help with getchar lol

can someone tell me what the heck is with getchar? it skips over the getchars and its REALLY annoying. also, should i use scanf to hold screen?? i was using getchar until all the time until i started using it for input aswell, then this error started happening



i just copy pasted a bunch of headers cause i was lazy and whipped this up fast, dont try running it without looking at the code.



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

int main()
{
int bob,fred,joe, hold;
char c;

printf("enter bob\n");
scanf("%d", &bob);
printf("paused\n");
getchar(); /*why does it skip?*/
printf("enter fred\n");
scanf("%d", &fred);
printf("paused\n");
getchar(); /*why does it skip?*/
printf("enter joe\n");
scanf("%d", &joe);
printf("paused\n");
getchar(); /*why does it skip?*/
printf("bob %d fred %d joe %d\n",bob,fred,joe);
getchar(); /*why DOESN'T it skip?*/

printf("Problem child 2\n");
c = getchar();
printf("%c \n", c);
getchar(); /*why does it skip second getchar*/

printf("Problem child 3\n");
scanf("%d", &bob);
scanf("%d", &fred);
scanf("%d", &joe);
printf("bob %d fred %d joe %d\n",bob,fred,joe);
scanf("%d",hold);

return 0;
}

The input buffer has data left in it. Try flushing the buffer

and use code tags when posting code.

thanks, ill try that out. also, im really new to this forum, is there anywhere that posts all the html tags or is it just normal hyper text?

i really hate to be a mindless boob that just copies someones code and thinks nothing of it so, can some please explain how

Code:

---

while ((ch = getchar()) != '\n' && ch != EOF);

---

clears the input buffer? why is ch an integar? does ch serve any real purpose?

>clears the input buffer?
It reads characters until there's supposedly nothing left. This code assumes that a newline marks the end of input. In buffered systems taking user input, that assumption is usually correct.

>why is ch an integar?
The value of EOF may not be representable by a char.

>does ch serve any real purpose?
Yes, it lets you test for both EOF and a newline with only one call to getchar.

-Prelude

thanks alot, and also, in your sig you should throw in
/*that, is executable*/ to substitute for "that is the question"