title: Prompt for and receive a date "MM/DD/YYYY" using CIN, ignoring the "/" characters? (in C++)
body: <p>Yes, this is for an assignment. I do not mind working to get an answer and I do not want the exact answer! :) This is my first C++ class. I've come into this class with prior knowledge of VBA, MySql, CSS, and HTML.</p>
  
  <p>We are required to write a program with several different functions. One of them is required to receive the date input in a <em><code>"MM/DD/YYYY"</code></em> format.
  While that in of itself is easy enough; as a beginner I would just put</p>
  
  <pre><code>cin &gt;&gt; month &gt;&gt; day &gt;&gt; year;
  </code></pre>
  
  <p>And insert the "/" afterwards when displaying back to the user.</p>
  
  <p>However, I believe our professor would like the user to input the date by exactly typing "12/5/2013", or any other date.</p>
  
  <p><br /></p>
  
  <p>Per his instructions:</p>
  
  <blockquote>
    <p><em>The <code>'/'</code> can be read by cin. So read the <code>'/'</code> character and ignore it. Set day to equal the 3rd input, month to the first input, and year to the fifth input. Discard the 2nd and 4th input.</em></p>
  </blockquote>
  
  <p>^ That is where I am thrown off course. </p>
  
  <p><br /></p>
  
  <p>So far we have only experienced cin when the user hits enter after each input. So I don't know if he wants the user to hit enter after 12, then again after '/', then after 5, after '/', and lastly after '2013' (using the prior example of 12/5/2013 for December 5th, 2013). </p>
  
  <p>Does anyone more experienced have any possible insight as to what I should be doing? 
  We have only been taught how to use "cin" to receive inputs (so we know no other methods for receiving input), and I have no idea how to go about "ignoring a character" when entered as a string such as '12/5/2013' exactly.</p>
  
  <p>I would greatly appreciate any help with this!</p>
  
  <p>edit: I have looked for answers on here but all of the ones that I have come across are beyond the scope of what we have been taught and are therefore not allowed in the assignment.
  While I can go about understanding the logic of more advance coding easily enough, I am frustrated at my lack of ability to solve these simpler problems with any amount of ease. Hence my posting on here. I have spent several hours scanning our textbook for possible answers or clues to 'ignoring' characters in an input string but have come up short. </p>