Document Conventions

This book uses the following typographic conventions:

Example Description

STDIO.H Uppercase letters indicate filenames, segment names, registers, and terms used at the operating-system command level.
char, _setcolor, __far Bold type indicates C and C++ keywords, operators, language-specific characters, and library routines. Within discussions of syntax, bold type indicates that the text must be entered exactly as shown.
  Many functions and constants begin with either a single or double underscore. These are part of the name and are mandatory. For example, to have the __cplusplus manifest constant be recognized by the compiler, you must enter the leading double underscore.
expression Words in italic indicate placeholders for information you must supply, such as a filename.
grammar-elementopt The opt subscript indicates that this element of the grammar is optional and can be omitted.
[[option]] Items inside double square brackets are optional.
#pragma pack {1|2} Braces and a vertical bar indicate a choice among two or more items. You must choose one of these items unless double square brackets ([[ ]]) surround the braces.
#include <io.h> This font is used for examples, user input, program output, and error messages in text.
CL [[option...]] file... Three dots (an ellipsis) following an item indicate that more items having the same form may appear.
while() { . . . } A column or row of three dots tells you that part of an example program has been intentionally omitted.
CTRL+ENTER Small capital letters are used to indicate the names of keys on the keyboard. When you see a plus sign (+) between two key names, you should hold down the first key while pressing the second.
  The carriage-return key, sometimes marked as a bent arrow on the keyboard, is called ENTER.
“argument” Quotation marks enclose a new term the first time it is defined in text.
“C string” Some language constructs, such as strings, require quotation marks. Quotation marks required by the language have the form “ ” and ' ' rather than “ ” and ' '.
Color Graphics Adapter (CGA) The first time an acronym is used, it is usually spelled out.

Microsoft Specific This manual documents the C++ language, as it is implemented in Microsoft C/C++ version 7.0. As a result, some of the features of C++ that are implementation dependent or undefined in the ANSI base document are defined by the Microsoft implementation. You can find these features by looking for the “Microsoft Specific” heading in the left margin.
32-Bit Specific Your version of Microsoft C/C++ may have the capability of generating 32-bit flat-model code. Such compilations may differ slightly from compilations targeting 16-bit computers.
  When a particular feature is specific only to 32-bit compilations, it is marked by the “32-Bit Specific” heading in the left margin. In text, such compilations are referred to as “32-bit target compilations.”