Why should structure names have a typedef?

Question

I have seen source codes always having a typedef for a structure and using the same everywhere instead of using the structure name as "struct sname" etc directly?

What is the reason behind this? Are there any advantages in doing this?

Answer 1

Its easier to read Box b; than struct boxtype b;

typedef struct _entry{
   char *name;
   int id;
} Entry, *EntryP;

Advantage:
In the above typedef, both Entry & EntryP are defined apart from struct _entry.
So, EntryP firstentry can be used in place of struct _entry *firstentry and is a little simpler to parse in mind.

Note: Its not like structure names should be typedefined, but evidently its easier to read. Also, use of Entry * vs EntryP is totally user-dependent.