Question

I’ve been messing around with C++ SDL for a few days now and I’ve come across an interesting problem.

SDL_Event event1;
while(SDL_WaitEvent(&event1))
{
    for(size_t i = 0; i < MainMenuOptions.size();i++)
    {
        if(event1.button.x > MainMenuOptions.at(i).GetX() && event1.button.x < (MainMenuOptions.at(i).GetX() + MainMenuOptions.at(i).GetWidth())  
        && event1.button.y > MainMenuOptions.at(i).GetY()  && event1.button.y < (MainMenuOptions.at(i).GetY() + MainMenuOptions.at(i).GetHeight()))
        {
            break;
        }
    }
}

When I use break in the for loop its going to break out of the for loop instead of the while loop. How would I break out the while loop instead without using the goto statement? (the goto statement is bad programming, I heard)

Answer 1

There’s another answer to that, and I think I should say it before everyone will downvote me.
Using a variable is certainly a “good” way to do it. However, the creating additional variable just to jump out of the loop seems a bit of overkill, right?

So yes, this time goto is perfect solution. It’s perfectly clear what you are doing with it, you are not using another variable and the code remains short, maintainable and readable.

The statement goto is bad practice is mostly a remnant of the BASIC times, when it was quite the only way of changing code flow. However, now we “know better”, and saying that the goto or any other construction is bad, just doesn’t cut it. It can be bad for one particular problem you are trying to solve with it (and it’s the case with most of the problems that people try to solve with goto). However, given the right circumstances (like here) it’s OK. I don’t want to start a debate here, of course. Goto is like a very powerful tool (sledgehammer, for example). It has its uses and you can’t say a tool is totally bad; it’s the user using it in the wrong way.