ScanIn

int ScanIn (char *formatString, targetptr1, . . . , targetptr

Purpose

Performs the same basic operation as ScanFile, except that ScanIn obtains the source data from the Standard Input.

ScanIn requires no argument for the source item. The Using the Formatting and Scanning Functions section includes a complete discussion of ScanIn.

Parameters

Input
Name Type Description
formatString string Contains format specifiers that appropriately describe the source and target data to be formatted.

For the three scan functions, the target specifiers must be provided in the format string.

The source specifier may be omitted, in which case the source is assumed to be %s (string). If a source data type other than string is desired, the format string must begin with the specifier of the desired source type, plus the "›" symbol, followed by the target specifiers.

For example, the following calls are equivalent:

x = Scan (s, "%d", i)

x = Scan (s, "%s›%d", i)

The following list includes common specifiers:

%d Indicates that the source or target is an integer.
%i Same as %d.
%f Indicates that the source or target is a double–precision real number.
%s Indicates that the source or target is a string. You may convert numeric values into ASCII form using the %s target specifier.
%10f Indicates that the source or target is an array of ten double–precision real numbers.

Because the data formatting functions can describe many complex formatting operations, refer to the Using the Formatting and Scanning Functions section to make sure you are using the proper format specifier for your application.
Output
Name Type Description
targetptr1, . . . , targetptrn Types must match Specifies the variables in which the scanned items will be stored. There may be up to 14 arguments. These arguments are separated by commas. Only the value of the first argument is shown at the bottom of the control after the function panel is executed.

Refer to the Using the Formatting and Scanning Functions section for more information.

Return Value

Name Type Description
n integer Number of target format specifiers satisfied. To get the number of bytes scanned from the Standard Input, call NumFmtdBytes. If the return value is less than the number of target items, then the source did not contain the exact number and type of items specified in the format string.

This function returns –1 to indicate an error in the format string or –2 to indicate an I/O error. If this value is –2, you can use GetFmtIOError to get more information about the type of error that occurred.