This is doc/gcc.info, produced by makeinfo version 4.0 from
doc/gcc.texi.

INFO-DIR-SECTION Programming
START-INFO-DIR-ENTRY
* gcc: (gcc).                  The GNU Compiler Collection.
END-INFO-DIR-ENTRY
   This file documents the use and the internals of the GNU compiler.


   Published by the Free Software Foundation
59 Temple Place - Suite 330
Boston, MA 02111-1307 USA


   Copyright (C) 1988, 1989, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998,
1999, 2000, 2001 Free Software Foundation, Inc.


   Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.1 or
any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with the
Invariant Sections being "GNU General Public License" and "Funding Free
Software", the Front-Cover texts being (a) (see below), and with the
Back-Cover Texts being (b) (see below).  A copy of the license is
included in the section entitled "GNU Free Documentation License".

   (a) The FSF's Front-Cover Text is:

   A GNU Manual

   (b) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is:

   You have freedom to copy and modify this GNU Manual, like GNU
software.  Copies published by the Free Software Foundation raise
funds for GNU development.


File: gcc.info,  Node: VMS Install,  Next: Collect2,  Prev: Cross-Compiler,  Up: Installation

Installing GNU CC on VMS
========================

   The VMS version of GNU CC is distributed in a backup saveset
containing both source code and precompiled binaries.

   To install the `gcc' command so you can use the compiler easily, in
the same manner as you use the VMS C compiler, you must install the VMS
CLD file for GNU CC as follows:

  1. Define the VMS logical names `GNU_CC' and `GNU_CC_INCLUDE' to
     point to the directories where the GNU CC executables
     (`gcc-cpp.exe', `gcc-cc1.exe', etc.) and the C include files are
     kept respectively.  This should be done with the commands:

          $ assign /system /translation=concealed -
            disk:[gcc.] gnu_cc
          $ assign /system /translation=concealed -
            disk:[gcc.include.] gnu_cc_include

     with the appropriate disk and directory names.  These commands can
     be placed in your system startup file so they will be executed
     whenever the machine is rebooted.  You may, if you choose, do this
     via the `GCC_INSTALL.COM' script in the `[GCC]' directory.

  2. Install the `GCC' command with the command line:

          $ set command /table=sys$common:[syslib]dcltables -
            /output=sys$common:[syslib]dcltables gnu_cc:[000000]gcc
          $ install replace sys$common:[syslib]dcltables

  3. To install the help file, do the following:

          $ library/help sys$library:helplib.hlb gcc.hlp

     Now you can invoke the compiler with a command like `gcc /verbose
     file.c', which is equivalent to the command `gcc -v -c file.c' in
     Unix.

   If you wish to use GNU C++ you must first install GNU CC, and then
perform the following steps:

  1. Define the VMS logical name `GNU_GXX_INCLUDE' to point to the
     directory where the preprocessor will search for the C++ header
     files.  This can be done with the command:

          $ assign /system /translation=concealed -
            disk:[gcc.gxx_include.] gnu_gxx_include

     with the appropriate disk and directory name.  If you are going to
     be using a C++ runtime library, this is where its install
     procedure will install its header files.

  2. Obtain the file `gcc-cc1plus.exe', and place this in the same
     directory that `gcc-cc1.exe' is kept.

     The GNU C++ compiler can be invoked with a command like `gcc /plus
     /verbose file.cc', which is equivalent to the command `g++ -v -c
     file.cc' in Unix.

   We try to put corresponding binaries and sources on the VMS
distribution tape.  But sometimes the binaries will be from an older
version than the sources, because we don't always have time to update
them.  (Use the `/version' option to determine the version number of
the binaries and compare it with the source file `version.c' to tell
whether this is so.)  In this case, you should use the binaries you get
to recompile the sources.  If you must recompile, here is how:

  1. Execute the command procedure `vmsconfig.com' to set up the files
     `tm.h', `config.h', `aux-output.c', and `md.', and to create files
     `tconfig.h' and `hconfig.h'.  This procedure also creates several
     linker option files used by `make-cc1.com' and a data file used by
     `make-l2.com'.

          $ @vmsconfig.com

  2. Setup the logical names and command tables as defined above.  In
     addition, define the VMS logical name `GNU_BISON' to point at the
     to the directories where the Bison executable is kept.  This
     should be done with the command:

          $ assign /system /translation=concealed -
            disk:[bison.] gnu_bison

     You may, if you choose, use the `INSTALL_BISON.COM' script in the
     `[BISON]' directory.

