Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism

From	David Brown <david.brown@hesbynett.no>
Newsgroups	comp.lang.c
Subject	Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism
Date	2016-09-15 13:19 +0200
Organization	A noiseless patient Spider
Message-ID	<nre03e$8m7$1@dont-email.me> (permalink)
References	<b0659440-88ee-4d0f-861e-d5bb1cd0890d@googlegroups.com> <b480679b-8d81-4c8b-bd37-5c846f20f6ea@googlegroups.com> <nrcd6m$7te$1@dont-email.me> <672e5191-f11d-4ac3-ad56-910569c12f48@googlegroups.com> <nrch1q$kee$1@dont-email.me>

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On 14/09/16 23:56, Richard Heathfield wrote:
> On 14/09/16 22:20, Thiago Adams wrote:
>> On Wednesday, September 14, 2016 at 5:50:50 PM UTC-3, Richard
>> Heathfield > Did you mean TypeSpecifier? In my experience,
>> mis-spellings are best
>>> corrected sooner rather than later, before they pollute the whole
>>> code base.
>>
>> Yes!
>>
>>> Why not just:
>>>
>>> SimpleTypeSpecifer * p = malloc(sizeof *p);
>>
>> I use visual C++, and I compile the same code in C and C++. For the
>> Microsoft compilers, the C++ version is usually better. (Produces
>> more error messages and faster exe) So the "C/C++ version" requires
>> more casts.
> 
> Um, okay, can we just take it as read that I'm wearing a mean, frowning
> expression, and leave it at that? I doubt very much whether I'd change
> your mind. But if it were me, I'd implement it as a C library, compile
> it under C rules, and then use C++'s "extern C" thing to link it in.
> 

The obvious alternative would be to write the whole thing in C++ rather
than C, and use a class hierarchy rather than a DIY solution with
unions, enums, etc.

You might still frown - after all, recommending C++ is blasphemy in
c.l.c - but at least the language and the compiler would be consistent.

(And don't newer versions of MSVS use clang for C, which is a perfectly
good C tool?)

>>
>> But this: SimpleTypeSpecifer * p = (SimpleTypeSpecifer *)
>> malloc(sizeof *p);
>>
>> works. I liked it.
>>
>>> You forgot something important. This should be:
>>>
>>> if(p != NULL) { p->object.type = type; }
>>>
>>>> return p; }
>>
>> Yes. This would be my next question. How do you handle memory failure
>> in your programs.
> 
> Let the caller decide. Always. A library routine should detect memory
> failure and report it to the caller. It should never arbitrarily abort,
> and it should never ignore the possibility of failure. The caller knows
> far better than you do what the library is being used for (even -- and
> perhaps especially -- if the caller is being written /by you/, six
> months from now).
> 
>> This is a parser program. Probably the best thing to do is exit on
>> memory failure.  But I may regret this decision in the future.
> 
> Well, if the parser program wants to bomb out, if that's the most
> sensible thing to do in the circumstances, fair enough. But let the
> parser program code decide that. Don't leave it up to the library function.
> 

In general, I agree.  But you might argue that out-of-memory errors are
never going to happen in this program - it will always be run on systems
with more than enough memory.  Thus checks for malloc failures are a bit
like checks for lightning strike on the machine - they are really
unlikely to happen, and if they /do/ happen, things have gone so badly
wrong that there is little you or the rest of the program can do about
it - letting the OS clear up the mess is fine.  Thus there is little
point in writing extra code to handle cases that won't happen - it's
just more effort, more things to get wrong, and more things to test (and
lets face it - how many people properly test all code paths in their
error handling code?).

Of course, there is a big difference between code that is for a small
user application, and code that runs on a serious server process.  And
if it is library code that could be used for either system, you have to
program for the most serious case.

