@AndyC:
This is interesting though, drilling in with the debugger reveals that in C++ the cout << (int) i=10 << endl; uses sprintf to convert the number; also "stringstream >>" also uses native "C" and it's not even as pretty as sscanf, but it does look safer. I like sprintf because it gives me the control over formatting ranges (usually pre-pending 0's). Also, with my outdated experience I can do it without hitting the books. If you know a good way in C++ then you could help bring me into the new century.