  3. Install the `BISON' command with the command line:

          $ set command /table=sys$common:[syslib]dcltables -
            /output=sys$common:[syslib]dcltables -
            gnu_bison:[000000]bison
          $ install replace sys$common:[syslib]dcltables

  4. Type `@make-gcc' to recompile everything (alternatively, submit
     the file `make-gcc.com' to a batch queue).  If you wish to build
     the GNU C++ compiler as well as the GNU CC compiler, you must
     first edit `make-gcc.com' and follow the instructions that appear
     in the comments.

  5. In order to use GCC, you need a library of functions which GCC
     compiled code will call to perform certain tasks, and these
     functions are defined in the file `libgcc2.c'.  To compile this
     you should use the command procedure `make-l2.com', which will
     generate the library `libgcc2.olb'.  `libgcc2.olb' should be built
     using the compiler built from the same distribution that
     `libgcc2.c' came from, and `make-gcc.com' will automatically do
     all of this for you.

     To install the library, use the following commands:

          $ library gnu_cc:[000000]gcclib/delete=(new,eprintf)
          $ library gnu_cc:[000000]gcclib/delete=L_*
          $ library libgcc2/extract=*/output=libgcc2.obj
          $ library gnu_cc:[000000]gcclib libgcc2.obj

     The first command simply removes old modules that will be replaced
     with modules from `libgcc2' under different module names.  The
     modules `new' and `eprintf' may not actually be present in your
     `gcclib.olb'--if the VMS librarian complains about those modules
     not being present, simply ignore the message and continue on with
     the next command.  The second command removes the modules that
     came from the previous version of the library `libgcc2.c'.

     Whenever you update the compiler on your system, you should also
     update the library with the above procedure.

  6. You may wish to build GCC in such a way that no files are written
     to the directory where the source files reside.  An example would
     be the when the source files are on a read-only disk.  In these
     cases, execute the following DCL commands (substituting your
     actual path names):

          $ assign dua0:[gcc.build_dir.]/translation=concealed, -
                   dua1:[gcc.source_dir.]/translation=concealed  gcc_build
          $ set default gcc_build:[000000]

     where the directory `dua1:[gcc.source_dir]' contains the source
     code, and the directory `dua0:[gcc.build_dir]' is meant to contain
     all of the generated object files and executables.  Once you have
     done this, you can proceed building GCC as described above.  (Keep
     in mind that `gcc_build' is a rooted logical name, and thus the
     device names in each element of the search list must be an actual
     physical device name rather than another rooted logical name).

  7. *If you are building GNU CC with a previous version of GNU CC, you
     also should check to see that you have the newest version of the
     assembler*.  In particular, GNU CC version 2 treats global constant
     variables slightly differently from GNU CC version 1, and GAS
     version 1.38.1 does not have the patches required to work with GCC
     version 2.  If you use GAS 1.38.1, then `extern const' variables
     will not have the read-only bit set, and the linker will generate
     warning messages about mismatched psect attributes for these
     variables.  These warning messages are merely a nuisance, and can
     safely be ignored.

     If you are compiling with a version of GNU CC older than 1.33,
     specify `/DEFINE=("inline=")' as an option in all the
     compilations.  This requires editing all the `gcc' commands in
     `make-cc1.com'.  (The older versions had problems supporting
     `inline'.)  Once you have a working 1.33 or newer GNU CC, you can
     change this file back.

  8. If you want to build GNU CC with the VAX C compiler, you will need
     to make minor changes in `make-cccp.com' and `make-cc1.com' to
     choose alternate definitions of `CC', `CFLAGS', and `LIBS'.  See
     comments in those files.  However, you must also have a working
     version of the GNU assembler (GNU as, aka GAS) as it is used as
     the back end for GNU CC to produce binary object modules and is
     not included in the GNU CC sources.  GAS is also needed to compile
     `libgcc2' in order to build `gcclib' (see above); `make-l2.com'
     expects to be able to find it operational in
     `gnu_cc:[000000]gnu-as.exe'.

     To use GNU CC on VMS, you need the VMS driver programs `gcc.exe',
     `gcc.com', and `gcc.cld'.  They are distributed with the VMS
     binaries (`gcc-vms') rather than the GNU CC sources.  GAS is also
     included in `gcc-vms', as is Bison.

