Thread: Programming Wont Be Fun Till I Know This

ok I am using codewarrior on a macintosh and I NEED to know how to use time in my programs. If I want something to pause, I use huge blank for loops and that varies from machine to machine AND it is inaccurate and my screen does some wierd blinking thing when it works through the for loops. Is there a time function. I looked through time.h and I couldnt find anything. PLEASE HELP ME

ALykz

> Is there a time function.
Well you should have time and difftime

This should be a portable delay - but it will run the CPU at 100% doing it.

Code:

void wait ( int seconds ) {
    time_t now = time(NULL);
    while ( difftime(time(NULL),now) < seconds ) {
    }
}

int main ( ) {
    wait( 3 );
    return 0;
}

Most systems provide something like delay, sleep or Sleep, but all these are OS specific. They do however usually suspend your program to allow the OS to do other things.

First of all-- we're talking Macintosh. Using silly 'cout' delays is stupid, and is a DOS way of thinking about things.

The Macintosh has a much more sophisticated GUI than any other computer out there. As such, it comes with tons of 'Inside Macintosh' guidelines about how to write code for it.

If you are trying to write programs on the Mac without getting yourself 'Inside Macintosh'-- you are screwed. Buy some books, it will help you.

Pointers are handled much more intelligently, as well as handles, and other memory mechanisms on the Mac. Something Microsoft never mastered, and is a foreign concept to most PC developers.

Now-- to answer your question--

If you want to cause a pause in program operation, try using either a) the Time Manager, or b) the Delay() procedure.

Be aware, that while you are hogging time, other applications might not be getting time, so you might also have to call A function while you are delayed that will give other applications time-- This is cooperative multitasking.

if you are talking O/SX, then you are probably true multitasking and don't have to worry about sharing time, the Process Manager will do that for you.

enjoy.