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GNU libasprintf - automatic formatted output to strings
This package makes the C formatted output routines (fprintf et al.) usable
in C++ programs.
Sample use
----------
char *pathname = autosprintf ("%s/%s", directory, filename);
cerr << autosprintf ("syntax error in %s:%d: %s", filename, line, errstring);
Benefits
--------
The benefits of autosprintf over the usual "piecewise meal" idiom
cerr << "syntax error in " << filename << ":" << line << ": " << errstring;
are:
- Reuses of the standard POSIX printf facility. Easy migration from C to C++.
- English sentences are kept together.
- Internationalization requires format strings, because
1. Internationalization requires the ability for the translator to change
the order of parts of a sentence. The POSIX printf formatted output
functions (and thus also autosprintf) support this through the %m$ and
*m$ syntax.
2. Translators are used to translate one string per sentence, not
multiple strings per sentence, and not C++ code statements.
- Reduces the risk of programming errors due to forgotten state in the
output stream (e.g. 'cout << hex;' not followed by 'cout << dec;').
The benefits of autosprintf over C sprintf are:
- Autosprintf avoids buffer overruns and truncated results.
The C sprintf() function often leads to buffer overruns. On the other
hand, the C snprintf() function requires extra coding for an a priori
estimate of the result's size and truncates the result if the estimate
was too low.
- Autosprintf avoids memory leaks.
Temporarily allocated memory is cleaned up automatically.
Installation
------------
See INSTALL. Usually "./configure; make; make install" should work.
The installed files are:
- An include file "autosprintf.h" which defines the class 'autosprintf',
in the namespace 'gnu'.
- A library libasprintf containing this class.
Use
---
To use the class autosprintf, use
#include "autosprintf.h"
using gnu::autosprintf;
and link with the linker option
-lasprintf
Misc notes
----------
An instance of class 'autosprintf' contains the formatted output result;
this string is freed when the instance's destructor is run.
The class name 'autosprintf' is meant to remind the C function sprintf(),
the GNU C library function asprintf(), and the C++ autoptr programming idiom.
Distribution
------------
http://www.haible.de/bruno/gnu/libasprintf-1.0.tar.gz
Homepage
--------
http://www.haible.de/bruno/packages-libasprintf.html
Bug reports to:
---------------
<bug-gnu-gettext@gnu.org>
Bruno Haible <brunoe@clisp.org>
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