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Re: compiler switch to indicate "end of function"?

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David Mathog <dmathog@gmail.com> writes:
> Sometimes when editing a source file a close brace is accidentally
> deleted, and when that happens, at least with gcc, the error messages
> are not very helpful in locating the error.  Error messages are
> generated from code below it, although not necessarily very near to
> it, going on sometimes to the end of the file, thousands of lines
> later.  These errors can propagate through dozens of functions.  Which
> makes me wonder if there is something in the standard like:
>
> #endfunction
>
> to tell the compiler that if there is anything dangling in a function
> at that point to throw an error there, and to start over cleanly below
> the compiler directive.  So that when
>
> void somefunc(void){
> /* bunch of stuff, including one too few "}" */
> }
> #endfunction
>
> it will be clear from the messages that the problem is in somefunc().
> In some instances I have had to emulate this by cutting off large
> chunks of a file with
>
> #ifdef NOTDEFINED
>
> until the code is small enough to find the error.

There's nothing like that in the standard, and I've never heard of
any compiler providing it as an extension.

When you get a syntax error, it's often best to ignore everything
but the first error message.  Anything after that tends to be the
result of the compiler's attempt to recover and continue parsing,
and C's grammar is such that the attempt often fails.

If I suspect I've left out a closing brace, I'll go to the line in
the source file corresponding to the first error message, then go
from there to the opening '{' of the enclosing function and try
to find the matching '}'.  (In vi/vim, '%' jumps to the matching
brace; other editors should have something similar).  If there is no
matching '}', or if there is but it's not at the right indentation,
I start looking at enclosed brace pairs.

Running the source file through a formatter ("indent -kr", for
example, or a "reformat source" command if you use a GUI IDE)
might also be helpful in narrowing down the problem.

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

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compiler switch to indicate "end of function"? David Mathog <dmathog@gmail.com> - 2011-05-10 09:00 -0700
  Re: compiler switch to indicate "end of function"? Tom St Denis <tom@iahu.ca> - 2011-05-10 10:08 -0700
  Re: compiler switch to indicate "end of function"? Ben Pfaff <blp@cs.stanford.edu> - 2011-05-10 10:30 -0700
    Re: compiler switch to indicate "end of function"? David Mathog <dmathog@gmail.com> - 2011-05-10 15:54 -0700
    Re: compiler switch to indicate "end of function"? David Mathog <dmathog@gmail.com> - 2011-05-10 15:56 -0700
      Re: compiler switch to indicate "end of function"? Keith Thompson <kst-u@mib.org> - 2011-05-10 17:41 -0700
        Re: compiler switch to indicate "end of function"? blp@cs.stanford.edu (Ben Pfaff) - 2011-05-10 21:07 -0700
    Re: compiler switch to indicate "end of function"? Datesfat Chicks <datesfat.chicks@gmail.com> - 2011-05-10 19:32 -0400
      Re: compiler switch to indicate "end of function"? Michael Press <rubrum@pacbell.net> - 2011-05-10 23:32 -0700
        Re: compiler switch to indicate "end of function"? Datesfat Chicks <datesfat.chicks@gmail.com> - 2011-05-11 11:49 -0400
          Re: compiler switch to indicate "end of function"? Michael Press <rubrum@pacbell.net> - 2011-05-11 14:19 -0700
  Re: compiler switch to indicate "end of function"? Keith Thompson <kst-u@mib.org> - 2011-05-10 10:37 -0700
  Re: compiler switch to indicate "end of function"? "Kleuskes & Moos" <kleuske@xs4all.nl> - 2011-05-10 13:34 -0700
    Re: compiler switch to indicate "end of function"? Seebs <usenet-nospam@seebs.net> - 2011-05-10 21:22 +0000
      Re: compiler switch to indicate "end of function"? "Kleuskes & Moos" <kleuske@xs4all.nl> - 2011-05-10 16:00 -0700
        Re: compiler switch to indicate "end of function"? Seebs <usenet-nospam@seebs.net> - 2011-05-11 03:16 +0000
      Re: compiler switch to indicate "end of function"? Ian Collins <ian-news@hotmail.com> - 2011-05-11 12:32 +1200
        Re: compiler switch to indicate "end of function"? Keith Thompson <kst-u@mib.org> - 2011-05-10 17:56 -0700
        Re: compiler switch to indicate "end of function"? blp@cs.stanford.edu (Ben Pfaff) - 2011-05-10 21:09 -0700
          Re: compiler switch to indicate "end of function"? Ian Collins <ian-news@hotmail.com> - 2011-05-11 16:14 +1200
            Re: compiler switch to indicate "end of function"? Ben Pfaff <blp@cs.stanford.edu> - 2011-05-10 21:19 -0700
              Re: compiler switch to indicate "end of function"? Ian Collins <ian-news@hotmail.com> - 2011-05-11 16:26 +1200
              Re: compiler switch to indicate "end of function"? Dr Nick <3-nospam@temporary-address.org.uk> - 2011-05-11 07:10 +0100
                Re: compiler switch to indicate "end of function"? Ian Collins <ian-news@hotmail.com> - 2011-05-11 20:50 +1200
                Re: compiler switch to indicate "end of function"? Dr Nick <3-nospam@temporary-address.org.uk> - 2011-05-11 18:53 +0100
              Re: compiler switch to indicate "end of function"? Sherm Pendley <sherm.pendley@gmail.com> - 2011-05-11 11:23 -0400
            Re: compiler switch to indicate "end of function"? Seebs <usenet-nospam@seebs.net> - 2011-05-11 05:30 +0000
      Re: compiler switch to indicate "end of function"? Jonathan Leffler <jleffler@earthlink.net> - 2011-05-10 21:26 -0700
        Re: compiler switch to indicate "end of function"? Keith Thompson <kst-u@mib.org> - 2011-05-11 08:07 -0700
      Re: compiler switch to indicate "end of function"? luser- -droog <mijoryx@yahoo.com> - 2011-05-11 06:04 -0700
        Re: compiler switch to indicate "end of function"? pete <pfiland@mindspring.com> - 2011-05-11 09:42 -0400
    Re: compiler switch to indicate "end of function"? Keith Thompson <kst-u@mib.org> - 2011-05-10 17:34 -0700
      Re: compiler switch to indicate "end of function"? David Mathog <dmathog@gmail.com> - 2011-05-12 08:44 -0700
        Re: compiler switch to indicate "end of function"? Kenneth Brody <kenbrody@spamcop.net> - 2011-05-12 13:41 -0400
          Re: compiler switch to indicate "end of function"? Michael Press <rubrum@pacbell.net> - 2011-05-12 12:08 -0700
            Re: compiler switch to indicate "end of function"? Chad <cdalten@gmail.com> - 2011-05-12 15:28 -0700
        Re: compiler switch to indicate "end of function"? Keith Thompson <kst-u@mib.org> - 2011-05-12 11:49 -0700
          Re: compiler switch to indicate "end of function"? David Mathog <dmathog@gmail.com> - 2011-05-13 08:56 -0700
            Re: compiler switch to indicate "end of function"? "robertwessel2@yahoo.com" <robertwessel2@yahoo.com> - 2011-05-14 00:03 -0700

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