Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!uunet!comp.vuw.ac.nz!virtue!ccc_ldo
From: ccc_ldo@waikato.ac.nz (Lawrence D'Oliveiro, Waikato University)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac.hypercard
Subject: Re: Reading files containing X'00 (growl)
Message-ID: <1093.26adca68@waikato.ac.nz>
Date: 25 Jul 90 04:35:52 GMT
References: <1990Jul17.121924.25050@watserv1.waterloo.edu> <1064.26a73cfd@waikato.ac.nz> <43234@apple.Apple.COM>
Organization: University of Waikato, Hamilton, New Zealand
Lines: 24

In <43234@apple.Apple.COM>, bc@Apple.COM (bill coderre), says, in
response to my grumble about null-terminated strings in HyperCard,

"Would you rather they used P-strings, which could theoretically
contain 00's (except that certain Toolbox routines (such as all the
Text Edit rouitines) would barf), but which restrict text to 255
characters?"

No, I wouldn't. HyperCard strings are stored as relocatable blocks,
aren't they? Well, what's wrong with GetHandleSize for getting the length
of the string? Granted it can be slow changing the size of the block
all the time, so for compute-intensive operations inside HyperCard
you'd just maintain a separate temporary longword count for each string,
and then do a final SetHandleSize on each string at the end.

There's a bit more detail than that, but you get the idea--use a
count instead of a terminating null.

How about passing this one on to the HyperCard team?

Lawrence D'Oliveiro
Computer Services Dept                    fone: +64-71-562-889
University of Waikato                      fax: +64-71-384-066
Hamilton, New Zealand            electric mail: ldo@waikato.ac.nz