Thread

Sugestions for runtime polymorphism Thiago Adams <thiago.adams@gmail.com> - 2016-09-14 12:01 -0700
  Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism Thiago Adams <thiago.adams@gmail.com> - 2016-09-14 13:15 -0700
  Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism Thiago Adams <thiago.adams@gmail.com> - 2016-09-14 13:27 -0700
    Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism Richard Heathfield <rjh@cpax.org.uk> - 2016-09-14 21:50 +0100
      Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism Thiago Adams <thiago.adams@gmail.com> - 2016-09-14 14:20 -0700
        Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism "James R. Kuyper" <jameskuyper@verizon.net> - 2016-09-14 17:32 -0400
          Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism Keith Thompson <kst-u@mib.org> - 2016-09-14 16:30 -0700
            Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism "James R. Kuyper" <jameskuyper@verizon.net> - 2016-09-14 17:54 -0400
          Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism Thiago Adams <thiago.adams@gmail.com> - 2016-09-14 17:34 -0700
            Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism Thiago Adams <thiago.adams@gmail.com> - 2016-09-14 17:58 -0700
              Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism Malcolm McLean <malcolm.mclean5@btinternet.com> - 2016-09-14 19:50 -0700
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism Thiago Adams <thiago.adams@gmail.com> - 2016-09-15 05:03 -0700
              Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism BartC <bc@freeuk.com> - 2016-09-15 10:43 +0100
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism Thiago Adams <thiago.adams@gmail.com> - 2016-09-15 05:29 -0700
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism BartC <bc@freeuk.com> - 2016-09-15 19:49 +0100
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism Thiago Adams <thiago.adams@gmail.com> - 2016-09-15 11:58 -0700
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism BartC <bc@freeuk.com> - 2016-09-15 20:29 +0100
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism Thiago Adams <thiago.adams@gmail.com> - 2016-09-15 14:00 -0700
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism Thiago Adams <thiago.adams@gmail.com> - 2016-09-16 07:27 -0700
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism BartC <bc@freeuk.com> - 2016-09-16 16:34 +0100
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism Thiago Adams <thiago.adams@gmail.com> - 2016-09-16 09:36 -0700
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism Thiago Adams <thiago.adams@gmail.com> - 2016-09-20 12:59 -0700
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism supercat@casperkitty.com - 2016-09-20 14:08 -0700
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism Ian Collins <ian-news@hotmail.com> - 2016-09-21 15:53 +1200
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism supercat@casperkitty.com - 2016-09-21 07:38 -0700
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism Ian Collins <ian-news@hotmail.com> - 2016-09-23 09:12 +1200
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism Thiago Adams <thiago.adams@gmail.com> - 2016-09-21 05:26 -0700
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism Thiago Adams <thiago.adams@gmail.com> - 2016-09-21 05:35 -0700
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism Malcolm McLean <malcolm.mclean5@btinternet.com> - 2016-09-21 06:01 -0700
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism Tim Rentsch <txr@alumni.caltech.edu> - 2016-09-22 01:44 -0700
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism BartC <bc@freeuk.com> - 2016-09-22 13:16 +0100
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism supercat@casperkitty.com - 2016-09-22 08:02 -0700
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism Keith Thompson <kst-u@mib.org> - 2016-09-22 11:44 -0700
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism supercat@casperkitty.com - 2016-09-22 09:52 -0700
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism David Brown <david.brown@hesbynett.no> - 2016-09-23 09:49 +0200
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism supercat@casperkitty.com - 2016-09-23 07:55 -0700
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism David Brown <david.brown@hesbynett.no> - 2016-09-24 16:29 +0200
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism Ben Bacarisse <ben.usenet@bsb.me.uk> - 2016-09-24 15:56 +0100
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism David Brown <david.brown@hesbynett.no> - 2016-09-24 17:50 +0200
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism "James R. Kuyper" <jameskuyper@verizon.net> - 2016-09-24 13:45 -0400
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism supercat@casperkitty.com - 2016-09-24 11:26 -0700
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism Tim Rentsch <txr@alumni.caltech.edu> - 2016-09-28 10:38 -0700
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism Ben Bacarisse <ben.usenet@bsb.me.uk> - 2016-09-24 21:03 +0100
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism David Brown <david.brown@hesbynett.no> - 2016-09-25 12:43 +0200
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism "James R. Kuyper" <jameskuyper@verizon.net> - 2016-09-25 11:48 -0400
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism David Brown <david.brown@hesbynett.no> - 2016-09-25 18:39 +0200
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism "James R. Kuyper" <jameskuyper@verizon.net> - 2016-09-25 13:14 -0400
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism supercat@casperkitty.com - 2016-09-25 13:47 -0700
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism Tim Rentsch <txr@alumni.caltech.edu> - 2016-09-28 10:39 -0700
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism David Brown <david.brown@hesbynett.no> - 2016-09-25 23:25 +0200
