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| From | Bartc <bc@freeuk.com> |
|---|---|
| Newsgroups | comp.lang.c |
| Subject | Re: Pointers, constant values |
| Date | 2015-10-17 01:23 +0100 |
| Organization | A noiseless patient Spider |
| Message-ID | <mvs4b1$ve1$1@dont-email.me> (permalink) |
| References | (5 earlier) <87io66r30y.fsf@bsb.me.uk> <mvrm33$d10$1@dont-email.me> <871tcur0gn.fsf@bsb.me.uk> <mvrpkd$qec$1@dont-email.me> <87vba6pjow.fsf@bsb.me.uk> |
On 16/10/2015 22:50, Ben Bacarisse wrote:
> Bartc <bc@freeuk.com> writes:
>
>> On 16/10/2015 22:02, Ben Bacarisse wrote:
>>> Bartc <bc@freeuk.com> writes:
>>
>>>> Why not? If you want to access the array from inside the function, my
>>>> point is it makes more sense, type-wise, to pass a pointer to the
>>>> array, rather than a pointer to an int.
>>>
>>> I don't want to argue about what "not much point" is. Maybe you see
>>> enough point that it exceeds your threshold for "not much". That's
>>> fine. If so, I offer the C99 option as slightly more useful.
>>
>> The 'point' is that in what seems to be 99% of C code, the wrong type
>> is being passed.
>
> Surely that depends on what type you want to pass.
Arrays, or the closest that C can manage. Whenever an array of T needs
to be passed to a function, then invariably, a T* pointer will be passed
instead.
So despite having an array object at one end, and accessing that array
object at the other, the bit in the middle - the parameter type - isn't
an array at all, not even a pointer to an array.
>> by means of applying offsets to them and treating them as arrays. C
>> allows this, it's convenient, and everyone turns a blind eye.
>
> I don't turn a blind eye. I know exactly what's going on. And since
> passing a pointer to the array is usually as "wrong" (to borrow your
> phrase) as passing a pointer to the start of it, there is no reason not
> to use the convenient alternative.
C can't pass value arrays. Then you can pass a pointer, which is usually
preferable anyway. The question is, what kind of pointer?
If the array is of type T, then the choice is between passing T(*)[] and
T*. So:
Caller: Parameter Dereferenced in callee:
(1) T[] T* T
(2) T[] T(*)[] T[]
(The dereference is an operation that C can't do directly for pointers
to arrays, as it can't deal with actual array values, and the bounds
might be missing anyway, but it can do so just before applying a []
indexing op.)
Here, using T* for the parameter (1), the original T[] can't be
recovered. With the T(*)[] parameter (2), it can. That's why (1) is wrong.
Also, with (1), it's possible to pass a pointer to a scalar, instead of
an array, another reason why it's wrong if the callee expects the latter.
