Why can't I use "fixed" and "setprecision()" with the +operator to format it into a string and that I only can use it only with the less-than-less-than-operator to format it for cout. What are other ways I can implement this?
#include <iostream>
#include <iomanip>
using namespace std;
int main()
{
double a = 157.2734;
cout << "This number is " << fixed << setprecision(1) << a << "." << endl;
string line = "This number is " + fixed + setprecision(1) + a + "." + "\n"; // This doesn't work this way! Why!?!?!?
cout << line;
return 0;
}
Why can't I use "fixed" and "setprecision()" with the +operator to format it into a string?
Have a closer look at std::fixed and std::setprecision().
The complete signature of std::fixed:
std::ios_base& fixed(std::ios_base& str);
So, it is designed to work with streams exclusively.
In the case of std::setprecision(), it's a bit tricky:
/*unspecified*/ setprecision( int n );
However:
Returns an object of unspecified type such that if str is the name of an output stream of type std::basic_ostream or an input stream of type std::basic_istream, then the expression str << setprecision(n) or str >> setprecision(n) behaves as if the following code was executed:
str.precision(n);
So, it might have worked if there were a std::string::precision() method but there isn't one.
What are other ways I can implement this?
The possible solution:
#include <iostream>
#include <sstream>
#include <iomanip>
using namespace std;
int main()
{
double a = 157.2734;
cout << "This number is " << fixed << setprecision(1) << a << "." << endl;
ostringstream fmtStr;
fmtStr << "This number is " << fixed << setprecision(1) << a << ".\n";
string line = fmtStr.str();
cout << line;
return 0;
}
Output:
This number is 157.3.
This number is 157.3.
Life demo on ideone
I'm not sure, but I think I remember there being something in Java that can specify how far from the left of a window that a string or digit begins..
How to easily format a table?
I have this (using setw):
Bob Doe 10.96 7.61 14.39 2.11 47.30 14.21 44.58 5.00 60.23
Helen City 10.44 7.78 16.27 1.99 48.92 13.93 53.79 5.00 70.97
Joe Green 10.90 7.33 14.49 2.05 47.91 14.15 44.45 4.70 73.98
and ideally would like:
Bob Doe BLR 10.96 7.61 14.39 2.11 47.30 14.21 44.58 5.00 60.23 4:27.47
Helen City CUB 10.90 7.33 14.49 2.05 47.91 14.15 44.45 4.70 73.98 4:29.17
Joe Green USA 10.44 7.78 16.27 1.99 48.92 13.93 53.79 5.00 70.97 5:06.59
Is the only way calculations? Or is there some magical even more simple way?
In C++, you have three functions to help you do what you want. There are defined in <iomanip>.
- setw() helps you defined the width of the output.
- setfill() Fill the rest with the character you want (in your case ' ').
- left (or right) allow you to define the alignment.
Here is the code to write your first line :
#include <iostream>
#include <iomanip>
using namespace std;
int main() {
const char separator = ' ';
const int nameWidth = 6;
const int numWidth = 8;
cout << left << setw(nameWidth) << setfill(separator) << "Bob";
cout << left << setw(nameWidth) << setfill(separator) << "Doe";
cout << left << setw(numWidth) << setfill(separator) << 10.96;
cout << left << setw(numWidth) << setfill(separator) << 7.61;
cout << left << setw(numWidth) << setfill(separator) << 14.39;
cout << left << setw(numWidth) << setfill(separator) << 2.11;
cout << left << setw(numWidth) << setfill(separator) << 47.30;
cout << left << setw(numWidth) << setfill(separator) << 14.21;
cout << left << setw(numWidth) << setfill(separator) << 44.58;
cout << left << setw(numWidth) << setfill(separator) << 5.00;
cout << left << setw(numWidth) << setfill(separator) << 60.23;
cout << endl;
cin.get();
}
EDIT :
To reduce the code, you can use a template function :
template<typename T> void printElement(T t, const int& width)
{
cout << left << setw(width) << setfill(separator) << t;
}
That you can use like this :
printElement("Bob", nameWidth);
printElement("Doe", nameWidth);
printElement(10.96, numWidth);
printElement(17.61, numWidth);
printElement(14.39, numWidth);
printElement(2.11, numWidth);
printElement(47.30, numWidth);
printElement(14.21, numWidth);
printElement(44.58, numWidth);
printElement(5.00, numWidth);
printElement(60.23, numWidth);
cout << endl;
Here are the various functions I use to display data in an organized, tabular form, along with an example demonstrating a possible use scenario.
