A buncha newbie questions

[zchoyt]

Hi, I am a newbie at C++, and kind of a newbie at C, so I am gonna ask some real simple questions now........

What do I need to include so that I can use string type? like this:
string TempString;

What do I need to include to read and write to a basic text file?
Any links with good examples would be cool as well.







I will ask more later.

[zchoyt]

I figured that out. Just #include <string.h>....but

What is the differance between these?:
string TempString;
char TempString;

Also, What is a good way to make the console stay open until the user closes it. I have been doing this:

void main()
{
    //do stuff........

    //endless loop (keeps main from terminating
    while(1)
    {
    }
} 

[CornedBee]

Let's see...
don't start with bad practices now when there's still time!
j/k, you shouldn't include <string.h>, it's deprecated. In modern C++ apps the headers don't have a .h ending:
#include <string>
Since in the new headers all symbols are in the namespace std, you must either always reference the namespace:
std::string TempString;
or import some symbols from std:
using std::string;
or iport the whole namespace (what most people do, especially in simple apps):
using namespace std;
Stay with the last for now, just insert it after all your header includes.

The difference:
string is a class that handles memory management, operator overloading and all these nice things.
char is a single character.
char * TempString;
would mean a pointer to a character, usually the character is followed by others to make a C-style string. Don't use it, it's a real trap for newbies and string is so easy.
When you use string and need a char* for a function, call the c_str() method.

[zchoyt]

Hey thanks for the tip. I have heard that before (about the .h), but when I use this:

#include "stdafx.h"
#include <string>
#include <windows>
#include <winbase>
#include <stdio>
using namespace std;

It will give me the following error:"Cannot open include file: 'windows': No such file or directory"

and then if I put the .h back like this:
#include "stdafx.h"
#include <string.h>
#include <windows.h>
#include <winbase.h>
#include <stdio.h>

using namespace std;

I get this error:"'std' : does not exist or is not a namespace"


I think that it does not know where to look for "std". How can I tell it?

[parksie]

You hardly ever need to explicitly include <winbase.h>. Mostly, just <windows.h> is enough but for a console program you shouldn't use it -- stick to the standard headers.

[zchoyt]

OK. I am just seeing what is out there and how to use it thigs. I have only programmed C for PIC microcontrollers, so I am just getting used to talking to windows OS.

Can you tell me why my compiler doesn't recognize "using namespace std;"?

[parksie]

If you haven't included any headers that define the namespace, then the compiler won't be able to recognise the name.

#include <iostream>

using namespace std;

int main() {
    cout << "Hello!" << endl;
}

That should work. What compiler are you on?

[zchoyt]

Alright. Thanks for all the help and tips. Are there any other C forums that are more popular than this one? I Have lots of questions to ask, so I need lots of people to answer them for me.

[zchoyt]

I am trying to port some API calls from VB over to C. Here is one that I cannot get to work. It gets "'MakeSureDirectoryPathExists' : undeclared identifier" error, but MakeSureDirectoryPathExits shows up in List Members.

#include "stdafx.h"
#include <windows.h>


int main(int argc, char* argv[])
{
    int Result;

    Result = MakeSureDirectoryPathExists("c:\\test1\\test2\\");
    if (Result != 0)
    {
        MessageBox(0, "Path Created", "", MB_OK);
    }
    else
    {
        MessageBox(0, "Error Creating Path", "", MB_OK);
    }

    return 0;
} 

thanks

[zchoyt]

I found the answer on another forum.
I had to add imagehlp.lib to the links path in project settings and also had to add #include <imagehlp.h>. How is someone supposed to find these things out? Why did I have to add all that stuff if the compiler knew what it was anyway (it was in the list members list)


here is what the code looks like now.

#include "stdafx.h"
#include <windows.h>
#include <imagehlp.h>    //also had to add imagehlp.lib in link path in project settings
#include <string>
using namespace std;



int main(int argc, char* argv[])
{
    int Result;

    Result = MakeSureDirectoryPathExists("c:\\test1\\test2\\");
    if (Result != 0)
    {
        MessageBox(0, "Path Created", "", MB_OK);
    }
    else
    {
        MessageBox(0, "Error Creating Path", "", MB_OK);
    }

    return 0;
}