problem running a C program in the cygwin shell in Win XP

Hi,

I just installed cygwin on Windows XP. I used Visual Studio to compile a test
C program. If I were at the shell in cygwin, and typed this command:

$ date > tmp_file

The content of the file tmp_file in that directory would look something like this:

Mon Jul 27 01:22:25 PDT 2009

So when I compiled my program that looks something like below, and ran the .exe file at the prompt at the cygwin shell, the "date" command executes, the "tmp_file" got created with the correct info, but the C program hangs. I have to press <RETURN> for the program to end.

What causes this, and how do I fix this problem? Thanks.

Here's the samle of that command in the C function:

system ("date > tmp_file");

It looks like it's not the UNIX commands that are causing the problem.

If I type the Windows commands, I still have the same problem.

I think that my syntax for the system command is not correct.

Well with gcc alone, this works on my WinXP with Cygwin. By any chance are you calling getchar() at all?

In Netbeans, I get what you get, without that, then I have to hit return to exit. My date_file is created as expected.

date is both a cygwin command and a DOS command.

The cygwin one just prints the date.
The DOS one prints the current date, and prompts you for a new date. Pressing return just accepts the old date.

Then running this within a cygwin shell you should be fine.

OK, I just changed it to something else, like:

system ("ls -l > tmp_file");



The same problem occurred. The compiled program hangs when it reaches this command. To make it continue, I have to press <RETURN>. It looks like the system command is waiting for a key to be pressed by the user, before it can continue in the C program.

What do I need to do in my C program, so that it thinks that a <RETURN> was pressed, so that it can continue?

I believe your <RETURN> is to exit out of your IDE, if that is the environment you ran your program in. Do you get this same behaviour when you execute your .exe from the command line?