Dynamically Allocating String Arrays - c++

Question

This is what I have so far. I am trying to edit a dynamically allocated array in C++, however, when the for loop runs, it is skipping over the first item. I need it to get all of the items. Any help is appreciated. Thanks in advance.
#include <iostream>
#include <algorithm>
#include <string>
#include <iomanip>
using namespace std;
int main()
{
// Declare Variables
int userChoice = 0;
int numItems = 0;
cout << "How many items will be on your list? ";
cin >> numItems;
string *list = new string[numItems];
// Give the user some options
cout << "1. Add Item" << endl;
cout << "2. Remove Item" << endl;
cout << "3. Sort Items" << endl;
cout << "4. Exit" << endl;
cout << "Enter the number of the operation you wish to perform: ";
cin >> userChoice;
cout << endl;
// Perform the operation
switch(userChoice)
{
case 1:
{
cin.clear(); // Remove new line from cin
for(int i = 0; i < numItems; i++)
{
cout << "Item #" << i + 1 << " --> ";
getline(cin, list[i]);
}
}
break;
case 2:
{
}
break;
case 3:
{
}
break;
case 4:
{
return 0;
}
default:
{
cout << "Error! Invalid Selection" << endl;
}
}
// Output the list
cout << "-------Items-------" << endl
<< *list << endl << endl;
// free memory
delete [] list;
cout << "Enter the number of the operation you wish to perform: ";
cin >> userChoice;
return 0;
}

Answer 1

It seems odd to me to be using the STL for some things (like string) and then use a standard array to hold the strings. Also, list is a standard type of object in STL, so that is not a great name for a variable. This revised code fixes your issues with ignoring the first line, and also uses a vector instead of doing new and delete.
#include <iostream>
#include <algorithm>
#include <string>
#include <iomanip>
#include <vector>
#include <iterator>
using namespace std;
int main()
{
// Declare Variables
int userChoice = 0;
int numItems = 0;
cout << "How many items will be on your myList? ";
cin >> numItems;
cin.ignore ();
vector<string> myList;
while (true)
{
// Give the user some options
cout << "1. Add Item" << endl;
cout << "2. Remove Item" << endl;
cout << "3. Sort Items" << endl;
cout << "4. Exit" << endl;
cout << "Enter the number of the operation you wish to perform: ";
cin >> userChoice;
cin.ignore ();
cout << endl;
// Perform the operation
switch(userChoice)
{
case 1:
{
for(int i = 0; i < numItems; i++)
{
cout << "Item #" << i + 1 << " --> ";
string s;
getline(cin, s);
myList.push_back (s);
}
}
break;
case 2:
{
}
break;
case 3:
{
sort (myList.begin (), myList.end ());
}
break;
case 4:
{
return 0;
}
default:
{
cout << "Error! Invalid Selection" << endl;
}
}
// Output the myList
cout << "-------Items-------" << endl;
copy(myList.begin(), myList.end(), ostream_iterator<string>(cout, "\n"));
} // end of while
}
The project description explicitly says I can't use standard containers, sort functions, or smart pointers
Redone below to not use those things. :)
#include <iostream>
#include <algorithm>
#include <string>
#include <iomanip>
using namespace std;
int myCompare (const void * a, const void * b)
{
if ((*(string *) a) < *(string *) b) return -1;
if ((*(string *) a) > *(string *) b) return 1;
return 0;
}
int main()
{
// Declare Variables
int userChoice = 0;
int numItems = 0;
cout << "How many items will be on your myList? ";
cin >> numItems;
cin.ignore ();
string *myList = new string[numItems];
while (true)
{
// Give the user some options
cout << "1. Add Item" << endl;
cout << "2. Remove Item" << endl;
cout << "3. Sort Items" << endl;
cout << "4. Exit" << endl;
cout << "Enter the number of the operation you wish to perform: ";
cin >> userChoice;
cin.ignore ();
cout << endl;
// Perform the operation
switch(userChoice)
{
case 1:
{
for(int i = 0; i < numItems; i++)
{
cout << "Item #" << i + 1 << " --> ";
getline(cin, myList [i]);
}
}
break;
case 2:
{
}
break;
case 3:
{
qsort (myList, numItems, sizeof (string *), myCompare);
}
break;
case 4:
{
delete [] myList;
return 0;
}
default:
{
cout << "Error! Invalid Selection" << endl;
}
}
// Output the myList
cout << "-------Items-------" << endl;
for(int i = 0; i < numItems; i++)
cout << myList [i] << endl;
} // end of while
}

Answer 2

The for loop isn't skipping the first element. The first element is just a an empty line.
Because the following clears the error flags.
cin.clear(); // Remove new line from cin --> No!!!!
If you want to skip until the new line you have to use ignore() instead.
cin.ignore(numeric_limits<streamsize>::max(), '\n'); // this removes until newline from cin !