How can I point this string to the structure? - c

Question

#include <stdio.h>
#include <stdlib.h>
#include <string.h>
typedef struct{
char firstName[20];
char lastName[20];
int id;
char gender[10];
int monthOfBirth;
int dayOfBirth;
int yearOfBirth;
} HealthProfile;
void setName(HealthProfile *HP) {
char firstName;
char lastName;
printf("Enter your first and last name: ");
scanf("%s" "%s", &firstName, &lastName);
HP->firstName = firstName;
HP->lastName = lastName;
}
void setID(HealthProfile *HP) {
int id;
printf("Enter ID: ");
scanf("%d", &id);
HP->id = id;
}
void setGender(HealthProfile *HP) {
char gender;
// HealthProfile hp;
// strcpy(hp.gender, &gender);
printf("Enter your gender: ");
scanf("%s", &gender);
HP->gender = gender;
}
void setBD(HealthProfile *HP) {
int monthOfBirth;
int dayOfBirth;
int yearOfBirth;
printf("Enter your month of birth, day of birth and year of birth: ");
scanf("%d" "%d" "%d", &monthOfBirth, &dayOfBirth, &yearOfBirth);
HP->monthOfBirth = monthOfBirth;
HP->dayOfBirth = dayOfBirth;
HP->yearOfBirth = yearOfBirth;
}
int main(){
// pointer declared to HealthProfile structure
HealthProfile *HP;
// pointer initialized using malloc
HP = (HealthProfile*) malloc(sizeof(HealthProfile));
// Calls various functions
setID(HP);
setGender(HP);
setName(HP);
setBD(HP);
// Creates your profile
printf("Creating your Health Profile! \n");
printf("Profile created for: %s\n", HP->firstName);
printf("Lastname: %s\n", HP->lastName);
// prints ID
printf("ID: %d\n", HP->id);
printf("Gender: %s\n", HP->gender);
printf("Month of birth: %d\n", HP->monthOfBirth);
printf("day of birth: %d\n", HP->dayOfBirth);
printf("year of birth: %d\n", HP->yearOfBirth);
}
What I am trying to do is assign HP to a string but I get this error.
array type 'char [10]' is not assignable
HP->gender = gender;
(same error with first and last name of course) So I searched online and found out that char can't be assigned and strcpy should be used instead. As you can see by my failed attempt in the gender function.
Can someone help me fix my errors? Thanks

Answer 1

As you've discovered, you can't assign directly to an array. For strings in particular, you would need to use strcpy to copy a string from one array to another.
Additionally, gender is a single character, not an array. So passing &gender to scanf will cause the function to treat it as a pointer to a sequence of characters instead of a pointer to just one, resulting in the function writing past the memory bounds of the variable.
You can fix this by making gender an array of the proper size:
void setGender(HealthProfile *HP) {
char gender[10];
printf("Enter your gender: ");
scanf("%s", gender);
strcpy(HP->gender, gender);
}
Or you could skip the temp variable entirely and write directly to the field in the struct:
void setGender(HealthProfile *HP) {
printf("Enter your gender: ");
scanf("%s", HP->gender);
}
And do the same for reading firstname and lastname.

Answer 2

char gender; - gender is not an array. It is only one object of type char.
Thus, HP->gender = gender; does not work because gender does not decay to a pointer to char like an array would do.
Edit it to char gender[10].

Answer 3

actually I think that you should not using Assignment for string and array .Instead you should use strcpy and include string.h library.