Homework help needed. cin.get issues.

I'm taking an entry level C++ programming course and I'm totally stuck on this last homework assignment. You're supposed to take an unsigned integer into a variable of type unsigned short int. I'm not allowed to use "cin >>" inside the program.

Everything works with my code, it just doesn't output the correct answer. If the user inputs a number, its supposed to output the number. However, I only get the first digit. I skip the white spaces and give an error if user inputs a character, but when everything is okay I get hung up during my last while statement.

Code:

---

// Name: David Hart
// Date: 04/07/2010
// Class: C101 MW 3:00
// Homework#: Ten
// Source File: HW10problem1.cpp
// Action: Recreate the extraction operator.

#include <iostream>
#include <ctype.h>
using namespace std;

int ReadInt(unsigned short int&);


void main ()
{
  char Continue;
  unsigned short int UserInput = 0;
  int Error;

  do
  {
    cout << "This program will immitate the extraction operator as used on integers." << endl;
    Error = ReadInt(UserInput);
                 
    if (Error == 1)
      cout << "Error code 1:  Please enter a number, not a character.";
    else if (Error == 2)
      cout << "Error code 2:  The number must be less than 65535.";
    else if (Error == 0)
      cout << UserInput;

  cin.putback(UserInput);
  cin.ignore (100, '\n');

  cout << "\n\nWould you like to continue?  N or n to stop ==> ";
  cin >> Continue;
                 
  cin.putback(UserInput);
  cin.ignore (100, '\n');

  UserInput = 0;
 }
 
  while
    ((Continue != 'N') && (Continue != 'n'));

}


int ReadInt(unsigned short int &UserInput)
{
  char ch;
 
  cout << "\nEnter a number ==> ";
  cin.get(ch);

  while (ch == ' ')
    ch = cin.get();
 
  if (isdigit(ch) == 0)
    return 1;

  while (isdigit(ch) == 1)
    ch = cin.get();
    int X = ch - '0';
   
  if ((ch * 10) + X > 65535)
    return 2;
 
  else
    UserInput = UserInput * 10 + X;
    cout << UserInput;
    return 0;
  }

---

Thanks in advance for any help and sorry if its confusing : /

I like your indentation. However, your indentation needs to be supported by open-curly-braces and close-curly-braces. Just because you have several lines all indented underneath a while statement does not mean that they all belong to the while statement. (And you'll want to be careful about your current setup, which appears to throw away the first digit.)

if i change it to

Code:

---

while (isdigit(ch) == 1)
  {ch = cin.get();
        int X = ch - '0';
 
        if ((ch * 10) + X > 65535)
          return 2;
        else
          UserInput = UserInput * 10 + X;
          cout << UserInput;
          return 0;
  } }

---

i get a "warning C4715: 'ReadInt' : not all control paths return a value" warning and if i run the program i get nothing shown on the console for my UserInput.

You have a lot of conditionals (if, while etc) that aren't using any braces. This will most likely lead to some strange things happening, especially if you expect your code to behave as you have indented. My advice is that you always use braces when using conditionals.

Also, use int main instead of void main.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by DHart07

if i change it to

Code:

---

while (isdigit(ch) == 1)
  {ch = cin.get();
        int X = ch - '0';
 
        if ((ch * 10) + X > 65535)
          return 2;
        else
          UserInput = UserInput * 10 + X;
          cout << UserInput;
          return 0;
  } }

---

i get a "warning C4715: 'ReadInt' : not all control paths return a value" warning and if i run the program i get nothing shown on the console for my UserInput.

---

Repeat previous comment. And then you have to decide where things should go -- after all, this while loop, as you have it indented (although not the way you have it actually written with braces) will never read any extra digits, since you return (from the function) either way that if-check happens, so the while loop can never actually loop.

I see what you mean about having my return too early. I notice that when I run through the debugger it skips over the last while statement, and doesn't loop through. When I run the program if I put any whitespaces it skips them. If I put a character in first, it errors out like it should, but if I type in "343" i currently get just "0". Am I running my "isdigit" check wrong?

Technically, isdigit is not required to return 1 (it can return any nonzero number), so you may want to be less restrictive. (You can just do "if (isdigit(ch))".) (For instance, my Ubuntu system returns 2048 for isdigit('0'). There's probably a reason why, I just don't know what it is.)

Good call on isdigit not returning a 1. I originally had it as != 0 but the tutor at school told me a 1 : / I made some changes to everything and this is what I currently have.

Code:

---

// Name: David Hart
// Date: 04/07/2010
// Class: C101 MW 3:00
// Homework#: Ten
// Source File: HW10problem1.cpp
// Action: Recreate the extraction operator.

#include <iostream>
#include <ctype.h>
using namespace std;

int ReadInt(unsigned short int&);

int main ()
{
  char Continue;
  unsigned short int UserInput = 0;
  int Error;

  do
  {
    cout << "This program will immitate the extraction operator as used on integers." <<  endl;
    Error = ReadInt(UserInput);
                 
    if (Error == 1)
      {cout << "Error code 1:  Please enter a number, not a character.";}
    else if (Error == 2)
      {cout << "Error code 2:  The number must be less than 65535.";}
    else if (Error == 0)
      {cout << "\nNo errors.";}

    cout << "\n\nWould you like to continue?  N or n to stop ==> ";
    cin >> Continue;
                 
    cin.ignore (100, '\n');

        UserInput = 0;
  }
 
  while
    ((Continue != 'N') && (Continue != 'n'));
}


int ReadInt(unsigned short int &UserInput)
{
  char ch;
 
  cout << "\nEnter a number ==> ";
  cin.get(ch);

  while (ch == ' ')
    {ch = cin.get();}
 
  if (isdigit(ch) == 0)
    {return 1;}

  while (isdigit(ch) != 0)
  {
  ch = cin.get();
  int X = ch - '0';
 
  if ((ch * 10) + X > 65535)
  return 2;
 
  else
  UserInput = UserInput * 10 + X;
  }
 
  cout << UserInput;
  return 0;
}

---

And it seems to run alot smoother, at least it runs and spits out more than a digit or a 0 at least. But when if I enter in a 5, as I'm watching the debugger my "ch" gets changed at line "int X = ch - '0';" after that my UserInput ends up getting all jacked up. Any tips? And thanks for the help so far by the way.

Generally, when you see a highlighted line in your debugger, the program just finished the line above that line. And the line above that line is

Code:

---

ch = cin.get();

---

which seems like a very good reason for ch to suddenly become something else.

ch is what the user types in.
int X = ch - '0'; is used to change the character '5' into an actual 5.
if ((ch * 10) + X > 65535) is a check to make sure its an unsigned short int
UserInput = UserInput * 10 + X; is used to put all of the digits together to equal one whole number.

I'm not understanding why ch = cin.get() changes things? The whole unbuffered input thing is throwing me off I think.

Well, what do you think ch = cin.get() does? It goes and gets another piece of input and puts it in ch.

Should I have it at the end of my while loop then instead of the beginning?

You surely can't get more input until you're finished with what you've got.

Yup, that was my problem. I changed the "if ((ch * 10) + X > 65535)" to "if ((UserInput * 10) + X > 65535)" and everything works as intended. Thanks tons for the help man. I appreciate it, and sorry for the noobness. Take care and thanks again.