Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!clyde.concordia.ca!uunet!charyb!will
From: will@kfw.COM (Will Crowder)
Newsgroups: comp.lang.c
Subject: Re: Type of function returning function.
Keywords: pain in butt
Message-ID: <1990Jul11.155451.13457@kfw.COM>
Date: 11 Jul 90 15:54:51 GMT
References: <1990Jul10.024205.17382@media.uucp>
Reply-To: will@kfw.com (Will Crowder)
Followup-To: comp.lang.c
Distribution: na
Organization: KFW Corporation, Newbury Park, CA
Lines: 52

In article <1990Jul10.024205.17382@media.uucp> rmf@media.uucp (Roger Fujii) writes:
>So, just how does one type a function returning a pointer to a function?
>(other than the obvious void *)
>
>Example:
>
>int foo(buff)
>char	*buff;
>{
>	return atoi(buff);
>}
>
>TYPE bar()
>{
>	return foo;
>}
>
>I would have thought that it would be something like
>int ((*)()), but gcc doesn't agree.  Help...
>
>-- 
>Roger Fujii - Media Cybernetics		Phone: (301)495-3305
>Internet: rmf%media@uunet.uu.net 	UUCP: {uunet,hqda-ai}!media!rmf

These are a pain.

int (*bar())();

ought to do it for you though.  I'm sure it's been discussed here before,
but there exists something called the "right-left" rule for deciphering
and creating C declarations, and it comes in quite handy.  If you haven't
heard of it, ask your local C guru or e-mail me, and I'll be happy to
explain it.

OBTW, if you want a full prototype, based on what you have above, it would
be:

int (*bar(void))(char *);

and the typedef would be:

typedef int (*TYPE(void))(char *);

or

typedef int (*TYPE())();

without the prototypes.

Hope this helps,

Will