     Once you have successfully built GNU CC with VAX C, you should use
     the resulting compiler to rebuild itself.  Before doing this, be
     sure to restore the `CC', `CFLAGS', and `LIBS' definitions in
     `make-cccp.com' and `make-cc1.com'.  The second generation
     compiler will be able to take advantage of many optimizations that
     must be suppressed when building with other compilers.

   Under previous versions of GNU CC, the generated code would
occasionally give strange results when linked with the sharable
`VAXCRTL' library.  Now this should work.

   Even with this version, however, GNU CC itself should not be linked
with the sharable `VAXCRTL'.  The version of `qsort' in `VAXCRTL' has a
bug (known to be present in VMS versions V4.6 through V5.5) which
causes the compiler to fail.

   The executables are generated by `make-cc1.com' and `make-cccp.com'
use the object library version of `VAXCRTL' in order to make use of the
`qsort' routine in `gcclib.olb'.  If you wish to link the compiler
executables with the shareable image version of `VAXCRTL', you should
edit the file `tm.h' (created by `vmsconfig.com') to define the macro
`QSORT_WORKAROUND'.

   `QSORT_WORKAROUND' is always defined when GNU CC is compiled with
VAX C, to avoid a problem in case `gcclib.olb' is not yet available.


File: gcc.info,  Node: Collect2,  Next: Header Dirs,  Prev: VMS Install,  Up: Installation

`collect2'
==========

   GNU CC uses a utility called `collect2' on nearly all systems to
arrange to call various initialization functions at start time.

   The program `collect2' works by linking the program once and looking
through the linker output file for symbols with particular names
indicating they are constructor functions.  If it finds any, it creates
a new temporary `.c' file containing a table of them, compiles it, and
links the program a second time including that file.

   The actual calls to the constructors are carried out by a subroutine
called `__main', which is called (automatically) at the beginning of
the body of `main' (provided `main' was compiled with GNU CC).  Calling
`__main' is necessary, even when compiling C code, to allow linking C
and C++ object code together.  (If you use `-nostdlib', you get an
unresolved reference to `__main', since it's defined in the standard
GCC library.  Include `-lgcc' at the end of your compiler command line
to resolve this reference.)

   The program `collect2' is installed as `ld' in the directory where
the passes of the compiler are installed.  When `collect2' needs to
find the _real_ `ld', it tries the following file names:

   * `real-ld' in the directories listed in the compiler's search
     directories.

   * `real-ld' in the directories listed in the environment variable
     `PATH'.

   * The file specified in the `REAL_LD_FILE_NAME' configuration macro,
     if specified.

   * `ld' in the compiler's search directories, except that `collect2'
     will not execute itself recursively.

   * `ld' in `PATH'.

   "The compiler's search directories" means all the directories where
`gcc' searches for passes of the compiler.  This includes directories
that you specify with `-B'.

   Cross-compilers search a little differently:

   * `real-ld' in the compiler's search directories.

   * `TARGET-real-ld' in `PATH'.

   * The file specified in the `REAL_LD_FILE_NAME' configuration macro,
     if specified.

   * `ld' in the compiler's search directories.

   * `TARGET-ld' in `PATH'.

   `collect2' explicitly avoids running `ld' using the file name under
which `collect2' itself was invoked.  In fact, it remembers up a list
of such names--in case one copy of `collect2' finds another copy (or
version) of `collect2' installed as `ld' in a second place in the
search path.

   `collect2' searches for the utilities `nm' and `strip' using the
same algorithm as above for `ld'.


File: gcc.info,  Node: Header Dirs,  Prev: Collect2,  Up: Installation

Standard Header File Directories
================================

   `GCC_INCLUDE_DIR' means the same thing for native and cross.  It is
where GNU CC stores its private include files, and also where GNU CC
stores the fixed include files.  A cross compiled GNU CC runs
`fixincludes' on the header files in `$(tooldir)/include'.  (If the
cross compilation header files need to be fixed, they must be installed
before GNU CC is built.  If the cross compilation header files are
already suitable for ISO C and GNU CC, nothing special need be done).

   `GPLUSPLUS_INCLUDE_DIR' means the same thing for native and cross.
It is where `g++' looks first for header files.  The C++ library
installs only target independent header files in that directory.

   `LOCAL_INCLUDE_DIR' is used only for a native compiler.  It is
normally `/usr/local/include'.  GNU CC searches this directory so that
users can install header files in `/usr/local/include'.

   `CROSS_INCLUDE_DIR' is used only for a cross compiler.  GNU CC
doesn't install anything there.

