I remember vaguely Walter mentioning the use of void[] in D to facilitate the same ability as void* in C... could a little syntax sugar be devised to support variable parameter lists using void[]?  Maybe something like:

void myprintf(char[] format, void[][] @data) {
  int idx;
  char fc;
  char[] out;
  // ...
  switch (fc) {
    case 'd':
      out ~= .toString(cast(int) data[idx++]);
      break;

    // ...

    case 's':
      out ~= .toString(cast(char[]) data[idx++]);
      break;

    // ...
  }
  // ...
}

Just a thought.

-C. Sauls
-Invironz

Just to see if this would technically work at all, I tossed together this little experiment, with (IMHO) pretty good results.  Please excuse the extrememly rudimentary print() function.  :)

[Source code attached]

-C. Sauls
-Invironz

On Sun, 28 Mar 2004 20:24:25 -0600, "C. Sauls" <ibisbasenji@yahoo.com> wrote:

>Just to see if this would technically work at all, I tossed together this little experiment, with (IMHO) pretty good results.  Please excuse the extrememly rudimentary print() function.  :)

I think that code will only work for data that fits inside (void[]).sizeof bytes. Since "int" and "char[]" fit it works but with a big struct it wouldn't. For anything bigger it would be taking a (void[]).sizeof chunk out of the data and passing that around. Remember dynamic arrays consist of a length int followed by a pointer to the data (in this case that pointer has type void*).

>[Source code attached]
>
>-C. Sauls
>-Invironz

Ben Hinkle wrote:

>On Sun, 28 Mar 2004 20:24:25 -0600, "C. Sauls" <ibisbasenji@yahoo.com>
>wrote:
>
>  
>
>>Just to see if this would technically work at all, I tossed together this little experiment, with (IMHO) pretty good results.  Please excuse the extrememly rudimentary print() function.  :)
>>    
>>
>
>I think that code will only work for data that fits inside
>(void[]).sizeof bytes. Since "int" and "char[]" fit it works
>but with a big struct it wouldn't. For anything bigger it
>would be taking a (void[]).sizeof chunk out of the data and
>passing that around. Remember dynamic arrays consist of a length int followed by a pointer to the data (in this case
>that pointer has type void*).
>  
>
Why not simply make these things pointers?

-- 
-Anderson: http://badmama.com.au/~anderson/

Just tried rigging up a struct with two int fields and a char[] field. The ints work jut fine, the char[] is lost, so you have a point.

-C. Sauls
-Invironz

Ben Hinkle wrote:
> On Sun, 28 Mar 2004 20:24:25 -0600, "C. Sauls" <ibisbasenji@yahoo.com>
> wrote:
> 
> 
>>Just to see if this would technically work at all, I tossed together this little experiment, with (IMHO) pretty good results.  Please excuse the extrememly rudimentary print() function.  :)
> 
> 
> I think that code will only work for data that fits inside
> (void[]).sizeof bytes. Since "int" and "char[]" fit it works
> but with a big struct it wouldn't. For anything bigger it
> would be taking a (void[]).sizeof chunk out of the data and
> passing that around. Remember dynamic arrays consist of a length int followed by a pointer to the data (in this case
> that pointer has type void*).
> 
> 
>>[Source code attached]
>>
>>-C. Sauls
>>-Invironz
> 
> 

If you mean to make data of type void*[] instead of void[][] that won't work... I tried it.  Cannot (apparently) cast a char[] or a struct to void*, but can cast anything to void[] (with varying degrees of success).

-C. Sauls
-Invironz

J Anderson wrote:
> Ben Hinkle wrote:
> 
>> On Sun, 28 Mar 2004 20:24:25 -0600, "C. Sauls" <ibisbasenji@yahoo.com>
>> wrote:
>>
>>  
>>
>>> Just to see if this would technically work at all, I tossed together this little experiment, with (IMHO) pretty good results.  Please excuse the extrememly rudimentary print() function.  :)
>>>   
>>
>>
>> I think that code will only work for data that fits inside
>> (void[]).sizeof bytes. Since "int" and "char[]" fit it works
>> but with a big struct it wouldn't. For anything bigger it
>> would be taking a (void[]).sizeof chunk out of the data and
>> passing that around. Remember dynamic arrays consist of a length int followed by a pointer to the data (in this case
>> that pointer has type void*).
>>  
>>
> Why not simply make these things pointers?
> 

C. Sauls wrote:

> If you mean to make data of type void*[] instead of void[][] that won't work... I tried it.  Cannot (apparently) cast a char[] or a struct to void*, but can cast anything to void[] (with varying degrees of success).
>
> -C. Sauls
> -Invironz

What about?
   char [] string;
   void *tt = (void*)&string[0]; //Looses length
   void *t = (void*)string;

struct a {  }
   a A;
   void *t = (void*)&A;

What do you mean?

>
> J Anderson wrote:
>
>> Ben Hinkle wrote:
>>
>>> On Sun, 28 Mar 2004 20:24:25 -0600, "C. Sauls" <ibisbasenji@yahoo.com>
>>> wrote:
>>>
>>>  
>>>
>>>> Just to see if this would technically work at all, I tossed together this little experiment, with (IMHO) pretty good results.  Please excuse the extrememly rudimentary print() function.  :)
>>>>   
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> I think that code will only work for data that fits inside
>>> (void[]).sizeof bytes. Since "int" and "char[]" fit it works
>>> but with a big struct it wouldn't. For anything bigger it
>>> would be taking a (void[]).sizeof chunk out of the data and
>>> passing that around. Remember dynamic arrays consist of a length int followed by a pointer to the data (in this case
>>> that pointer has type void*).
>>>  
>>>
>> Why not simply make these things pointers?
>>


-- 
-Anderson: http://badmama.com.au/~anderson/