I've been asking questions on the boards here and have gotten some great help, and I have been learning to program C through a book that is pretty good (so far)

Anyway, there is going to be a time where I want to do something and it's not going to be covered in the book (It can't cover everything) and I may have difficult understand (or finding) someone that has used it in their code.

I understand (the best way) is I can simply use the compiler's help file or find a list of syntax online. Well, my problem is actually understand what it's telling me (for ANY syntax not just the example below). Usually there are no examples of how to use it or if there are they are a little cryptic.

I guess what I'm asking is in something like this:

Code:
<type> *p_subclass = dynamic_cast<<type> *>( p_obj );
My main problem: How do I know what I "literally" type in vs. what I'm supposed to provide myself (or Inserting something over the top of one of those words).

meaning what I'm using the above in my code can I just copy and paste that and that's it... or for example do I delete "*p_subclass" and put something in there of my own? also i assume where <type> is i'm supposed to put a type, well do i put it like <type>, type, <char>, or char?

Also, Sometimes I'll see a syntax for a function and it will have a variable in there... and I don't understand if I can change that variable myself, if its just an example, or If I'm supposed to use exactly what it's telling me.