Thread: Invoking system commands... "A better way?"

Hey... I always hear that it's considered bad to use system commands. It seems like you sometimes have to use a dos or unix command! However, I have also noticed that you can't use a string variable to call the system command.

Gives an error:

Code:

#include <stdlib.h>
#include <iostream.h>

int main()
{
char SystemCommand[] = "copy C:\file.txt C:\newfolder\file.txt";
system(SystemCommand);
return 0;
}

Doesn't give an error:

Code:

#include <stdlib.h>
#include <iostream.h>

int main()
{
system("copy C:\file.txt C:\newfolder\file.txt");
return 0;
}

Is there a way to use a string variable to call a system command, like I wanted to in the first code block?

Thanks,
The_Muffin_Man