Because the functions use stringstreams, they aren't as fast as other solutions, but for me that never matters --- the computing bottlekneck is elsewhere.
One advantage of using stringstreams is that the functions alter the precision of their own (internal scope) stringstreams, instead of changing the static cout precision. So you never have to worry about unintentionally modifying precision in a way that persists to affect other parts of your code.
DISPLAYING ARBITRARY PRECISION
This prd function (short for "print double") simply prints a double value with a specified precision.
/* Convert double to string with specified number of places after the decimal. */
std::string prd(const double x, const int decDigits) {
stringstream ss;
ss << fixed;
ss.precision(decDigits); // set # places after decimal
ss << x;
return ss.str();
}
The following is just a variant that allows you to specify a blank-space padding to the left of the number. This can be helpful in displaying tables.
/* Convert double to string with specified number of places after the decimal
and left padding. */
std::string prd(const double x, const int decDigits, const int width) {
stringstream ss;
ss << fixed << right;
ss.fill(' '); // fill space around displayed #
ss.width(width); // set width around displayed #
ss.precision(decDigits); // set # places after decimal
ss << x;
return ss.str();
}
CENTER-ALIGN FUNCTION
This function simply center-aligns text, padding left and right with blank spaces until the returned string is as large as the specified width.
/*! Center-aligns string within a field of width w. Pads with blank spaces
to enforce alignment. */
std::string center(const string s, const int w) {
stringstream ss, spaces;
int padding = w - s.size(); // count excess room to pad
for(int i=0; i<padding/2; ++i)
spaces << " ";
ss << spaces.str() << s << spaces.str(); // format with padding
if(padding>0 && padding%2!=0) // if odd #, add 1 space
ss << " ";
return ss.str();
}
EXAMPLE OF TABULAR OUTPUT
So, we could use the prd and center functions above to output a table in the following fashion.
The code:
std::cout << center("x",10) << " | "
<< center("x^2",10) << " | "
<< center("(x^2)/8",10) << "\n";
std::cout << std::string(10*3 + 2*3, '-') << "\n";
for(double x=1.5; x<200; x +=x*2) {
std::cout << prd(x,1,10) << " | "
<< prd(x*x,2,10) << " | "
<< prd(x*x/8.0,4,10) << "\n";
}
will print the table:
x | x^2 | (x^2)/8
------------------------------------
1.5 | 2.25 | 0.2812
4.5 | 20.25 | 2.5312
13.5 | 182.25 | 22.7812
40.5 | 1640.25 | 205.0312
121.5 | 14762.25 | 1845.2812
RIGHT- and LEFT-ALIGN FUNCTIONS
And, of course, you can easily construct variants of the center function that right- or left-align and add padding spaces to fill the desired width. Here are such functions:
/* Right-aligns string within a field of width w. Pads with blank spaces
to enforce alignment. */
string right(const string s, const int w) {
stringstream ss, spaces;
int padding = w - s.size(); // count excess room to pad
for(int i=0; i<padding; ++i)
spaces << " ";
ss << spaces.str() << s; // format with padding
return ss.str();
}
/*! Left-aligns string within a field of width w. Pads with blank spaces
to enforce alignment. */
string left(const string s, const int w) {
stringstream ss, spaces;
int padding = w - s.size(); // count excess room to pad
for(int i=0; i<padding; ++i)
spaces << " ";
ss << s << spaces.str(); // format with padding
return ss.str();
}
I'm sure there are plenty of more-elegant ways to do this kind of thing --- certainly there are more concise ways. But this is what I do. Works well for me.
Just use sprintf with format specifiers to format fields. You can also use MFC CString
#include <iostream>
#include "stdio.h"
using namespace std;
int main()
{
char buf[256];
char pattern[] = "%10s %10s %7.2f %7.2f %7.2f %7.2f %7.2f %7.2f %7.2f %7.2f %7.2f";
sprintf(buf, pattern, "Bob", "Doe", 10.96, 7.61, 14.39, 2.11, 47.30, 14.21, 44.58, 5.00, 60.23);
cout << buf << endl;
sprintf(buf, pattern, "Helen", "City", 10.44, 7.78, 16.27, 1.99, 48.92, 13.93, 53.79, 5.00, 70.97);
cout << buf << endl;
sprintf(buf, pattern, "Joe", "Green", 10.90, 7.33, 14.49, 2.05, 47.91, 14.15, 44.45, 4.70, 73.98);
cout << buf << endl;
}
You could do something like this to simplify the process a bit.
