V2 string

[Bruno Medeiros]

Regan Heath wrote:
> Walter Bright Wrote:
>> Derek Parnell wrote:
>>> However, if I might need to update it ...
>>>
>>>    char[] fullpath;
>>>
>>>    fullpath = CanonicalPath(shortname).dup;
>>>    version(Windows)
>>>    {
>>>       setLowerCase(fullpath);
>>>    }
>>>
>>> The point is that the 'CanonicalPath' function hasn't got a clue what the
>>> calling function is intending to do with the result so it is trying to be
>>> responsible by guarding it against mistakes by the caller.
>> If you write it like this:
>>
>> string fullpath;
>>
>> fullpath = CanonicalPath(shortname);
>> version(Windows)
>> {
>>        fullpath = std.string.tolower(fullpath);
>> }
>>
>> you won't need to do the .dup .
> 
> Because tolower does it for you, but it still returns string and if for example you need to add something to the end of the path, like a filename you will end up doing yet another dup somewhere.
> 
> I think the solution may be to template all functions which return the input string, or part of the input string, eg.
> 
> T tolower(T)(T input)
> {
> }
> 
> That way if you call it with char[] you get a char[] back, if you call it with string you get a string back.
> 

It doesn't make sense to template it, because you'd still have two 
different function versions, that would work differently. The one that 
receives a string does a dup, the one that receives a char[] does not 
dup. The return type of tolower(string str) might also be char[] and not 
string, if tolower(string str) would allways does a dup, even if no 
character modifications are necessary.


-- 
Bruno Medeiros - MSc in CS/E student
http://www.prowiki.org/wiki4d/wiki.cgi?BrunoMedeiros#D