Need help in C++

[Mavrick]

As a term project, I'm doing a little electronic agenda program in c++. To keep it simple, the agenda is a class containing an array of pointers, and each pointers points to an object "person" (from a class that I created). The only problem is that I HAVE TO store each person in the array in alphabetical order of last name, and then of first name (for people with the same last name). Anybody knows a way I could do it?

The program would have to store each newly created person at the right place in the array, so that the array will always be in alphabeticl order.

Thanx in advance!

 

[CygnusX1]

It's been a while since I took my Datatypes and Algorithms course but isn't the easiest way to do that called a "bubble sort"? Unless someone else jumps in who has a better memory of it, I'll try to explain...

CygnusX1

 

[Mavrick]

A bubble sort? I don't know what it is.. I'd really appreciate if you could tell me a bit about that please.

 

[|TOAST|]

I took some programming and that was nearly 5 years ago and I recall "bubble sort" as the way to do it. I could be wrong since time often alters the memory.

 

[CygnusX1]

Here's a decent description of it. It isn't a very efficient algorithm but it is the simplist way to do what you describe:
http://www.cs.adfa.oz.au/teaching/studinfo/ada/Searching/bubble_sort.html

 

[Jay59express]

Yup, a bubble sort would work, or you could also do a selection sort. First I would set up a FOR loop that steps through each index of the array. I would then string compare the last name at that index to the name you are trying to insert. Find where it needs to go, insert it, making sure to put the first name array in the same index. If two last names are the same, strcmp the first names and determine which one is less, and swap them.

 

[Mavrick]

Alright. Thanks guys!

 

[thorin]

Just do a sort (bubble should work fine), and if need be concatinate the first/last name to make comparison easy.

Thorin