Extending MFC Applications with the .NET Framework

Using the Regex Class to Split Strings

The Regex class—defined in the System::Text::RegularExpressions namespace—encapsulates an immutable expression. By that, I mean that an instantiated Regex object can only represent the expression that was used to construct it. As a result, if you want to modify an expression once it's been used in the construction of a Regex object—or if you want to use multiple expressions—you'll need to construct a distinct Regex object for each desired modification or new expression. While at first blush this may seem like a limitation, as you work your way through the chapter, I'll bring this point into play at the appropriate times so that you see that the immutability of the Regex class is not a problem. I mention ...