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patcdr

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It still works fine if a and b are the same value.

Here's the general proof:

a ^= b (a = a ^ b, b = b)

b ^= a (a = a ^ b, b = b ^ (a ^ b) = a)

a ^= b (a = b ^ (a ^ b) = b ,b = a)

Now, let's replace all references initial values with constant c:

a ^= b (a = c ^ c = 0, b = c)

b ^= a (a = 0, b = c ^ 0 = c)

a ^= b (a = c ^ 0 = c, b = c)

Notice that at the end, you still end up with a = b = c. There are plenty of reasons not to use this approach, but that ain't one of them.