I am a beginner in C++. From what I understand, in order to use a name, we have to include the library that consist of that name. Thereafter, we can either prepend the name of the namespace or use the using keyword.
E.g.
Without using keyword:
std::cout << "Hello Word!" << std::endl;
With using keyword:
using namespace std;
cout << "Hello World!" << endl;
I saw a working code sample online that uses the isalpha name from the locale library in the std namespace. However, that sample does not use any of the methods mentioned above.
E.g.
#include <iostream>
#include <locale>
int main() {
std::cout << isalpha('a') << std::endl;
}
Could someone please explain to me why the code still works?
When you include a C++ header for a C library facility, that is, a header <cfoo> corresponding to a C header <foo.h>, then the names from the C library are declared in namespace std. However, additionally it is unspecified whether the names are also declared in the global namespace.
In your case it seems that they are. But you cannot rely on that, nor should you.
There are two correct variants, as follows:
// C++ header
#include <cctype>
int main()
{
return !std::isalpha('a');
}
// C header
#include <ctype.h>
int main()
{
return !isalpha('a');
}
A compiler is permitted to declare extra names beyond those specified by the Standard, but your code is not portable if it relies on such artefacts of the implementation.
Always include the correct headers for the functions you use, and you will avoid surprises.
Related
#include <iostream>
#include <string>
#include <cctype>
using std::string;
using std::cin;
using std::cout; using std::endl;
int main()
{
string s("Hello World!!!");
decltype(s.size()) punct_cnt = 0;
for (auto c : s)
if (ispunct(c))
++punct_cnt;
cout << punct_cnt
<< " punctuation characters in " << s << endl;
}
It seems that I can use ispunct() without std:: or declaring using std::ispunct; but I can't do that with std::cout or std::cin. Why is this happening?
It means ispunct is part of the global namespace, rather than the std namespace. This is probably because ispunct is one of the functions brought over from C (hence it is in cctype).
On the other hand, cout and cin are part of the std namespace, not the global namespace.
Edit:
As to why things from C are in the global namespace instead of in the std namespace, I believe it has to do with allowing C code to compile by a C++ compiler with minimal changes, since C++ aims to be compatible with C.
According to the comments, ispunct is allowed, but not required, to be in the global namespace (but is required to be in the std namespace), in <cctype>. However, if you had included <ctype.h> instead, ispunct would be required to be in the global namespace.
C names (those you get from including a xxx.h header from C) are allowed to be in the global namespace in addition to the ::std namespace even if you are including the cxxx version of the header. This has been done because it can be a problem not to have those in the global namespace if you provide the C++ implementation, but not the C implementation (so the actual C headers are from a compiler you don't control).
In your case, ispunct comes from the header ctype.h. While you are including the cctype header, this in turn includes the ctype.h header which declares the symbol ispunct in the global namespace.
C++ headers derived from C (such as <cctype>) are required to put the names of things that they declare in the namespace std and they are permitted to also put them in the global namespace. Formally, this wasn't allowed until C++11, but the old rule that those headers were not allowed to put names into the global namespace could not be implemented reasonably and was commonly ignored.
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I have searched this question in Google. I found some related question in stackoverflow.com and quora.com but i am still not clear about this two topics. Everyone says that we use #include<iostream> for input/output operation. Now, we take input using cin and print output using cout that means this two should be defined in #include<iostream>. But without using using namespace stdwe still can't take any input nor can print something on console. So, my questions are-
Where is cin and cout actually declared and defined? Is it in #include<iostream>or in namespace std?
If in #include<iostream>why should we use using namespace std?
If in namespace std why should we use #include<iostream?
After reading some article on the web and watching some videos on YouTube, I'm assuming cout and cin is defined in namespace std and the namespace std doesn't make any sense alone because it is defined in #include<iostream>. That's why we need to use them both. (Just my thought let me know if I am right or not.)
The purpose of this question is to be clear about this two facts. If you can help it would be great.
cin and cout are defined in the header iostream and in the namespace std. These concepts are orthogonal. iostream is a file name and std is a namespace used by the source code of that file.
As a way of keeping things organized, c++ provides namespaces. All of the standard library is defined within the namespace called std. Other libraries you might write or include may use their own namespace. For example, you might include a physics library in your project which wants to define the concept of algebraic vectors. By using it's own namespace (let's called if physlib) it can differentiate between it's vector (physlib::vector) and the standard vector (std::vector). Namespaces can also be nested to help organize large projects. For example, time keeping parts of the standard library are in std::chrono and file system related components are in std::filesystem.