#include <iomanip>
#include <iostream>
struct TableFormat {
int width;
char fill;
TableFormat(): width(14), fill(' ') {}
template<typename T>
TableFormat& operator<<(const T& data) {
std::cout << data << std::setw(width) << std::setfill(fill);
return *this;
}
TableFormat& operator<<(std::ostream&(*out)(std::ostream&)) {
std::cout << out;
return *this;
}
};
int main() {
TableFormat out;
out << "Bob" << "Doe";
out.width = 8;
out << "BLR" << 10.96 << 7.61 << 14.39 << 2.11 << 47.30;
}
Which would print out (horribly in my case, but it's "customisable" to a degree):
Bob Doe BLR 10.96 7.61 14.39 2.11 47.3
The code is pretty self-explanatory, it's just a wrapper around std::cout to allow you to make the tedious calls easier, the second overload for operator<< is to allow you send std::endl..
C++20 includes <format> but it's not supported by libc++ for now.
I suggest to use {fmt} library since it could be obtained easily in Ubuntu20.
According to the doc, you may specify the width as an argument as well.
Format example: {2:<{0}}
`2` -> Use second arg as value.\
`:` -> Use non-default format.\
`<` -> Align to left\
`{0}` -> Use argument 0 as width.
Live Demo
#include <string>
#include <iostream>
#include <fmt/core.h>
#include <tuple>
#include <vector>
int main()
{
using Row = std::tuple<std::string, std::string, double>;
std::vector<Row> table = {
std::make_tuple("Bob", "Doe", 10.96),
std::make_tuple("Helen", "City", 10.44),
std::make_tuple("Joe", "Green", 10.90)
};
size_t nameWidth{12};
size_t valWidth{7};
for(const auto& row: table){
std::cout << fmt::format("{2:<{0}} {3:<{0}} {4:<{1}} \n",
nameWidth, valWidth, std::get<0>(row), std::get<1>(row), std::get<2>(row) );
}
}
Output
Bob Doe 10.96
Helen City 10.44
Joe Green 10.9
Assuming you want to format your output to resemble a table, what you need is I/O manipulators.
You can use setw() manipulator to set the output width and setfill() to set the filling character.
Considering an example:
string firstname = "Bob";
string lastname = "Doe";
string country = "BLR";
float f1 = 10.96f, f2=7.61f, f3=14.39f, f4=2.11f, f5=47.30f, f6=14.21f, f7=44.58f, f8=5.00f, f9=60.23f;
string time = "4:27.47";
cout << setw(12) << firstname << set(12) << lastname;
cout << setw(5) << country << setprecision(2) << f1 << setprecision(2) << f2 << setprecision(2) << f3..
use setw() to set the width while printing a string
use setprecision to set the precision for floating values
read MSDN
I'm not sure what you wrote so I can't see what's wrong, but you can get the results you want with std::setw:
#include <iostream>
#include <iomanip>
int main() {
std::cout << std::left << std::setw(20) << "BoB" << std::setw(20) << 123.456789 << '\n';
std::cout << std::left << std::setw(20) << "Richard" << std::setw(20) << 1.0 << '\n';
}
http://ideone.com/Iz5RXr
Is there a way to make setw and setfill pad the end of a string instead of the front?
I have a situation where I'm printing something like this.
CONSTANT TEXT variablesizeName1 .....:number1
CONSTANT TEXT varsizeName2 ..........:number2
I want to add a variable amount of '.' to the end of
"CONSTANT TEXT variablesizeName#" so I can make ":number#" line up on the screen.
Note: I have an array of "variablesizeName#" so I know the widest case.
Or
Should I do it manually by setting setw like this
for( int x= 0; x < ARRAYSIZE; x++)
{
string temp = string("CONSTANT TEXT ")+variabletext[x];
cout << temp;
cout << setw(MAXWIDTH - temp.length) << setfill('.') <<":";
cout << Number<<"\n";
}
I guess this would do the job but it feels kind of clunky.
Ideas?
You can use manipulators std::left, std::right, and std::internal to choose where the fill characters go.
