[c++] How to append a char to a std::string?

The following fails with the error prog.cpp:5:13: error: invalid conversion from ‘char’ to ‘const char*’

int main()
{
  char d = 'd';
  std::string y("Hello worl");
  y.append(d); // Line 5 - this fails
  std::cout << y;
  return 0;
}

I also tried, the following, which compiles but behaves randomly at runtime:

int main()
{
  char d[1] = { 'd' };
  std::string y("Hello worl");
  y.append(d);
  std::cout << y;
  return 0;
}

Sorry for this dumb question, but I've searched around google, what I could see are just "char array to char ptr", "char ptr to char array", etc.

int main()
{
  char d = 'd';
  std::string y("Hello worl");

  y += d;
  y.push_back(d);
  y.append(1, d); //appending the character 1 time
  y.insert(y.end(), 1, d); //appending the character 1 time
  y.resize(y.size()+1, d); //appending the character 1 time
  y += std::string(1, d); //appending the character 1 time
}

Note that in all of these examples you could have used a character literal directly: y += 'd';.

Your second example almost would have worked, for unrelated reasons. char d[1] = { 'd'}; didn't work, but char d[2] = { 'd'}; (note the array is size two) would have been worked roughly the same as const char* d = "d";, and a string literal can be appended: y.append(d);.

I found a simple way... I needed to tack a char on to a string that was being built on the fly. I needed a char list; because I was giving the user a choice and using that choice in a switch() statement.

I simply added another std::string Slist; and set the new string equal to the character, "list" - a, b, c or whatever the end user chooses like this:

char list;
std::string cmd, state[], Slist;
Slist = list; //set this string to the chosen char;
cmd = Slist + state[x] + "whatever";
system(cmd.c_str());

Complexity may be cool but simplicity is cooler. IMHO

str.append(10u,'d'); //appends character d 10 times

Notice I have written 10u and not 10 for the number of times I'd like to append the character; replace 10 with whatever number.

Try the += operator link text, append() method link text, or push_back() method link text

The links in this post also contain examples of how to use the respective APIs.

To add a char to a std::string var using the append method, you need to use this overload:

std::string::append(size_type _Count, char _Ch)

Edit : Your're right I misunderstood the size_type parameter, displayed in the context help. This is the number of chars to add. So the correct call is

s.append(1, d);

not

s.append(sizeof(char), d);

Or the simpliest way :

s += d;

Try using the d as pointer y.append(*d)

I test the several propositions by running them into a large loop. I used microsoft visual studio 2015 as compiler and my processor is an i7, 8Hz, 2GHz.

    long start = clock();
    int a = 0;
    //100000000
    std::string ret;
    for (int i = 0; i < 60000000; i++)
    {
        ret.append(1, ' ');
        //ret += ' ';
        //ret.push_back(' ');
        //ret.insert(ret.end(), 1, ' ');
        //ret.resize(ret.size() + 1, ' ');
    }
    long stop = clock();
    long test = stop - start;
    return 0;

According to this test, results are :

     operation             time(ms)            note
------------------------------------------------------------------------
append                     66015
+=                         67328      1.02 time slower than 'append'
resize                     83867      1.27 time slower than 'append'
push_back & insert         90000      more than 1.36 time slower than 'append'

Conclusion

+= seems more understandable, but if you mind about speed, use append

the problem with:

std::string y("Hello worl");
y.push_back('d')
std::cout << y;

is that you have to have the 'd' as opposed to using a name of a char, like char d = 'd'; Or am I wrong?

If you are using the push_back there is no call for the string constructor. Otherwise it will create a string object via casting, then it will add the character in this string to the other string. Too much trouble for a tiny character ;)

Also adding insert option, as not mentioned yet.

std::string str("Hello World");
char ch;

str.push_back(ch);  //ch is the character to be added
OR
str.append(sizeof(ch),ch);
OR
str.insert(str.length(),sizeof(ch),ch) //not mentioned above

In addition to the others mentioned, one of the string constructors take a char and the number of repetitions for that char. So you can use that to append a single char.

std::string s = "hell";
s += std::string(1, 'o');

Use push_back():

std::string y("Hello worl");
y.push_back('d')
std::cout << y;