scanf to return after user presses enter?

Hi,

I want the user to be able to enter up to 3 integers.... I need to react based on the number they input, so i'm using scanf and tracking the return value. However, when I enter just one integer and press enter, it just moves to the next line and scanf is still running. Shouldn't scanf quit after the user presses enter?

Example:

Code:

---

#include <stdio.h>

int main()
{
        int one,two,three;
        int ret_val = scanf("%d %d %d", &one, &two, &three);
        if (ret_val == 0)
        {
        }
        else if (ret_val == 1)
        {
                printf("one = %d\n",one);
        }
        else if (ret_val == 2)
        {
                printf("one = %d\ntwo = %d\n",one,two);
        }
        else
        {
                printf("one = %d\ntwo = %d\nthree = %d\n",one,two,three);
        }
}

---

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by sp2

Hi,

I want the user to be able to enter up to 3 integers.... I need to react based on the number they input, so i'm using scanf and tracking the return value. However, when I enter just one integer and press enter, it just moves to the next line and scanf is still running. Shouldn't scanf quit after the user presses enter?

---

No. scanf will stop when (a) the complete format string is matched; (b) input is given that doesn't match the format string; or (c) EOF happens. The enter key doesn't affect any of these.

Example:

Code:

---

#include <stdio.h>
#include <string.h>

int main()
{
        int one,two,three, ret_val;
        char buffer[256];

        fgets(buffer, sizeof(buffer), stdin);
       
        ret_val = sscanf(buffer, "&#37;d %d %d", &one, &two, &three);
       
        // Then make your cases from here using the knowledge tabstop imparted on you :)

        return 0;
}

---

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by master5001

Example:

Code:

---

#include <stdio.h>
#include <string.h>

int main()
{
        int one,two,three, ret_val;
        char buffer[256];

        fgets(buffer, sizeof(buffer), stdin);
       
        ret_val = sscanf(buffer, "%d %d %d", &one, &two, &three);
       
        // Then make your cases from here using the knowledge tabstop imparted on you :)

        return 0;
}

---

---

I don't believe, strictly speaking, you need string.h to do this. Both man-pages and MSDN docs seem to agre with me.

--
Mats

I'm sure that scanf is line buffered though. So, in whole or in part, the format string, in addition to what tabstop said, should be consumed when you press enter.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by citizen

I'm sure that scanf is line buffered though. So, in whole or in part, the format string, in addition to what tabstop said, should be consumed when you press enter.

---

Not quite. scanf() calls getchar() [or something very similar] to get the data from stdin. The stream of stdin itself is buffered, not scanf(), so if you enter 15 23<newline> to a scanf("%d", &x), then 15 will be consumed, the space, 23 and newline remain in the stdin buffer.

--
Mats

Hmm, I'll have to make a cheap implementation of scanf one of these days. Thanks for the correction.

Well not only that, but my point wasn't to buffer scanf() it was to give you the opportunity to do an sscanf(buffer, "&#37;d %d %d", &a, &b, &c) != 3, sscanf(buffer, "%d %d", &a, &b) != 2, type of thing.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by master5001

Well not only that, but my point wasn't to buffer scanf() it was to give you the opportunity to do an sscanf(buffer, "%d %d %d", &a, &b, &c) != 3, sscanf(buffer, "%d %d", &a, &b) != 2, type of thing.

---

Yes, I'm with you on that. Read a string using fgets(), use the return value from sscanf() to get the number of actualy components filled in (0, 1, 2 or 3) - although the user could of course enter "1 a2 3", and you would think there was only one entry, when the user actually intented three - if that is necessary to cope with the original poster needs some more advanced logic.

--
Mats

Yeah man pages always have a habit of ganging up on me.... Meanwhile, at least this puts him off to a good start. Depending on his class level he may even impress his friends with his programs ability to cope with various user input.