The preferred way of using cin and cout is as following. :
#include <iostream>
int main()
{
std::cout << "Hello, World!\n";
return 0;
}
The statement using namespace std is simply an instruction to look in the namespace std by default. It allows you to omit the std:: part of using standard library components. It's generally regarded as a bad idea to used using namespace std.
Why should we use #include <iostream>
To bring the standard library's I/O functionality into our program.
while we are using using namespace std?
This allows us to use that functionality without writing std:: each time we do.
This is unrelated to the previous step. Writing only using namespace std does not bring I/O functionality into your program, and writing only #include <iostream> does not allow us to use that functionality without writing its components' names out in full (including the std:: prefix).
The #include directive determines what we can use;
The using namespace declaration determines how we can use it.
Perfectly fine:
#include <iostream>
int main()
{
std::cout << "Hello world!\n";
}
Also valid:
#include <iostream>
using namespace std;
int main()
{
cout << "Hello world!\n";
}
Not valid:
int main()
{
std::cout << "Hello world!\n";
}
And neither is this:
using namespace std;
int main()
{
std::cout << "Hello world!\n";
}
or this:
using namespace std;
int main()
{
cout << "Hello world!\n";
}
#include <iostrem> tells the compiler to pull in the contents of the header iostream. That header provides, among other things, declarations of the objects std::cin and std::cout. So the basic "Hello, world" program looks like this:
#include <iostream>
int main() {
std::cout << "Hello, world\n";
return 0;
}
Similarly, if you want to use std::vector, you tell the compiler about it with #include <vector>. Same thing for the rest of the standard library: whatever it is that you want to use, find out which header declares it and #include that header.
using namespace std; doesn't define any names for you. It tells the compiler to pretend that any names that have been defined in the namespace std are also defined in the scope where using namespace std; occurs. So that means that instead of writing std::cout you can write cout, and the compiler will figure out that you meant std::cout. Unless, of course, you've written something yourself with the name cout (or any other name that's in std and declared in a header that you've #included), in which case that using declaration makes the use of the name ambiguous. There is no good reason to write using namespace std;. Just use the right names for things: std::cout is clear and unambiguous.
Where is cin and cout actually declared and defined? Is it in #include<iostream> or in namespace std?
It's not or. cin and cout are declared in the iostream header file within the namespace std.
If in #include< iostream> why should we use using namespace std?
You shouldn't. Either fully qualify the global variables like std::cin or std::cout. There's a number of reasons why you shouldn't use using namespace std; (at least in header files).
If in namespace std why should we use #include<iostream>?
Because you need the declarations to compile your code.
iostream is part of the standard library, here is what the "iostream.h" file would look like if you were to implement it yourself:
namespace std{
// code about cin
extern ostream cin;
// code about cout
extern ostream cout;
}
(see c++ STL cout source code)
Where is cin and cout actually declared and defined? Is it in #include <iostream> or in namespace std?
So cin/cout are declared and define in the standard library under the
namespace std. This means that if you want to use it in your code you can do :
int main()
{
std::cout << "Hello";
}
If in #include<iostream> why should we use using namespace std?
You don't need using namespace std, you could call std::cout everywhere instead of cout, but you can see how this can make your code verbose and annoying to type.
using namespace std in your whole file is actually discouraged as it could have unintended effect, usually you could use only
using std::cout;
using std::cin;
where needed.
The reason the using is needed (or the need for explicitly writing std:cout , is imagine you have the following code:
#include <iostream>
namespace mycoolnamespace
{
class foo {
public:
foo& operator<< (const std::string& echo)
{
// do stuff
}
};
foo cout; // created a variable called cout
}
int main()
{
cout << "Hello";
// ^^^^ compiler can't know if you meant to use std::cout or mycoolnamespace::cout here!
// Potential fix:
std::cout << "Hello"
}
If in namespace std why should we use #include<iostream>?
By default not all function/classes from the standard library are included in your program, otherwise a simple "Hello world" program would give a lot of work to the compiler since it would need to parse all the existing classes/functions in the entire standard library. #include<iostream> tells the compiler that you need the functions/classes available in the standard library's iostream 'file'
#include <iostream>
#include <string>
#include <cctype>
using std::string;
using std::cin;
using std::cout; using std::endl;
int main()
{
string s("Hello World!!!");
decltype(s.size()) punct_cnt = 0;
for (auto c : s)
if (ispunct(c))
++punct_cnt;
cout << punct_cnt
<< " punctuation characters in " << s << endl;
}
It seems that I can use ispunct() without std:: or declaring using std::ispunct; but I can't do that with std::cout or std::cin. Why is this happening?
