Syntax of try{} and catch{}

Here is ONE form of the try/catch structure. (There are other forms soon to be discussed.)

try
{
  // statements which might throw 
  // various types of exceptions
}

catch ( SomeExceptionType ex )
{
  // statements to handle this
  // type of exception
}

catch ( AnotherExceptionType ex )
{
  // statements to handle this
  // type of exception
}

catch ( YetAnotherExceptionType ex )
{
  // statements to handle this
  // type of exception
}

// Statements following the structure

Here are a few syntax rules:

1. The statements in the try{} block can include:
   • Statements that always work.
   • Statements that might throw an Exception of one type or another.
2. One or several catch{} blocks follow the try() block.
   • Sometimes there can be no catch{} block. This will be discussed later in this chapter.
3. Each catch{} block says which type of Exception it catches.
   • It does this in a one-item parameter list: ( ExceptionType parameter )
   • The parameter is a reference variable that will refer to the Exception object when it is caught.