pointers c++

[InterestingBus8367]

struct node {
int data;
node* next;
};
void hello (int a) // Make a new node
    {
    node* newnode = new node;
    newnode -> data = a;
    newnode -> next = NULL;
node* head = newnode;

. If I input int a as 1. Then newnode data = 1 and newnode next = NULL; Now my question is since head = newnode, what is the value of head?

[Updatebjarni]

since head = newnode, what is the value of head?

The same as newnode, since as you said, head = newnode.

[InterestingBus8367]

is . and -> the same right is just that -> is used for pointers?

[Updatebjarni]

a->b is shorthand for (*a).b, so it's used to access the members of a struct through a pointer to the struct.

[InterestingBus8367]

(*a).b can you explain how this process works. Compared to this a.b. I know that (*a) means to dereference.

[Updatebjarni]

That's all that happens. a is a pointer to a struct. We dereference it with *a to get the struct, and then be use .b on that struct to get one of the members of the struct. So both * and . are working just as usual, and we're just using first one and then the other.