what is the difference between static and normal variables in c++

void func()
{
    static int static_var=1;
    int non_static_var=1;

    static_var++;
    non_static_var++;

    cout<<"Static="<<static_var;
    cout<<"NonStatic="<<non_static_var;
}

void main()
{
    clrscr();
    int i;
    for (i=0;i<5;i++)
    {
        func();
    }
    getch();
}

The above gives output as:

Static=2
Nonstatic=2

Static=3
Nonstatic=2

Static=4
Nonstatic=2

Static=5
Nonstatic=2

Static=6
Nonstatic=2

Static variable retains its value while non-static or dynamic variable is initialized to '1' every time the function is called. Hope that helps.

reference: http://stackoverflow.com/questions/5255954/what-is-the-difference-between-static-and-normal-variables-in-c