It means ispunct is part of the global namespace, rather than the std namespace. This is probably because ispunct is one of the functions brought over from C (hence it is in cctype).
On the other hand, cout and cin are part of the std namespace, not the global namespace.
Edit:
As to why things from C are in the global namespace instead of in the std namespace, I believe it has to do with allowing C code to compile by a C++ compiler with minimal changes, since C++ aims to be compatible with C.
According to the comments, ispunct is allowed, but not required, to be in the global namespace (but is required to be in the std namespace), in <cctype>. However, if you had included <ctype.h> instead, ispunct would be required to be in the global namespace.
C names (those you get from including a xxx.h header from C) are allowed to be in the global namespace in addition to the ::std namespace even if you are including the cxxx version of the header. This has been done because it can be a problem not to have those in the global namespace if you provide the C++ implementation, but not the C implementation (so the actual C headers are from a compiler you don't control).
In your case, ispunct comes from the header ctype.h. While you are including the cctype header, this in turn includes the ctype.h header which declares the symbol ispunct in the global namespace.
C++ headers derived from C (such as <cctype>) are required to put the names of things that they declare in the namespace std and they are permitted to also put them in the global namespace. Formally, this wasn't allowed until C++11, but the old rule that those headers were not allowed to put names into the global namespace could not be implemented reasonably and was commonly ignored.
#include <iostream>
using namespace std;
int main() {
cout << "!!!Hello World!!!" << endl; // prints !!!Hello World!!!
return 0;
}
If I remove the 2nd statement,the build will fail.
Why is it necessary?
Because cout and endl are contained inside the std namespace.
You could remove the using namespace std line and put instead std::cout and std::endl.
Here is an example that should make namespaces clear:
Stuff.h:
namespace Peanuts
{
struct Nut
{
};
}
namespace Hardware
{
struct Nut
{
};
}
When you do something like using namespace Hardware you can use Nut without specifying the namespace explicitly. For any source that uses either of these classes, they need to 1) Include the header and 2) specify the namespace of the class or put a using directive.
The point of namespaces are for grouping and also to avoid namespace collisions.
Edit for your question about why you need #include :
#include <iostream> includes the source for cout and endl. That source is inside the namespace called std which is inside iostream.
cout is part of the namespace std. Now if you were to use "std::cout" and delete the second line, then it will compile.
Yes cout and cerr are defined in isotream, but as std::cout and std::cerr
The reason for this is that you can happily use common words like min or max without worryign that some standard library has already sued them, simply write std::min and std::max. This is no different from the old way of putting eg 'afx' in front of all the ATL library function.
The 'using' statement is because people complained about the extra typing, so if you put 'using std' it assumes you meant std:: in front of everything that comes from standard.
The only problem is if you have a library called mystuff that also has a min() or max(). If use use std::min() and mystuff::min() there is no problem, but if you put 'using std' and 'using mystuff' you are back to the same problem you had in 'c'
ps. as a rule it is good practice to put std::cout just to make it clear to people that this is the regualr standard version and not some local version of cout you have created.
This question may be a duplicate, but I can't find a good answer. Short and simple, what requires me to declare
using namespace std;
in C++ programs?
Since the C++ standard has been accepted, practically all of the standard library is inside the std namespace. So if you don't want to qualify all standard library calls with std::, you need to add the using directive.
However,
using namespace std;
is considered a bad practice because you are practically importing the whole standard namespace, thus opening up a lot of possibilities for name clashes. It is better to import only the stuff you are actually using in your code, like
using std::string;
Nothing does, it's a shorthand to avoid prefixing everything in that namespace with std::
Technically, you might be required to use using (for whole namespaces or individual names) to be able to use Argument Dependent Lookup.
Consider the two following functions that use swap().
#include <iostream>
#include <algorithm>
namespace zzz
{
struct X {};
void swap(zzz::X&, zzz::X&)
{
std::cout << "Swapping X\n";
}
}
template <class T>
void dumb_swap(T& a, T& b)
{
std::cout << "dumb_swap\n";
std::swap(a, b);
}
template <class T>
void smart_swap(T& a, T& b)
{
std::cout << "smart_swap\n";
using std::swap;
swap(a, b);
}
int main()
{
zzz::X a, b;
dumb_swap(a, b);
smart_swap(a, b);
int i, j;
dumb_swap(i, j);
smart_swap(i, j);
}
dumb_swap always calls std::swap - even though we'd rather prefer using zzz::swap for zzz::X objects.
smart_swap makes std::swap visible as a fall-back choice (e.g when called with ints), but since it doesn't fully qualify the name, zzz::swap will be used through ADL for zzz::X.