--
Bartc
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Pointers, constant values Alla _ <modelling.data@gmail.com> - 2015-10-16 00:49 -0700
Re: Pointers, constant values Philip Lantz <prl@canterey.us> - 2015-10-16 01:49 -0700
Re: Pointers, constant values James Kuyper <jameskuyper@verizon.net> - 2015-10-16 09:41 -0400
Re: Pointers, constant values supercat@casperkitty.com - 2015-10-16 08:55 -0700
Re: Pointers, constant values Keith Thompson <kst-u@mib.org> - 2015-10-16 08:25 -0700
Re: Pointers, constant values supercat@casperkitty.com - 2015-10-16 09:11 -0700
Re: Pointers, constant values Keith Thompson <kst-u@mib.org> - 2015-10-16 12:06 -0700
Re: Pointers, constant values supercat@casperkitty.com - 2015-10-16 12:55 -0700
Re: Pointers, constant values Bartc <bc@freeuk.com> - 2015-10-16 17:49 +0100
Re: Pointers, constant values Lew Pitcher <lew.pitcher@digitalfreehold.ca> - 2015-10-16 13:23 -0400
Re: Pointers, constant values Bartc <bc@freeuk.com> - 2015-10-16 19:34 +0100
Re: Pointers, constant values supercat@casperkitty.com - 2015-10-16 12:05 -0700
Re: Pointers, constant values Keith Thompson <kst-u@mib.org> - 2015-10-16 12:18 -0700
Re: Pointers, constant values Keith Thompson <kst-u@mib.org> - 2015-10-16 12:13 -0700
Re: Pointers, constant values Bartc <bc@freeuk.com> - 2015-10-16 20:33 +0100
Re: Pointers, constant values Keith Thompson <kst-u@mib.org> - 2015-10-16 13:01 -0700
Re: Pointers, constant values Bartc <bc@freeuk.com> - 2015-10-16 21:09 +0100
Re: Pointers, constant values Keith Thompson <kst-u@mib.org> - 2015-10-16 13:41 -0700
Re: Pointers, constant values Ben Bacarisse <ben.usenet@bsb.me.uk> - 2015-10-16 21:07 +0100
Re: Pointers, constant values Bartc <bc@freeuk.com> - 2015-10-16 21:20 +0100
Re: Pointers, constant values Ben Bacarisse <ben.usenet@bsb.me.uk> - 2015-10-16 22:02 +0100
Re: Pointers, constant values Bartc <bc@freeuk.com> - 2015-10-16 22:21 +0100
Re: Pointers, constant values supercat@casperkitty.com - 2015-10-16 14:39 -0700
Re: Pointers, constant values Keith Thompson <kst-u@mib.org> - 2015-10-16 15:26 -0700
Re: Pointers, constant values supercat@casperkitty.com - 2015-10-16 15:44 -0700
Re: Pointers, constant values Keith Thompson <kst-u@mib.org> - 2015-10-16 16:58 -0700
Re: Pointers, constant values supercat@casperkitty.com - 2015-10-16 17:28 -0700
Re: Pointers, constant values Ben Bacarisse <ben.usenet@bsb.me.uk> - 2015-10-16 22:50 +0100
Re: Pointers, constant values supercat@casperkitty.com - 2015-10-16 15:14 -0700
Re: Pointers, constant values Bartc <bc@freeuk.com> - 2015-10-17 01:23 +0100
Re: Pointers, constant values Ben Bacarisse <ben.usenet@bsb.me.uk> - 2015-10-17 19:39 +0100
Re: Pointers, constant values Bartc <bc@freeuk.com> - 2015-10-17 22:42 +0100
Re: Pointers, constant values Ben Bacarisse <ben.usenet@bsb.me.uk> - 2015-10-18 00:31 +0100
Re: Pointers, constant values Bartc <bc@freeuk.com> - 2015-10-18 02:11 +0100
Re: Pointers, constant values Ben Bacarisse <ben.usenet@bsb.me.uk> - 2015-10-18 11:59 +0100
Re: Pointers, constant values Bartc <bc@freeuk.com> - 2015-10-18 12:12 +0100
Re: Pointers, constant values Bartc <bc@freeuk.com> - 2015-10-18 12:28 +0100
Re: Pointers, constant values Ben Bacarisse <ben.usenet@bsb.me.uk> - 2015-10-18 23:16 +0100
Re: Pointers, constant values Bartc <bc@freeuk.com> - 2015-10-18 23:34 +0100
Re: Pointers, constant values Ben Bacarisse <ben.usenet@bsb.me.uk> - 2015-10-19 01:45 +0100
