Thread: Name Problem: First, Middle, Last

The scanf directly from stdin requires you to type all three names. Put the user input into a buffer instead and scan that.

Code:

    char inputBuffer[77];
    char First[25];
    char Middle[25];
    char Last[25];
    
    printf("Please Enter Your Name: ");
    fgets(inputBuffer, 75, stdin);
    sscanf(inputBuffer, "%25s %25s %25s", First, Middle, Last);
    [...]

Code:

#include <stdio.h>
int main (void)
{
     printf("Please enter your first name   ");
     gets(First);
      printf("Please enter your middle name   ");
     gets(Middle);
      printf("Please enter your last name   ");
     gets(Last);

      printf("\nWelcome %s %s %s",First,Middle,Last);

     return(0);
}

/*
You could also do something like:

#include <stdio.h>
int main (void)
{
printf("Please enter your middle name ");
gets(Middle);
printf("Please enter your last name ");
gets(Last);
printf("Please enter your first name ");
gets(First);
printf("\nWelcome %s %s %s",First,Middle,Last);

return(0);
}
*/

@Welcome to the forum, Seasick - and believe me, I have known THAT feeling several times.

@Adak ty and@Eman true, however an overflow if name has more than 25 characters. And, I believe, there's escape routines that would prevent Unhandled Exception like a Processor Fault. Just my 2 cents worth.

I don't know of any "escape routines" to prevent any kind of exception. Some languages have some protection against buffer overflows, but C is not one of them. Eman is right, gets is very dangerous. In fact, it's so dangerous that the documentation tells you to never use it, and that my compiler (GCC) by default warns you if you use it. The "overflow if name has more than 25 characters" is a bogus argument too, since some people have names that long (or longer), and you're assuming the user is going to behave. scanf with the field width specifier is safer though fgets is the best bet.

Originally Posted by Seasick

@Adak ty and@Eman true, however an overflow if name has more than 25 characters. And, I believe, there's escape routines that would prevent Unhandled Exception like a Processor Fault. Just my 2 cents worth.

How about using...

Code:

int main(void)
  { char First[25];
     // etc.

    scanf("%25s", First);
    // etc.
 
   return 0; }

That was my initial thought too. I was thinking a scanf with a "%25s" was no different than a fgets of appropriate size, but then I realized there are people with spaces in one part of their name, such as Charles de Gaulle, which would mean his last name would go in as "de" only. Suboptimal, but might work fine for the OP.

Use fgets