CODEWITHSUNDEEP
arrayscstringcharcs50
vcordero
vcordero

Reputation: 1

Why am I getting "array initializer must be an initializer list or string literal" error message?

I was coding a function that receives a string, updates it, and then returns the same string, but with some changes. When I try copying that string in order to change it as an array, I'm getting the error message "array initializer must be an initializer list or string literal". Here's where I get the error:

string replace(string word)
{
    char updated[] = word;  // The error points out this line
}

>>> // error: array initializer must be an initializer list or string literal
//    char updated[] = word;
           ^

I'm trying to create an array of characters, in order to form a string, from a string literal. However, it doesn't seem to work. For now, I just want to understand better how an array of characters work and why this won't work. Thanks in advance!

Upvotes: 0

Views: 459

Answers (2)

Ted Lyngmo
Ted Lyngmo

Reputation: 117678

You need to strcpy/memcpy from word to updated, but you also need to allocate memory (malloc) for updated.

What you return shouldn't be a string, which is a typedef for char* that cs50 automatically releases (via an atexit callback) when the program exits, because your manual allocation will not be automatically free'd. You should return a char* that you later free.

Upvotes: 1

0___________
0___________

Reputation: 67835

char updated[] = word; is invalid in C as C language does not have constructors.

You need to:

char updated[strlen(word) + 1];
strcpy(updated, word);

Upvotes: 0

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