For your specific case, something like this could do:
#include <iostream>
#include <iomanip>
#include <string>
const char* C_TEXT = "Constant text ";
const size_t MAXWIDTH = 10;
void print(const std::string& var_text, int num)
{
std::cout << C_TEXT
// align output to left, fill goes to right
<< std::left << std::setw(MAXWIDTH) << std::setfill('.')
<< var_text << ": " << num << '\n';
}
int main()
{
print("1234567890", 42);
print("12345", 101);
}
Output:
Constant text 1234567890: 42
Constant text 12345.....: 101
EDIT:
As mentioned in the link, std::internal works only with integer, floating point and monetary output. For example with negative integers, it'll insert fill characters between negative sign and left-most digit.
This:
int32_t i = -1;
std::cout << std::internal
<< std::setfill('0')
<< std::setw(11) // max 10 digits + negative sign
<< i << '\n';
i = -123;
std::cout << std::internal
<< std::setfill('0')
<< std::setw(11)
<< i;
will output
-0000000001
-0000000123
Something like:
cout << left << setw(MAXWIDTH) << setfill('.') << temp << ':' << Number << endl;
Produces something like:
derp..........................:234
herpderpborp..................:12345678
#include <iostream>
#include <iomanip>
int main()
{
std::cout
<< std::setiosflags(std::ios::left) // left align this section
<< std::setw(30) // within a max of 30 characters
<< std::setfill('.') // fill with .
<< "Hello World!"
<< "\n";
}
//Output:
Hello World!..................
I need to read 16 bits from the binary file as std::string or char *. For example, a binary file contains 89 ab cd ef, and I want to be able to extract them as std::strings or char *. I have tried the following code:
ifstream *p = new ifstream();
char *buffer;
p->seekg(address, ios::beg);
buffer = new char[16];
memset(buffer, 0, 16);
p->read(buffer, 16);
When I try to std::cout the buffer, nothing appeared. How can I read these characters in the binary file?
EDIT: I was looking for the buffer to be a int type such as "0x89abcdef". Is it possible to achieve?
Something like:
#include <string>
#include <iostream>
#include <fstream>
#include <iomanip>
int main()
{
if (ifstream input("filename"))
{
std::string s(2 /*bytes*/, '\0' /*initial content - irrelevant*/);
if (input.read(&s[0], 2 /*bytes*/))
std::cout << "SUCCESS: [0] " << std::hex << (int)s[0] << " [1] " << (int)s[1] << '\n';
else
std::cerr << "Couldn't read from file\n";
}
else
std::cerr << "Couldn't open file\n";
}
You can't read a binary stream as though it were text.
You can, of course, read as binary (by using "file.read()" and "file.write()" methods on your stream object). Just like what you're doing now :)
You can also convert binary to text: "convert to hex text string" and "uuencode base 64" are two common ways to do this.
You'll want to read the bytes as numbers (of type long long probably).
Then you can print those using formatting specifiers like this:
#include <iostream>
#include <iomanip>
int main()
{
using namespace std;
int x = 2;
int y = 255;
cout << showbase // show the 0x prefix
<< internal // fill between the prefix and the number
<< setfill('0'); // fill with 0s
cout << hex << setw(4) << x << dec << " = " << setw(3) << x << endl;
cout << hex << setw(4) << y << dec << " = " << setw(3) << y << endl;
return 0;
}
Say I want to print:
============
Some message
============
And:
=======================
Other Message long one
=======================
The number of "=" changes based on the message length. What is the most efficient way to print this sort of a thing?
No boost, just STL please.
std::string line(msg.length(), '=');
cout << line << "\n" << msg << "\n" << line << endl;
You don't specify how you are measuring "efficiency" in this context. Here's one solution that is efficient in terms of code you must write and number of allocations:
#include <string>
#include <iostream>
using namespace std;
void format(const std::string& msg)
{
std::string banner(msg.length(), '=');
cout << banner << endl
<< msg << endl
<< banner << endl;
}
int main(int argc, char *argv[])
{
format("Some message");
format("Other message long one");
return 0;
}
I can imagine other alternatives that avoid allocating a temporary string for the banners, but those might come at an increased cost of the actual printing.
iomanip variant, just for fun.
const std::string hello("hello world!");
std::cout << std::setfill('=') << std::setw( hello.length() + 1) << "\n"
<< hello << "\n";
<< std::setfill('=') << std::setw( hello.length() + 1 ) << "\n";