Thread: fprintf and non-ascii symbols

This is what happens when you use extended ASCII characters. They're not portable, between systems and even between different characters sets and fonts. As you have discovered.

The simplest solution is to look at the file in a command-line program rather than in Notepad. For example, type type filename from the command-line, where filename is the name of your file.

You could create a batch file to do this for your teacher automatically.

Code:

@type filename
@pause

Then in a README or something indicate how to view the file. I've done it before, believe me . . . .

The best solution? Use ordinary ASCII characters. #, |, ", *, %, @, $, whatever. Use your imagination. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ASCII_art

i'm not sure I've understood your solution.. are you suggesting that the file should be read at a command-line program?

Right. Since your characters are messed up in the standard Windows character set, but appear fine in DOS, use DOS to view the file!

The easiest way is to open a command prompt. Do that by going Start->Programs->Accessories->Command Prompt (on most modern Windows computers, I believe that's where it is located.) Then type

Code:

cd "whereever"

where whereever is the location of your program. For example:

Code:

cd "\Documents and Settings\User\My Documents\programs"

If the path contains no spaces, you can leave out the double quotes.

Then, type

Code:

type filename

and you should see your file.

Here's a sample session:

Code:

MSDOS (c) Microsoft Corporation ...

C:\Windows>cd "\Documents and Settings\User\My Documents\programs"

C:\Documents and Settings\User\My Documents\programs>type something.txt
This is the text in the file something.
C:\Documents and Settings\User\My Documents\programs>exit

Here's how you can do it so that your teacher or whatever can see your file without using the command prompt. Open notepad, and type

Code:

@type filename
@pause

Then save the file in the directory of your program's executable as "name.bat". Use the quotes! If you don't, you get a file called name.bat.txt, which you can't execute.

Then just run that .bat file by double-clicking on it or whatever, and viola! you have your file, viewed from DOS.

Originally Posted by sombrancelha

dwks,

i'm not sure I've understood your solution.. are you suggesting that the file should be read at a command-line program?

That's right.

And I didn't understand about the batch file.. what exactly is it? And how do I make one?

use notepad or your C editor to create a file called "show.bat", then type in the commands you want. If you prefix the command with a @ it will be "silent", meaning that the user don't see what the command is.

--
Mats

If you prefix the command with a @ it will be "silent", meaning that the user don't see what the command is.

To elaborate:

A batch file (ending with .bat) works just as if the user had typed every line directly into a DOS prompt. This means that with a file like

Code:

type something.txt
pause

you'd get

Code:

C:\Documents and Settings\User\My Documents\programs>type something.txt
This is the text in the file something.
C:\Documents and Settings\User\My Documents\programs>pause
Press any key to continue ...

To suppress those messages, you can put an @ in front of the lines you want suppressed, or you can put @echo off as a separate line. For example, with

Code:

@echo off
type something.txt
pause

the user would see

Code:

This is the text in the file something.
Press any key to continue ...

In this case, you don't need the CD command in the batch file because the batch file's "current directory" is where it was run from by default.

One suggestion: use funky extended ASCII characters if you're printing to the screen, and ordinary ASCII ones if you're printing to a file. (You'll have to allow output to the screen as well as to a file, of course.)

You can do it with something as simple as this:

Code:

FILE *fp;

if(strcmp(filename "-") == 0) {  /* take a filename of "-" to mean the screen */
    fp = stdout;
}
else {
    fp = fopen(filename, "w");
    if(!fp) {
        perror(filename);
        fp = stdout;  /* use the screen for output if the file couldn't be opened */
    }
}

function(fp);

void function(FILE *fp) {
    if(fp == stdout) putchar('#');
    else putchar(177);
}

and so on.