C++ Programming Fundamentals

File Input/Output

• Streams: A stream is a sequence of characters that can be read from or written to. C++ provides two types of streams:
  • Input Stream (istream): used to read data from a file or keyboard
  • Output Stream (ostream): used to write data to a file or screen
• File Streams: C++ provides two file stream classes:
  • ifstream (input file stream) for reading from a file
  • ofstream (output file stream) for writing to a file
• Opening a File: files can be opened using the open() function, which returns a boolean indicating success or failure
• Closing a File: files should be closed using the close() function when finished with them

Streams

• Stream Classes: C++ provides several stream classes:
  • istream (input stream)
  • ostream (output stream)
  • iostream (input/output stream)
• Stream Operators: streams support several operators:
  • >> (extraction operator): extracts data from an input stream
  • << (insertion operator): inserts data into an output stream
• Stream States: streams have several states:
  • good(): returns true if the stream is good
  • bad(): returns true if the stream is bad
  • fail(): returns true if the stream has failed
  • eof(): returns true if the end of the file has been reached

Function Overloading

• Function Overloading: allows multiple functions with the same name but different parameters
• Function Signature: consists of the function name and parameter list
• Function Matching: the compiler chooses the best match for a function call based on the function signature
• Rules for Overloading:
  • functions must have different parameter lists
  • functions can have different return types
  • functions can have different access specifiers (public, private, protected)

Function Templates

• Function Templates: allows a function to work with different data types
• Template Parameters: placeholders for types or values
• Template Instantiation: the process of generating a function from a template
• Template Specialization: allows for customized behavior for specific types

Exception Handling

• Exceptions: errors or exceptional conditions that occur during program execution
• Throwing an Exception: using the throw keyword to signal an error
• Catching an Exception: using a catch block to handle an exception
• Try-Block: a block of code that may throw an exception
• Catch-Block: a block of code that handles an exception
• Types of Exceptions:
  • Runtime Errors: errors that occur during program execution
  • Logic Errors: errors in the program's logic