Thread: ReadFile and binary data

  1. #1
    Registered User
    Join Date
    Sep 2001
    Posts
    6

    Question ReadFile and binary data

    a question: in DOS programming you can read/write a file in either ascii or binary mode. which mode do the windows functions use? i suppose it detects which mode it needs to use.
    also, when i read data from a file, the data usually has both characters (ascii) and numbers (integers). how can i detect if a byte of data is supposed to be an integer rather than a character? i hope you understand my question. i wrote a program to record the ascii number of every byte in a file (using "(int) char"), and the byte that contained the integer 19 returned a 19, is there a way to distiguish this from "DC3," which is the character associated with ascii code 19?

  2. #2
    train spotter
    Join Date
    Aug 2001
    Location
    near a computer
    Posts
    3,868
    Sounds more like a problem in your ascii to int function.
    Are you sure you are only sending in one char at a time not giving it a pointer to the rest of the file buffer?
    Try copying a single char from the buffer to a seperate variable (ie char cChar; ) and converting that.
    Best way is to GetFileSize(), GlobalAlloc() this +1 chars (bytes) and read the whole file, at once, to this buffer.
    Close the file.
    while((Index<Size)&&(sBuffer[Index]!='\0'))
    {
    copy single char to temp single char buffer
    convert
    increment index
    }
    "Man alone suffers so excruciatingly in the world that he was compelled to invent laughter."
    Friedrich Nietzsche

    "I spent a lot of my money on booze, birds and fast cars......the rest I squandered."
    George Best

    "If you are going through hell....keep going."
    Winston Churchill

Popular pages Recent additions subscribe to a feed

Similar Threads

  1. fread readfile
    By samsam1 in forum Windows Programming
    Replies: 3
    Last Post: 02-03-2003, 02:14 PM
  2. I want binary compare
    By Unregistered in forum Windows Programming
    Replies: 4
    Last Post: 06-06-2002, 08:48 PM