In my C programs I often need a way to make a string representation of my ADTs. Even if I don't need to print the string to screen in any way, it is neat to have such method for debugging. So this kind of function often comes up.
char * mytype_to_string( const mytype_t *t );
I actually realize that I have (at least) three options here for handling the memory for the string to return.
Alternative 1: Storing the return string in a static char array in the function. I don't need much thinking, except that the string is overwritten at every call. Which may be a problem in some occasions.
Alternative 2: Allocate the string on the heap with malloc inside the function. Really neat since I then won't need to think of the size of a buffer or the overwriting. However, I do have to remember to free() the string when done, and then I also need to assign to a temporary variable such that I can free. and then heap allocation is really much slower than stack allocation, therefore be a bottleneck if this is repeated in a loop.
Alternative 3: Pass in pointer to a buffer, and let the caller allocate that buffer. Like:
char * mytype_to_string( const mytype_t *mt, char *buf, size_t buflen );
This brings more effort to the caller. I also notice that this alternative gives me an other option on the order of the arguments. Which argument should I have first and last? (actually six possibilities)
So, which should I prefer? Any why? Is there some kind of unwritten standard among C developers?
sysctlbynamein OS X and iOS – rwong Feb 8 at 0:30