Subjectively, what forces me to use using namespace std; is writing code that uses all kinds of standard function objects, etc.
//copy numbers larger than 1 from stdin to stdout
remove_copy_if(
std::istream_iterator<int>(std::cin), std::istream_iterator<int>(),
std::ostream_iterator<int>(std::cout, "\n"),
std::bind2nd(std::less_equal<int>(), 0)
);
IMO, in code like this std:: just makes for line noise.
I wouldn't find using namespace std; a heinous crime in such cases, if it is used in the implementation file (but it can be even restricted to function scope, as in the swap example).
Definitely don't put the using statement in the header files. The reason is that this pollutes the namespace for other headers, which might be included after the offending one, potentially leading to errors in other headers which might not be under your control. (It also adds the surprise factor: people including the file might not be expecting all kinds of names to be visible.)
The ability to refer to members in the std namespace without the need to refer to std::member explicitly. For example:
#include <iostream>
using namespace std;
...
cout << "Hi" << endl;
vs.
#include <iostream>
...
std::cout << "Hi" << std::endl;
You should definitely not say:
using namespace std;
in your C++ headers, because that beats the whole point of using namespaces (doing that would constitute "namespace pollution"). Some useful resources on this topic are the following:
1) stackoverflow thread on Standard convention for using “std”
2) an article by Herb Sutter on Migrating to Namespaces
3) FAQ 27.5 from Marshall Cline's C++ Faq lite.
First of all, this is not required in C - C does not have namespaces. In C++, anything in the std namespace which includes most of the standard library. If you don't do this you have to access the members of the namespace explicitly like so:
std::cout << "I am accessing stdout" << std::endl;
Firstly, the using directive is never required in C since C does not support namespaces at all.
The using directive is never actually required in C++ since any of the items found in the namespace can be accessed directly by prefixing them with std:: instead. So, for example:
using namespace std;
string myString;
is equivalent to:
std::string myString;
Whether or not you choose to use it is a matter of preference, but exposing the entire std namespace to save a few keystrokes is generally considered bad form. An alternative method which only exposes particular items in the namespace is as follows:
using std::string;
string myString;
This allows you to expose only the items in the std namespace that you particularly need, without the risk of unintentionally exposing something you didn't intend to.
Namespaces are a way of wrapping code to avoid confusion and names from conflicting. For example:
File common1.h:
namespace intutils
{
int addNumbers(int a, int b)
{
return a + b;
}
}
Usage file:
#include "common1.h"
int main()
{
int five = 0;
five = addNumbers(2, 3); // Will fail to compile since the function is in a different namespace.
five = intutils::addNumbers(2, 3); // Will compile since you have made explicit which namespace the function is contained within.
using namespace intutils;
five = addNumbers(2, 3); // Will compile because the previous line tells the compiler that if in doubt it should check the "intutils" namespace.
}
So, when you write using namespace std all you are doing is telling the compiler that if in doubt it should look in the std namespace for functions, etc., which it can't find definitions for. This is commonly used in example (and production) code simply because it makes typing common functions, etc. like cout is quicker than having to fully qualify each one as std::cout.
You never have to declare using namespace std; using it is is bad practice and you should use std:: if you don't want to type std:: always you could do something like this in some cases:
using std::cout;
By using std:: you can also tell which part of your program uses the standard library and which doesn't. Which is even more important that there might be conflicts with other functions which get included.
Rgds
Layne
All the files in the C++ standard library declare all of its entities within the std namespace.
e.g: To use cin,cout defined in iostream
Alternatives:
using std::cout;
using std::endl;
cout << "Hello" << endl;
std::cout << "Hello" << std::endl;
Nothing requires you to do -- unless you are implementer of C++ Standard Library and you want to avoid code duplication when declaring header files in both "new" and "old" style:
// cstdio
namespace std
{
// ...
int printf(const char* ...);
// ...
}
.
// stdio.h
#include <cstdio>
using namespace std;
Well, of course example is somewhat contrived (you could equally well use plain <stdio.h> and put it all in std in <cstdio>), but Bjarne Stroustrup shows this example in his The C++ Programming Language.
It's used whenever you're using something that is declared within a namespace. The C++ standard library is declared within the namespace std. Therefore you have to do
using namespace std;
unless you want to specify the namespace when calling functions within another namespace, like so:
std::cout << "cout is declared within the namespace std";
You can read more about it at http://www.cplusplus.com/doc/tutorial/namespaces/.