array in a "pivoted" format, such as this:

enter image description here

This is one of the easier formats to generate and read for an array with more than two dimensions.

answered Aug 18 '13 at 23:31

devuxer

41,681
47
180
292

Nice one. I wish LINQPad printed it out this way. – Bobson Aug 19 '13 at 13:52

score 0 · Answer 7 · answered Jul 23 '13 at 08:09

Multidimensional Array look like a cube with 6side and have 3 property width ,height,and depth , when u detrminet depth u put the page of 2dimension array in real when 2d array have depth more than 1 we create 3d array . look this Article For know in depth this concept. and this article for use in Programming

What does double[,,] represent?

7 Answers7