Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP
Path: utzoo!utgpu!water!watnot!watmath!dalcs!dalegass
From: dalegass@dalcs.UUCP
Newsgroups: comp.lang.c,comp.bugs.4bsd
Subject: Re: Bad Pointer Declaration in 'scandir'
Message-ID: <2514@dalcs.UUCP>
Date: Tue, 7-Apr-87 08:28:53 EST
Article-I.D.: dalcs.2514
Posted: Tue Apr  7 08:28:53 1987
Date-Received: Thu, 9-Apr-87 03:58:10 EST
References: <2479@dalcs.UUCP> <5916@mimsy.UUCP> <2491@dalcs.UUCP> <6145@mimsy.UUCP>
Organization: Dept. of Math., Stats & C.S., Dalhousie University, Halifax, N.S., Canada
Lines: 49
Xref: utgpu comp.lang.c:1498 comp.bugs.4bsd:277
Summary: Gotta keep arguing...

******somebody please tell me what a line-eater is*****

If this argument is totally irrelevant and it's bothering people, just let
me know, and I'll acquiesce...


In article <6145@mimsy.UUCP>, chris@mimsy.UUCP writes:
> >In particular, the claim that *(*foo)[], which is a pointer to an array
> >of pointers, should be replaced by ***foo, which is a pointer to a
> >pointer (or an array of pointers) to a pointer (or an array of pointers)
> >is WRONG, WRONG, WRONG!
> 
> I did not (or I hope I did not) make such a claim.  Rather, my
> claim was that the type of `namelist' in scandir should have been
> (struct direct ***): not (struct direct **[]), as it was in the
> source and manual page; nor (struct direct *(*)[]), as was suggested
> in the first article with this title.
> 

But you did make such a claim:

>>According to my understanding, this should be interpreted as an array
>>of pointers to pointers to the direct structure....  I believe [it should
>>read] struct direct *(*namelist)[];
>
>No: for there is no such thing.  A declaration for a pointer to an
>array must specify the size of the array.  In fact, what both the
>code and the manual *should* say is
>
> struct direct ***namelist;

Anyhow, I can't agree that ***namelist is more appropriate than *(*namelist)[]
since the structure actuallly *is* a pointer to an array of pointers to...
A pointer to a pointer to a pointer is what the thing is actually treated like,
but a pointer to an array of pointers to.... seems to be a much better (and
more readable) style....

;-)


***************************************************************************
Dale Gass, Dalhousie U., Halifax, N.S., Canada

UUCP:   {seismo|watmath|utai|garfield}!dalcs!dalegass.UUCP
     				       or dalegass@dalcs.UUCP
        ...!dalcs!dalcsug!dalegass.UUCP  or dalegass@dalcsug.UUCP
CDN:    dalegass@cs.dal.cdn
CSNET:  dalegass%cs.dal.cdn@ubc.csnet
ARPA:   dalegass%cs.dal.cdn%ubc.csnet@CSNET-RELAY.ARPA