   `TOOL_INCLUDE_DIR' is used for both native and cross compilers.  It
is the place for other packages to install header files that GNU CC will
use.  For a cross-compiler, this is the equivalent of `/usr/include'.
When you build a cross-compiler, `fixincludes' processes any header
files in this directory.


File: gcc.info,  Node: C Extensions,  Next: C++ Extensions,  Prev: Installation,  Up: Top

Extensions to the C Language Family
***********************************

   GNU C provides several language features not found in ISO standard C.
(The `-pedantic' option directs GCC to print a warning message if any
of these features is used.)  To test for the availability of these
features in conditional compilation, check for a predefined macro
`__GNUC__', which is always defined under GCC.

   These extensions are available in C and Objective C.  Most of them
are also available in C++.  *Note Extensions to the C++ Language: C++
Extensions, for extensions that apply _only_ to C++.

   Some features that are in ISO C99 but not C89 or C++ are also, as
extensions, accepted by GCC in C89 mode and in C++.

* Menu:

* Statement Exprs::     Putting statements and declarations inside expressions.
* Local Labels::        Labels local to a statement-expression.
* Labels as Values::    Getting pointers to labels, and computed gotos.
* Nested Functions::    As in Algol and Pascal, lexical scoping of functions.
* Constructing Calls::	Dispatching a call to another function.
* Naming Types::        Giving a name to the type of some expression.
* Typeof::              `typeof': referring to the type of an expression.
* Lvalues::             Using `?:', `,' and casts in lvalues.
* Conditionals::        Omitting the middle operand of a `?:' expression.
* Long Long::		Double-word integers---`long long int'.
* Complex::             Data types for complex numbers.
* Hex Floats::          Hexadecimal floating-point constants.
* Zero Length::         Zero-length arrays.
* Variable Length::     Arrays whose length is computed at run time.
* Variadic Macros::	Macros with a variable number of arguments.
* Escaped Newlines::    Slightly looser rules for escaped newlines.
* Multi-line Strings::  String literals with embedded newlines.
* Subscripting::        Any array can be subscripted, even if not an lvalue.
* Pointer Arith::       Arithmetic on `void'-pointers and function pointers.
* Initializers::        Non-constant initializers.
* Compound Literals::   Compound literals give structures, unions
                         or arrays as values.
* Designated Inits::	Labeling elements of initializers.
* Cast to Union::       Casting to union type from any member of the union.
* Case Ranges::		`case 1 ... 9' and such.
* Mixed Declarations::	Mixing declarations and code.
* Function Attributes:: Declaring that functions have no side effects,
                         or that they can never return.
* Attribute Syntax::    Formal syntax for attributes.
* Function Prototypes:: Prototype declarations and old-style definitions.
* C++ Comments::        C++ comments are recognized.
* Dollar Signs::        Dollar sign is allowed in identifiers.
* Character Escapes::   `\e' stands for the character <ESC>.
* Variable Attributes::	Specifying attributes of variables.
* Type Attributes::	Specifying attributes of types.
* Alignment::           Inquiring about the alignment of a type or variable.
* Inline::              Defining inline functions (as fast as macros).
* Extended Asm::        Assembler instructions with C expressions as operands.
                         (With them you can define ``built-in'' functions.)
* Asm Labels::          Specifying the assembler name to use for a C symbol.
* Explicit Reg Vars::   Defining variables residing in specified registers.
* Alternate Keywords::  `__const__', `__asm__', etc., for header files.
* Incomplete Enums::    `enum foo;', with details to follow.
* Function Names::	Printable strings which are the name of the current
			 function.
* Return Address::      Getting the return or frame address of a function.
* Other Builtins::      Other built-in functions.


File: gcc.info,  Node: Statement Exprs,  Next: Local Labels,  Up: C Extensions

Statements and Declarations in Expressions
==========================================

   A compound statement enclosed in parentheses may appear as an
expression in GNU C.  This allows you to use loops, switches, and local
variables within an expression.

   Recall that a compound statement is a sequence of statements
surrounded by braces; in this construct, parentheses go around the
braces.  For example:

     ({ int y = foo (); int z;
        if (y > 0) z = y;
        else z = - y;
        z; })

is a valid (though slightly more complex than necessary) expression for
the absolute value of `foo ()'.

   The last thing in the compound statement should be an expression
followed by a semicolon; the value of this subexpression serves as the
value of the entire construct.  (If you use some other kind of statement
last within the braces, the construct has type `void', and thus
effectively no value.)

