difference between if-then-else and conditional operator?

[MrPickle]

I'm not sure if I am using the right term but by conditional operator I mean ?:

e.g.;
statement ? value if true : value if false

What are the differences between if-then-else and ?:
Is it better to use if-then-else or will ?: suffice in quick situations?

For example, It strikes me as easier and better in the below example, but I often find with many languages that there is hidden drawbacks and/or it is frowned upon. to things so I thought I would check.

food = (monkey ? banana : cheese)

than this:

if(monkey)
{
   food = banana
}
else
{
   food = cheese
}
 
OR
 
if(monkey)
   food = banana
else
   food = cheese

Obviously, if-then-else would be better if there was more than one thing happening in between the braces.

[Banfa]

It's called the ternary operator (it is the only operator to take 3 parameters hence the rather generic name) or conditional expression.

The difference is the ternary operator is an expression where as an if-then-else is a statement.

The basic difference is an expression returns a value and a statement doesn't so the ternary operator can be used in places that an if statement can't.

Personally I tend to avoid using the ternary operator, I think it makes the code harder to read and has few (if any) advantages.

As to you 2 if statements I would always use the first, putting in the braces every time tends to lead to less maintenance issues.

[MrPickle]

So it doesn't effect the overall performance, just the clarity of the code?
Thanks (:

P.S:
@Banfa
I always tend to use the former out of my if-then-else example, I just put the other one in to clarify I knew you could do it.

[donbock]

I generally avoid the ternary operator because it doesn't seem to be used very commonly. (A positive feedback loop.) Maintainability is enhanced by avoiding uncommon or tricky code.

I suppose there is a theoretical advantage for the ternary operator in a conditional assignment. The lvalue variable only appears once in the ternary case but twice in the if-then-else case -- cutting the likelihood of typing the wrong variable name in half. I've never seen a bug of this sort so I don't consider this a compelling argument.

Another example of how I've seen the ternary operator used is for rounding a floating-point number:

value += (value >= 0.0) ? 0.5 : -0.5;

The ternary operator is a staple of entries in the Obfuscated C Contest; not a ringing endorsement.