pong game. Making the paddles move independly of each other

In pong, how can I make the two paddles move independtly of each other? At the moment, when player 1 presses a letter on the keyboard, player 2 can't move and vice versa. I have used a simple getchar()

Code:

while ( ( c = getchar()) != 'Q' ){
        if ( c == 'k' ) RIGHT_paddle_up();
        else if ( c == 'm' ) RIGHT_paddle_down();
        else if (c == 's') LEFT_paddle_up();
        else if (c == 'x') LEFT_paddle_down();
}

You need to use some lower level platform specific API which is capable of reading the key state of multiple keys at the same time.

So, which OS and compiler are you using?

Originally Posted by Salem

You need to use some lower level platform specific API which is capable of reading the key state of multiple keys at the same time.

So, which OS and compiler are you using?

I see. I am on linux - centos and using gcc to compile.
What would be a better alternative?

Try SDL, a multimedia library: Simple DirectMedia Layer
It will allow you to read each key's state individually (within the limitations of your keyboard).