Thread: Help me find the problem in a very simple program

So, I'm rather new to reading and writing files. I have the following program:

Code:

#include <stdio.h>

int main()
{
    int number;
    FILE *num;
    num=fopen("file directory\num.dat","r");
    fscanf(num,"%d",&number);
    printf("Read number: %d\n",number);
        
    fclose(num);
    return 0;
}

I also have a file named num.dat that contains a single number, 100. However, the printf only prints 0 as the read number. What am I doing wrong?

EDIT: Obviously, "file directory" in the above code is the actual file directory in my pc.
EDIT2: Problem solved, I needed to add double backslashes. Thanks everyone

When using the backslash character "\" you need to double them up. In your example, the compiler sees your filename as:

Code:

file directory
num.dat

This is because '\n' is interpreted as a new line character. Change it to "file directory\\num.dat" and it should work better, or lead you to your next problem to solve.

you do not check return values of functions you are calling - so you never know what failed and why...

Add some error checking to your code

if you call some library function - read the section "Return values" in function reference description - and use this to check for possible failures