Advantage of switch over if-else statement

Question

What\'s the best practice for using a switch statement vs using an if statement for 30 unsigned enumerations where about 10 have an ex

Answer 1

When it comes to compiling the program, I don't know if there is any difference. But as for the program itself and keeping the code as simple as possible, I personally think it depends on what you want to do. if else if else statements have their advantages, which I think are:

allow you to test a variable against specific ranges you can use functions (Standard Library or Personal) as conditionals.

(example:

`int a;
 cout<<"enter value:\n";
 cin>>a;

 if( a > 0 && a < 5)
   {
     cout<<"a is between 0, 5\n";

   }else if(a > 5 && a < 10)

     cout<<"a is between 5,10\n";

   }else{

       "a is not an integer, or is not in range 0,10\n";

However, If else if else statements can get complicated and messy (despite your best attempts) in a hurry. Switch statements tend to be clearer, cleaner, and easier to read; but can only be used to test against specific values (example:

`int a;
 cout<<"enter value:\n";
 cin>>a;

 switch(a)
 {
    case 0:
    case 1:
    case 2: 
    case 3:
    case 4:
    case 5:
        cout<<"a is between 0,5 and equals: "<

I prefer if - else if - else statements, but it really is up to you. If you want to use functions as the conditions, or you want to test something against a range, array, or vector and/or you don't mind dealing with the complicated nesting, I would recommend using If else if else blocks. If you want to test against single values or you want a clean and easy to read block, I would recommend you use switch() case blocks.