I am working on a project and I want it to be in real time.

It is a restuarant program that lets you buy your meal. I am to have a specials menu that changes, but I want this to change in real time.

So what I would like is to have some function to have the previous date run saved to compare it to the new date run.

something like:


Regards,
Gene Saika

The code posted simply compares the current state of a variable over what it was previously. This is not necessarily an example of real-time processing.

• If the application has been running continuously, simply save the time the last menu was displayed & compare to the current time.
• If the application potentially has been terminated, simply save the time to disk, & read it the next time the application is invoked.

It looks like you are trying to use macros to determine the date of execution (realize that __DATE__ is a macro). These macros are expanded at compile time and thus would require a daily compile to ensure that they are current. Furthermore, you can not assign to a macro (well, you can depending on how you define it but that could be considered bad practice).
What would likely be the best solution for you would be to store a variable somewhere with the last date (get it however your system allows). Each time you want to check compare the current date (again, by whatever means your system provides) with that variable.
There are standard utilities to accomplish these actions on any well-known system.

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I know I can save the date to a file and open that file everytime the program is run, but would there be another option? I am trying to do this without too many extra files.

The basic problem is that you want to refer to retained data. If the data is saved in the process space, it will go away when the application terminates. If the data still needs to be referred to at the next invocation, then it will need to be retrieved from somewhere else -- & the obvious choice is from a file.
How many is too many? Assuming you have thought through the problem, & can rationalize all decisions made, then whatever is required is necessary.

If your comments revolves around data saved in multiple files, then another alternative is combining them.

For now two files might be too many.

So if there isn't another way then I will have to just save the file, but I'd rather another way.

Yes I know that anything I save to a local varible would be erased and that is why I mentioned the __DATE__ thing.

If doign this without saving to a file is not possible then I will, of course, just save to a file.

If you have multiple values to store there is no reason you cant store them all in a single file, in fact that is how some databases work.
The fact is when your program ends its memory is erased (not really, just reassigned) to make room for some other process. If you need any part of that memory before it is gone you need store it to some place persistent. This can be a database, flat file, removable media, and so on - each with a varying level of difficulty in execution.
Your other option, as I mentioned before, is to just keep your program running and use a variable within the program to track the current value.
This is what program design is all about; what fits best for your situation can only be decided by you.

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There are only so many ways to deal with persistence.

If you are dealing with Windows, you could write the value into the registry, but this is also an advanced subject which I recommend you avoid. It would also tie your solution to a specific operating system.

As stated before, I find it hard to believe that your instructor wants such bells & whistles.