Casting in C++

[mdh]

Hello everyone,

In the C++ books that I refer to, explanations for type casting is often vauge and confusing. So, I thought I might ask the gurus for a clear and succinct explanation. Here are my questions

* What is the difference between dynamic_cast and static_cast
* When do you prefer one of these to the other
* Why should these cast operators be prefered over C-style casts

[AngryPanda]

Here's a good lil' article that covers C++ various casting mechanisms. I found it insightful, anyway.

http://www.informit.com/articles/article.asp?p=397657&rl=1

[hod139]

This is a pre (http://www.informit.com/guides/content.asp?g=cplusplus&seqNum=134&rl=1)tty good guide (http://www.informit.com/guides/content.asp?g=cplusplus&seqNum=134&rl=1) explaining the differences between the 4 C++ casts "static_cast, const_cast, reinterpret_cast, dynamic_cast" and also why the C-style casting is bad.

In addition to the articles reasons for why C-style casting is bad, I would also add that you can't search for a C-style cast in exisiting source code. Using the new C++ style casts, you can easily search for them.

If you still have specific questions about the differences after reading the article just post back and someone can hopefully answer.

Edit: Wow, same article. Looks like I'm just too slow.