Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!dptechno!dptechno.uucp
From: dave@dptechno.uucp (Dave Lee)
Newsgroups: comp.lang.c
Subject: Why use (void) func() ?
Message-ID: <586@dptechno.UUCP>
Date: 21 Sep 90 21:15:19 GMT
Sender: dave@dptechno.UUCP
Organization: D.P. Technology Corp. Camarillo California
Lines: 45

This is a bone I've been thinking about for some time.
Given a simple function like :

int func(){ ... }

Whose return value I rarely care about --- say printf().
Why should I go to the extra trouble to write
	(void) printf("hello world\n");
Instead of 
	printf("hello world\n");

IMHO, one of the great beauties of C is not distinguishing between 
procedure and function calls.

The possible reasons I have deduced are:

1.	shut up lint.

2.	shut up the compiler
 

To both 1 and 2 I reply: 

If I wanted to check the return value, I would have.
This is not the sort of thing that results from a typo or unconcious omission.
I never type
	func_call();
	
When I mean
	if( func_call() == whatever ) ...;

I never "accidently" ommit a check for return value, though I may be lazy 
and decide to omit one. 
I believe this is a programming consideration, not a language one.

Any comments on this?  Of what real value is the extra "(void)", when 
IMHO omitting it is easier to read, shorter, and has identical meaning to 
the compiler.


 

-- 
Dave Lee
uunet!dptechno!dave