Problem with if statement in C++

[Slender]

I am quiet new to the C++ programming language and i want to clear a doubt that i am having regarding the if statement in c program. Can you tell me whether it is better to use the if statement with it else part or with out the else part consider the following

if (x=a)
{}
else
if (x=b)
{}

or

if (x=a)
{}
if (x=b)
{}
which one of the following is better

[Praetor]

When it comes to C++ programming language you cannot predict which one is better because it all depends over the condition of your program. If you want the to check only one condition then you can use the if else statement and if you want to check with the condition then you will have to make use of the nested if statement and hence its hard t predict which one of them is better.

[Zecho]

If you are using the if else statement then you are comparing the value of the same variable with two values and the else part is also used to compare but most probably it is used whenever there is a need to compare the same variable with two different values. So if in your program you just have to compare the variable once using the if statement will be better.

[Slender]

Thanks for replying me friend i understood your point but confused a little that is if i am using two if statements then also i am comparing the values two times. I can compare the values of a single variable two as many number of times as i use the if statement. can you please provide me a suitable example for this and lastly thanks for the replies.

[opaper]

As you have asked for an example let's take the example what you gave with your query go to the first statement if (x=a) at this point if x=a then the then the else loop would not be executed the program will point to the statement immediately comes after the else part. Now when you come to the second statement if x=3 then again then irrespective of x value the second if loop will be executed once. But it all depends on your requirement.

[Reegan]

As far as the C++ language is concerned if you are using the else statement after the if statement then it wastes some of the compiler time so it is advisable to use nested if statement consider the program below and concentrate on its output

int x = 5;
cout << "With else statement:";
if ( cout << "\n\x == 5", x == 5 );
else if ( cout << "\n\x == 4", x == 4 );
cout << "Without else statement:";
if ( cout << "\n\x == 3", x == 3 );