Thread: Directly outputting struct contents?

I've just reached chapter 5 in Accelerated C++, and in C4 it briefly described making your own data structures. I've tried to implement an address book (following a suggestion on these tutorials), I've made a struct and added the information into it, and up to there the program compiles fine. Now, when I try to output the contents like this:

Code:

#include <iostream>
using namespace std;

struct database {
  int id_number;
  int age;
  float salary;
};

int main()
{
  database employee;  //There is now an employee variable that has modifiable 
                      // variables inside it.
  employee.age = 22;
  employee.id_number = 1;
  employee.salary = 12000.21;

  cout << employee;	
  cin.get();

}

(Example taken from the cprogramming tutorials) I get this compiler error:

no match for ‘operator<<’ in ‘std::cout << employee’

Put simply, how do you directly output the contents of a user-defined structure?

Keep reading (and practicing with the examples) until at least chapter 12 for the answer. You would need to know a little more than you do right now, so take it step by step.

If you really are impatient, then skip all the way to section 12.3.1 on pages 215 and 216.

Ah, that's not what I was expecting :S Ok, I'll carry on practicing. Thanks!

G++? It's the default c++ compiler that comes with Ubuntu, it's called by doing:

g++ -c "path name"

Originally Posted by PЯO

We need to get Elysia over here..

Lol.

Sorry I can't provide much help as for now, compilers vary.

Not with standards compliant code, they don't.

But I'll tell you this, however, as to not undermine laserlight's answer:
How the heck can cout know the contents of your struct, much less know how to output it properly? Think about that.

I don't have that much working knowledge of in/output streams, so I just assumed cout worked on everything the same. I think I'm trying to make programs that are too advanced for myself.

Thanks, I have dodged a bullet on that one (had another similar program lined up).