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Re: strncpy and 'n'

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Jorgen Grahn <grahn+nntp@snipabacken.se> writes:
> On Mon, 2012-02-20, Keith Thompson wrote:
[...]
>> The point is that strncpy is a very different function from strcpy.
>> It is not intended to work with a *string* in the target array;
>> it works with a specialized data structure (used to store file
>> names in very early Unix systems).
>
> Malcolm McLean wrote something similar upthread. Do you have any
> references for this?
>
> It would explain the function's weird semantics, but I haven't seen
> anything before which says this is its background.  (There's also
> wcsncpy() for wchar_t -- that one is certainly newer, and useless in
> the data structures you mention.)

I don't have any definitive references, but there's at
least been plenty of speculation to that effect, for example
<http://stackoverflow.com/a/1454071/827263>.

-- 
Keith Thompson (The_Other_Keith) kst-u@mib.org  <http://www.ghoti.net/~kst>
    Will write code for food.
"We must do something.  This is something.  Therefore, we must do this."
    -- Antony Jay and Jonathan Lynn, "Yes Minister"

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Thread

strncpy and 'n' nroberts <roberts.noah@gmail.com> - 2012-02-16 09:05 -0800
  Re: strncpy and 'n' Anders Wegge Keller <wegge@wegge.dk> - 2012-02-16 18:57 +0100
    Re: strncpy and 'n' "A. K." <akk@nospam.org> - 2012-02-16 19:27 +0100
      Re: strncpy and 'n' Anders Wegge Keller <wegge@wegge.dk> - 2012-02-16 19:34 +0100
        Re: strncpy and 'n' "A. K." <akk@nospam.org> - 2012-02-16 20:58 +0100
  Re: strncpy and 'n' Keith Thompson <kst-u@mib.org> - 2012-02-16 10:01 -0800
    Re: strncpy and 'n' Malcolm McLean <malcolm.mclean5@btinternet.com> - 2012-02-16 11:10 -0800
      Re: strncpy and 'n' Keith Thompson <kst-u@mib.org> - 2012-02-16 14:20 -0800
        Re: strncpy and 'n' Malcolm McLean <malcolm.mclean5@btinternet.com> - 2012-02-17 04:19 -0800
          Re: strncpy and 'n' James Kuyper <jameskuyper@verizon.net> - 2012-02-17 10:04 -0500
            Re: strncpy and 'n' Malcolm McLean <malcolm.mclean5@btinternet.com> - 2012-02-17 10:27 -0800
            Re: strncpy and 'n' Malcolm McLean <malcolm.mclean5@btinternet.com> - 2012-02-17 11:22 -0800
              Re: strncpy and 'n' James Kuyper <jameskuyper@verizon.net> - 2012-02-17 14:40 -0500
                Re: strncpy and 'n' Malcolm McLean <malcolm.mclean5@btinternet.com> - 2012-02-18 02:17 -0800
    Re: strncpy and 'n' jgk@panix.com (Joe keane) - 2012-02-19 20:04 +0000
      Re: strncpy and 'n' Keith Thompson <kst-u@mib.org> - 2012-02-19 12:33 -0800
        Re: strncpy and 'n' jgk@panix.com (Joe keane) - 2012-02-20 21:25 +0000
          Re: strncpy and 'n' Keith Thompson <kst-u@mib.org> - 2012-02-20 14:46 -0800
            Re: strncpy and 'n' Jorgen Grahn <grahn+nntp@snipabacken.se> - 2012-02-23 23:13 +0000
              Re: strncpy and 'n' Keith Thompson <kst-u@mib.org> - 2012-02-23 16:20 -0800
              Re: strncpy and 'n' Philip Lantz <prl@canterey.us> - 2012-02-25 00:26 -0800
              Re: strncpy and 'n' pacman@kosh.dhis.org (Alan Curry) - 2012-02-26 01:34 +0000
                Re: strncpy and 'n' Jorgen Grahn <grahn+nntp@snipabacken.se> - 2012-02-28 22:46 +0000
                Re: strncpy and 'n' jgk@panix.com (Joe keane) - 2012-03-01 00:03 +0000
                Re: strncpy and 'n' Jorgen Grahn <grahn+nntp@snipabacken.se> - 2012-03-01 12:03 +0000
          Re: strncpy and 'n' James Kuyper <jameskuyper@verizon.net> - 2012-02-20 17:51 -0500
        Re: strncpy and 'n' Shao Miller <sha0.miller@gmail.com> - 2012-02-20 18:14 -0500
          Re: strncpy and 'n' pete <pfiland@mindspring.com> - 2012-02-20 23:16 -0500
            Re: strncpy and 'n' Shao Miller <sha0.miller@gmail.com> - 2012-02-25 01:51 -0500
              Re: strncpy and 'n' pete <pfiland@mindspring.com> - 2012-02-25 10:34 -0500
        Re: strncpy and 'n' Rich Webb <bbew.ar@mapson.nozirev.ten> - 2012-02-20 19:09 -0500
          Re: strncpy and 'n' Keith Thompson <kst-u@mib.org> - 2012-02-20 16:46 -0800
            Re: strncpy and 'n' Rich Webb <bbew.ar@mapson.nozirev.ten> - 2012-02-20 20:48 -0500
          Re: strncpy and 'n' Shao Miller <sha0.miller@gmail.com> - 2012-02-20 19:46 -0500
        Re: strncpy and 'n' jgk@panix.com (Joe keane) - 2012-02-21 21:46 +0000
          Re: strncpy and 'n' James Kuyper <jameskuyper@verizon.net> - 2012-02-21 17:15 -0500
          Re: strncpy and 'n' Keith Thompson <kst-u@mib.org> - 2012-02-21 14:29 -0800
            Re: strncpy and 'n' Malcolm McLean <malcolm.mclean5@btinternet.com> - 2012-02-22 01:15 -0800
            Re: strncpy and 'n' jgk@panix.com (Joe keane) - 2012-02-23 00:02 +0000
              Re: strncpy and 'n' Keith Thompson <kst-u@mib.org> - 2012-02-22 17:02 -0800
  Re: strncpy and 'n' Markus Schaub <usenet@markus-schaub.de> - 2012-02-16 18:53 +0000
  Re: strncpy and 'n' lawrence.jones@siemens.com - 2012-02-16 13:25 -0500
  Re: strncpy and 'n' blp@cs.stanford.edu (Ben Pfaff) - 2012-02-16 11:18 -0800
  Re: strncpy and 'n' Stephen Sprunk <stephen@sprunk.org> - 2012-02-16 13:29 -0600
    Re: strncpy and 'n' Ike Naar <ike@iceland.freeshell.org> - 2012-02-16 22:45 +0000
  Re: strncpy and 'n' ImpalerCore <jadill33@gmail.com> - 2012-02-16 11:32 -0800
  Re: strncpy and 'n' Nick Keighley <nick_keighley_nospam@hotmail.com> - 2012-02-17 00:50 -0800

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