Recursion to print a fractal pattern

[noblepants]

C++ Recursion to print a "fractal pattern"

I guess I really don't understand how to create a initial case for my recursion Can some advice to where I would need to change the code
___________The problem:
Create a recursive function to draw this pattern, given a maximum number of stars (which should be a power of 2) and a column on which to begin drawing stars. The prototype for the function should look like:
void pattern(int nstars, int startcol);
Where nstars is the maximum number of stars to draw (essentially the width), and startcol is the column in which to begin drawing stars. The pattern shown above was generated by calling pattern(16,0). Note that the number of stars should always be a power of 2, but you aren't required to check for this in your function. To help you see the recursive nature of the pattern, consider the pattern produced by pattern(8,0):
attached


My code:

#include <iostream>
#include <cmath>
using namespace::std;

void pattern(int nstars, int startcol);

int main()
{

const int nstars = 16;
int startcol = 0;
pattern (nstars, startcol);
return 0;
}

void pattern (int nstars, int startcol)
{
for (int i = 0; i <= startcol; i ++)
 {
    cout << " ";
 }
 
 for (int j = 0; j <= nstars; j++)
 {
    cout << "* ";
 }
    cout << endl;

if(nstars != 0)

pattern (nstars-1, startcol+1);

}

 

[c2114]

The best piece of advice I can give is to contact your professor or lab assistants for help. A big issues with forums, such as these, is the poster normally doesn't mention that the question is for homework. Due to this users who respond to the question tend to give the answer away as opposed to nudging the poster in the right direction, as happened in some of your previous posts. Once that happens, the person who grades your homework has to assume that you got the answer from the post and not from your own work.

Also we have a no plagiarism policy, so if a fellow student sees and copies your code. It will lead to a big headache for everyone.

All four TA's have office hours you could visit for help, not to mention that I normally answer my emails pretty quickly.

EDIT:: I somehow failed to notice that you are actually posting in the homework section of the forum, which is a good thing. However, my statement still stands about contacting us first.

 

[noblepants]

noted

 

[noblepants]

Thank-you for contacting me this way. I realize now I was walking a fine line. I had no attention to cheat, and I didn't think of the chance of plagiarism. I will not again be asking questions on homework subjects outside of school resource. I am very social phobic so the relative anonymity was my cause for coming here.

 

[rezeew]

I would first like to commend you for taking on the challenge of creating a recursive function to draw a fractal pattern. Recursion can be a tricky concept to grasp, but once you understand it, it can be a powerful tool in problem-solving.

Looking at your code, I can see that you have already made some progress. Your function takes in two parameters, nstars and startcol, which are essential for creating the pattern. However, as you mentioned, you are struggling with creating an initial case for your recursion.

In order to create an initial case for your recursion, you need to think about what the base case should be. In this case, the base case would be when the number of stars (nstars) reaches 0. This means that the function should stop calling itself and simply return.

To incorporate this into your code, you can add an if statement at the beginning of your function that checks if nstars is equal to 0. If it is, then the function should simply return. This will serve as your base case and prevent your function from calling itself infinitely.

I hope this helps guide you in the right direction. Remember, recursion can be challenging, but with practice and careful thinking, you will be able to solve this problem. Good luck!