I''m Currently learning VC++ and I bought the "Practical Visual C++6". On one part of the book it uses some Windows classes, and doesn''t explain them. Could someone please tell me what HANDLE and WIN32_FIND_DATA do in detail? In the code they seems to be basically the same type of class.

They aren''t classes.

A HANDLE is a data type that is used as an ID for various objects you create in windows - files, images, windows, etc.. You know HWND (Handle to a WiNDow)?

WIN32_FIND_DATA is a structure that stores information about files when you use the functions FindFirstFile, FindFirstFileEx, or FindNextFile. It contains information such as file size, file name, file attributes, etc...

    typedef struct _WIN32_FIND_DATA {     DWORD dwFileAttributes;     FILETIME ftCreationTime;     FILETIME ftLastAccessTime;     FILETIME ftLastWriteTime;     DWORD    nFileSizeHigh;     DWORD    nFileSizeLow;     DWORD    dwReserved0;     DWORD    dwReserved1;     TCHAR    cFileName[ MAX_PATH ];     TCHAR    cAlternateFileName[ 14 ]; } WIN32_FIND_DATA;     

By the way, in VC++ you can get help on ANY keyword by simply placing the cursor over it and pressing F1. It''s a simple life-saving feature but I''m always surprised at how many people overlook it.

-RWarden (roberte@maui.net)

If I am not mistaken, I believe that Borland created this feature before M$... Back in the old days of Borland C++ 4 at least... And they also used completion in Delphi before M$ as well


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actually that feature exists in qbasic

So it was... But you also have to remember what language q-Basic (and VB for that matter) was programmed in . I think Turbo Pascal did as well

-Chris Bennett ("Insanity" of Dwarfsoft)

Check our site:
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made due to popular demand here at GDNet :)