why we write return 0 at the end of program

[swapnil gaikwad]

mostly we write getch at the end..and what is the diference in between getch and return 0

[swapnil gaikwad]

mostly we write getch() at the end of program.so why we write return 0 ..and what is the difference in between getch and return 0

[Nepomuk]

Hi swapnil gaikwad and welcome to bytes.com!

I think explaining what those two statements do will make it clear where the difference lies. So here goes:

• getch is a function that will wait for input and then read this input. It is often used at the end of programs to make sure the window you run it in doesn't close immediately. You can however use it to read input.
• return is a statement used to return a value at the end of a function. If you define a function yourself you will use this to decide what the result of that function should be. In the main function it is used to give feedback to the caller, meaning the program that started your program. This is often the command line or the IDE. If you return 0 at the end and this value is interpreted, 0 means "everything is OK". Returning a different value is often interpreted as an error, so this is a method to get error codes.

Hope that helps.