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism supercat@casperkitty.com - 2016-09-25 13:10 -0700
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism supercat@casperkitty.com - 2016-09-25 12:55 -0700
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism Ben Bacarisse <ben.usenet@bsb.me.uk> - 2016-09-25 20:38 +0100
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism David Brown <david.brown@hesbynett.no> - 2016-09-25 23:20 +0200
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism Tim Rentsch <txr@alumni.caltech.edu> - 2016-09-28 07:15 -0700
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism David Brown <david.brown@hesbynett.no> - 2016-09-28 21:29 +0200
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism supercat@casperkitty.com - 2016-09-24 10:52 -0700
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism supercat@casperkitty.com - 2016-09-24 10:33 -0700
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism David Brown <david.brown@hesbynett.no> - 2016-09-25 12:46 +0200
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism Keith Thompson <kst-u@mib.org> - 2016-09-24 13:58 -0700
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism Tim Rentsch <txr@alumni.caltech.edu> - 2016-09-28 04:46 -0700
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism Malcolm McLean <malcolm.mclean5@btinternet.com> - 2016-09-24 00:07 -0700
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism Tim Rentsch <txr@alumni.caltech.edu> - 2016-09-23 08:52 -0700
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism supercat@casperkitty.com - 2016-09-23 09:56 -0700
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism Tim Rentsch <txr@alumni.caltech.edu> - 2016-09-23 12:00 -0700
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism Tim Rentsch <txr@alumni.caltech.edu> - 2016-09-22 08:45 -0700
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism supercat@casperkitty.com - 2016-09-22 09:36 -0700
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism Tim Rentsch <txr@alumni.caltech.edu> - 2016-09-23 12:06 -0700
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism supercat@casperkitty.com - 2016-09-23 15:29 -0700
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism Tim Rentsch <txr@alumni.caltech.edu> - 2016-09-29 07:56 -0700
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism supercat@casperkitty.com - 2016-09-30 10:54 -0700
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism Thiago Adams <thiago.adams@gmail.com> - 2016-09-30 11:18 -0700
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism BartC <bc@freeuk.com> - 2016-09-30 19:26 +0100
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism supercat@casperkitty.com - 2016-09-30 12:41 -0700
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism Ben Bacarisse <ben.usenet@bsb.me.uk> - 2016-09-30 21:07 +0100
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism Malcolm McLean <malcolm.mclean5@btinternet.com> - 2016-09-30 23:30 -0700
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism Ben Bacarisse <ben.usenet@bsb.me.uk> - 2016-10-01 11:35 +0100
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism supercat@casperkitty.com - 2016-10-01 14:44 -0700
        Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism Richard Heathfield <rjh@cpax.org.uk> - 2016-09-14 22:56 +0100
          Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism David Brown <david.brown@hesbynett.no> - 2016-09-15 13:19 +0200
            Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism James Kuyper <jameskuyper@verizon.net> - 2016-09-15 08:07 -0400
              Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism David Brown <david.brown@hesbynett.no> - 2016-09-15 14:24 +0200
                Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism Richard Heathfield <rjh@cpax.org.uk> - 2016-09-15 15:34 +0100
            Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism Thiago Adams <thiago.adams@gmail.com> - 2016-09-15 05:10 -0700
          Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism supercat@casperkitty.com - 2016-09-15 09:12 -0700
        Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism BartC <bc@freeuk.com> - 2016-09-14 23:32 +0100
        Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism "Chris M. Thomasson" <invalid@invalid.invalid> - 2016-09-14 17:35 -0700
        Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism Ian Collins <ian-news@hotmail.com> - 2016-09-15 16:24 +1200
          Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism Keith Thompson <kst-u@mib.org> - 2016-09-15 10:31 -0700
    Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism BartC <bc@freeuk.com> - 2016-09-14 22:53 +0100
      Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism Keith Thompson <kst-u@mib.org> - 2016-09-14 16:56 -0700
        Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism supercat@casperkitty.com - 2016-09-14 15:58 -0700
          Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism Keith Thompson <kst-u@mib.org> - 2016-09-14 18:49 -0700
  Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism luser droog <luser.droog@gmail.com> - 2016-09-14 14:17 -0700
    Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism Thiago Adams <thiago.adams@gmail.com> - 2016-09-14 14:25 -0700
      Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism luser droog <luser.droog@gmail.com> - 2016-09-14 14:40 -0700
      Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism luser droog <luser.droog@gmail.com> - 2016-09-14 14:57 -0700
      Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism BartC <bc@freeuk.com> - 2016-09-14 23:10 +0100
  Re: Sugestions for runtime polymorphism Tim Rentsch <txr@alumni.caltech.edu> - 2016-09-15 11:23 -0700

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