How to work with channels?

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In this article we will understand how to work with channels.

What is a channel? Why it is needed?

Channels are used to pass data between goroutines.
They are a way to synchronize the flow of data between different parts of a program.

When to use channels?

Let's see the example below.

Have 2 goroutines to calculate the sum of an array.

First, we will calculate the sum of the first half of the array.

Second, we will calculate the sum of the second half of the array.

package main

import (
    "fmt"
)

func add(a []int, c chan int) {
    sum := 0
    for _, v := range a {
        sum += v
    }
    c <- sum
}

func main() {
    a := []int{7, 2, 8, -9, 4, 0}

    c1 := make(chan int)
    go add(a[:len(a)/2], c1)

    c2 := make(chan int)
    go add(a[len(a)/2:], c2)

    x, y := <-c1, <-c2
    fmt.Println(x, y, x+y)
}

Finally, we will print the sum of the first half and the second half of the array.

Output:

gk@jarvis:~/exp/code/rd/go-exmaple$ go run main.go 
17 -5 12

Conclusion

Channels play a crucial role in concurrent programming by enabling safe communication and synchronization between goroutines.
This makes it easier to build concurrent programs that are both efficient and safe.

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