Difference: cin.getline() and getline(cin, st)

Question

Which one is better and preferred? I am really finding the reading API confusing.

Answer 1

The member version reads into a char*, the free version reads into a std::string. So prefer the free version! Use it like this:

std::istream & ins = /* ... */;
std::string line;
while (std::getline(ins, line))
{
  // process line
}