string class problem

[SHUTitDOWNx]

Hey guys, sorry if this is a really really noob question, but i can't find any help in my textbook or online. I've searched everything I can and I just cant make sense of it, even though I feel like it's something very simple. I'm in a programming 1 class right now with only maybe 10 weeks of practice under my belt, FYI.

So, I have this extra credit and it's based on string class functions. It asks to:
1. Write a program that reads a person’s first and last name without any spaces, but with the * symbol between the 2 names.
2. In the main function, use string class functions to extract the first name from the string and store it in a second string object.
3. Then extract the last name and store it in a third string object.
4. Test your program to make sure it works correctly by displaying all three strings.

I understand how to use the functions insert, assign, etc., but I am lost as to how to know the position of the '*'. I know I can use the find function (wholeName.find('*')) to find the asterisk, but how do I know the position of it? This is what I have so far:

  #include<iostream>
#include<string>

using namespace std;

int main ()
{
	string wholeName;
	string firstName;
	string lastName;
	char index;

	cout << "Please enter your whole name, with a '*' symbol instead of a space: ";
	cin >> wholeName;

	wholeName.find(index); 
	firstName.assign(wholeName, 0, index);


	cout << firstName;


	cout << "Please press enter once or twice to continue...";
	cin.ignore().get();    			// hold console window open
	return EXIT_SUCCESS;           	// successful termination
}

Again, I apologize if this seems really stupid, I just can't wrap my head around it. If someone would like to actually code the program, just so i can see how it's done and not to cheat, that would also work. Any help is GREATLY appreciated. Thank you.

[Yanson]

The find method returns an unsigned int that coresponds to the character found. For example, if I entered Sam*Smith the find function would return 3. This number can then be used as an argument to the substr function to extract the names.

[SHUTitDOWNx]

Thanks for the reply. But how would I know the position would be 3? I want to get the position of the *, and then assign whatever is before it to another string and whatever is after it to another string. I understand that it would return position 3, but how am I supposed to know that if everyone's name is a different length? Wouldn't it be at a different position depending on what name was entered? I feel like I can't explain what's going on in my head so I apologize if I'm confusing.

[booradley60]

http://www.cplusplus.com/reference/string/string/find/

size_t indexOfStar = wholeName.find('*');

if (indexOfStar == string::npos)
{
    cout << "Didn't find a star." << endl;
}
else
{
    cout << "Found star at index: " << indexOfStar << endl;
}

[Yanson]

#include <iostream>
#include <string>
using namespace std;

int main()
{
	string wholeName;
	string firstName;
	string lastName;
	size_t starIndex;

	cout << "Please enter your first and last name separated by a *: ";
	getline(cin, wholeName);

	starIndex = wholeName.find('*');

	if (starIndex != std::string::npos)
	{

		firstName = wholeName.substr(0, starIndex);
		lastName = wholeName.substr(starIndex + 1);
		cout << "First name is: " << firstName << endl;
		cout << "Last Name is: " << lastName << endl;
	}
	else
	{
		cerr << "Please separate your name with a *";
	}

	cin.ignore();
	return 0;
}