Example: Maximum Element in Column - Function Approach

// Maximum Element in Column - Function Approach
#include <stdio.h>

// Function to find the maximum element in a specified column
// Parameters:
//   matrix: The 2D array (matrix)
//   rows: Number of rows in the matrix
//   cols: Number of columns in the matrix
//   target_column: The 0-indexed column to search
// Returns: The maximum element in the target_column
int findMaxInColumn(int matrix[][4], int rows, int cols, int target_column) {
    // Initialize max_element with the first element of the target column
    // Assumes target_column is valid and rows > 0.
    int max_element = matrix[0][target_column];

    // Iterate through the rows to find the maximum
    for (int i = 1; i < rows; i++) {
        if (matrix[i][target_column] > max_element) {
            max_element = matrix[i][target_column];
        }
    }
    return max_element;
}

int main() {
    // Step 1: Define the matrix and its dimensions
    int matrix[3][4] = {
        {10, 20, 15, 30},
        {25, 12, 18, 22},
        {14, 35, 28, 16}
    };
    int rows = 3;
    int cols = 4;
    int target_column_1 = 1; // Max in second column
    int target_column_2 = 3; // Max in fourth column

    // Step 2: Call the function for target_column_1
    int max_in_col1 = findMaxInColumn(matrix, rows, cols, target_column_1);

    // Step 3: Call the function for target_column_2
    int max_in_col2 = findMaxInColumn(matrix, rows, cols, target_column_2);

    // Step 4: Print the results
    printf("Matrix:\n");
    for (int i = 0; i < rows; i++) {
        for (int j = 0; j < cols; j++) {
            printf("%4d", matrix[i][j]);
        }
        printf("\n");
    }
    printf("\nMaximum element in column %d is: %d\n", target_column_1, max_in_col1);
    printf("Maximum element in column %d is: %d\n", target_column_2, max_in_col2);

    return 0;
}