title: what's the difference between object * x and object& x in c++
body: <blockquote>
    <p><strong>Possible Duplicate:</strong><br>
    <a href="https://stackoverflow.com/questions/57483/difference-between-pointer-variable-and-reference-variable-in-c">Difference between pointer variable and reference variable in C++</a>  </p>
  </blockquote>
  
  
  
  <p>suppose I'm trying to pass a reference to object x to a c++ function...</p>
  
  <p>what's the difference between</p>
  
  <pre><code>pass(Object * x){
  
  
  }
  </code></pre>
  
  <p>and </p>
  
  <pre><code>pass(Object&amp; x){
  
  }
  </code></pre>
  
  <p>and how would you access the actual object itself when the pointer/reference is declared using the different methods...</p>
  
  <p>for instance if I have Object * x, how would I actually access the actual object that is referenced by x</p>
  
  <p>same with Object&amp; x</p>