What are TCHAR, WCHAR, LPSTR, LPWSTR, LPCTSTR (etc.)?

Ajay Vijayvargiya

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19 Apr 2012CPOL12 min read

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Many Windows C++ programmers get confused over what bizarre data type identifiers like TCHAR and LPCTSTR are. Here, in brief, I will try to clear out the fog.

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Written By

Ajay Vijayvargiya

Software Developer (Senior)

India

Started programming with GwBasic back in 1996 (Those lovely days!). Found the hidden talent!

Touched COBOL and Quick Basic for a while.

Finally learned C and C++ entirely on my own, and fell in love with C++, still in love! Began with Turbo C 2.0/3.0, then to VC6 for 4 years! Finally on VC2008/2010.

I enjoy programming, mostly the system programming, but the UI is always on top of MFC! Quite experienced on other environments and platforms, but I prefer Visual C++. Zeal to learn, and to share!

What are TCHAR, WCHAR, LPSTR, LPWSTR, LPCTSTR (etc.)?

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