Re: Pointers, constant values Bartc <bc@freeuk.com> - 2015-10-19 11:51 +0100
Re: Pointers, constant values Ben Bacarisse <ben.usenet@bsb.me.uk> - 2015-10-19 12:55 +0100
Re: Pointers, constant values Bartc <bc@freeuk.com> - 2015-10-19 13:51 +0100
Re: Pointers, constant values Malcolm McLean <malcolm.mclean5@btinternet.com> - 2015-10-19 06:02 -0700
Re: Pointers, constant values supercat@casperkitty.com - 2015-10-19 07:02 -0700
Re: Pointers, constant values Bartc <bc@freeuk.com> - 2015-10-19 15:39 +0100
Re: Pointers, constant values supercat@casperkitty.com - 2015-10-19 08:54 -0700
Re: Pointers, constant values Malcolm McLean <malcolm.mclean5@btinternet.com> - 2015-10-19 09:14 -0700
Re: Pointers, constant values supercat@casperkitty.com - 2015-10-19 10:21 -0700
Re: Pointers, constant values Malcolm McLean <malcolm.mclean5@btinternet.com> - 2015-10-19 12:57 -0700
Re: Pointers, constant values glen herrmannsfeldt <gah@ugcs.caltech.edu> - 2015-10-19 21:20 +0000
Re: Pointers, constant values supercat@casperkitty.com - 2015-10-20 20:50 -0700
Re: Pointers, constant values glen herrmannsfeldt <gah@ugcs.caltech.edu> - 2015-10-21 04:58 +0000
Re: Pointers, constant values Keith Thompson <kst-u@mib.org> - 2015-10-19 08:40 -0700
Re: Pointers, constant values Ben Bacarisse <ben.usenet@bsb.me.uk> - 2015-10-19 20:17 +0100
Re: Pointers, constant values supercat@casperkitty.com - 2015-10-17 16:44 -0700
Re: Pointers, constant values Ben Bacarisse <ben.usenet@bsb.me.uk> - 2015-10-18 11:52 +0100
Re: Pointers, constant values Malcolm McLean <malcolm.mclean5@btinternet.com> - 2015-10-18 05:15 -0700
Re: Pointers, constant values Ben Bacarisse <ben.usenet@bsb.me.uk> - 2015-10-18 21:54 +0100
Re: Pointers, constant values Malcolm McLean <malcolm.mclean5@btinternet.com> - 2015-10-18 16:09 -0700
Re: Pointers, constant values supercat@casperkitty.com - 2015-10-18 07:55 -0700
Re: Pointers, constant values Ben Bacarisse <ben.usenet@bsb.me.uk> - 2015-10-18 21:47 +0100
Re: Pointers, constant values supercat@casperkitty.com - 2015-10-18 15:37 -0700
Re: Pointers, constant values Ben Bacarisse <ben.usenet@bsb.me.uk> - 2015-10-19 00:10 +0100
Re: Pointers, constant values supercat@casperkitty.com - 2015-10-18 19:04 -0700
Re: Pointers, constant values Ben Bacarisse <ben.usenet@bsb.me.uk> - 2015-10-16 21:13 +0100
Re: Pointers, constant values Ian Collins <ian-news@hotmail.com> - 2015-10-17 11:27 +1300
Re: Pointers, constant values Bartc <bc@freeuk.com> - 2015-10-17 00:56 +0100
Re: Pointers, constant values Les Cargill <lcargill99@comcast.com> - 2015-10-16 12:37 -0500
Re: Pointers, constant values James Kuyper <jameskuyper@verizon.net> - 2015-10-16 14:22 -0400
Re: Pointers, constant values Jorgen Grahn <grahn+nntp@snipabacken.se> - 2015-10-16 18:57 +0000
Re: Pointers, constant values Ben Bacarisse <ben.usenet@bsb.me.uk> - 2015-10-16 20:40 +0100
Re: Pointers, constant values Jorgen Grahn <grahn+nntp@snipabacken.se> - 2015-10-16 20:46 +0000
Re: Pointers, constant values Keith Thompson <kst-u@mib.org> - 2015-10-16 14:24 -0700
Re: Pointers, constant values Jorgen Grahn <grahn+nntp@snipabacken.se> - 2015-10-19 12:43 +0000
Re: Pointers, constant values Siri Cruz <chine.bleu@yahoo.com> - 2015-10-16 13:20 -0700
Re: Pointers, constant values supercat@casperkitty.com - 2015-10-17 13:59 -0700
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