   This feature is especially useful in making macro definitions "safe"
(so that they evaluate each operand exactly once).  For example, the
"maximum" function is commonly defined as a macro in standard C as
follows:

     #define max(a,b) ((a) > (b) ? (a) : (b))

But this definition computes either A or B twice, with bad results if
the operand has side effects.  In GNU C, if you know the type of the
operands (here let's assume `int'), you can define the macro safely as
follows:

     #define maxint(a,b) \
       ({int _a = (a), _b = (b); _a > _b ? _a : _b; })

   Embedded statements are not allowed in constant expressions, such as
the value of an enumeration constant, the width of a bit-field, or the
initial value of a static variable.

   If you don't know the type of the operand, you can still do this,
but you must use `typeof' (*note Typeof::) or type naming (*note Naming
Types::).

   Statement expressions are not supported fully in G++, and their fate
there is unclear.  (It is possible that they will become fully supported
at some point, or that they will be deprecated, or that the bugs that
are present will continue to exist indefinitely.)  Presently, statement
expressions do not work well as default arguments.

   In addition, there are semantic issues with statement-expressions in
C++.  If you try to use statement-expressions instead of inline
functions in C++, you may be surprised at the way object destruction is
handled.  For example:

     #define foo(a)  ({int b = (a); b + 3; })

does not work the same way as:

     inline int foo(int a) { int b = a; return b + 3; }

In particular, if the expression passed into `foo' involves the
creation of temporaries, the destructors for those temporaries will be
run earlier in the case of the macro than in the case of the function.

   These considerations mean that it is probably a bad idea to use
statement-expressions of this form in header files that are designed to
work with C++.  (Note that some versions of the GNU C Library contained
header files using statement-expression that lead to precisely this
bug.)


File: gcc.info,  Node: Local Labels,  Next: Labels as Values,  Prev: Statement Exprs,  Up: C Extensions

Locally Declared Labels
=======================

   Each statement expression is a scope in which "local labels" can be
declared.  A local label is simply an identifier; you can jump to it
with an ordinary `goto' statement, but only from within the statement
expression it belongs to.

   A local label declaration looks like this:

     __label__ LABEL;

or

     __label__ LABEL1, LABEL2, ...;

   Local label declarations must come at the beginning of the statement
expression, right after the `({', before any ordinary declarations.

   The label declaration defines the label _name_, but does not define
the label itself.  You must do this in the usual way, with `LABEL:',
within the statements of the statement expression.

   The local label feature is useful because statement expressions are
often used in macros.  If the macro contains nested loops, a `goto' can
be useful for breaking out of them.  However, an ordinary label whose
scope is the whole function cannot be used: if the macro can be
expanded several times in one function, the label will be multiply
defined in that function.  A local label avoids this problem.  For
example:

     #define SEARCH(array, target)                     \
     ({                                                \
       __label__ found;                                \
       typeof (target) _SEARCH_target = (target);      \
       typeof (*(array)) *_SEARCH_array = (array);     \
       int i, j;                                       \
       int value;                                      \
       for (i = 0; i < max; i++)                       \
         for (j = 0; j < max; j++)                     \
           if (_SEARCH_array[i][j] == _SEARCH_target)  \
             { value = i; goto found; }                \
       value = -1;                                     \
      found:                                           \
       value;                                          \
     })


File: gcc.info,  Node: Labels as Values,  Next: Nested Functions,  Prev: Local Labels,  Up: C Extensions

Labels as Values
================

   You can get the address of a label defined in the current function
(or a containing function) with the unary operator `&&'.  The value has
type `void *'.  This value is a constant and can be used wherever a
constant of that type is valid.  For example:

     void *ptr;
     ...
     ptr = &&foo;

   To use these values, you need to be able to jump to one.  This is
done with the computed goto statement(1), `goto *EXP;'.  For example,

     goto *ptr;

Any expression of type `void *' is allowed.

   One way of using these constants is in initializing a static array
that will serve as a jump table:

     static void *array[] = { &&foo, &&bar, &&hack };

   Then you can select a label with indexing, like this:

     goto *array[i];

Note that this does not check whether the subscript is in bounds--array
indexing in C never does that.

   Such an array of label values serves a purpose much like that of the
`switch' statement.  The `switch' statement is cleaner, so use that
rather than an array unless the problem does not fit a `switch'
statement very well.

   Another use of label values is in an interpreter for threaded code.
The labels within the interpreter function can be stored in the
threaded code for super-fast dispatching.

   You may not use this mechanism to jump to code in a different
function.  If you do that, totally unpredictable things will happen.
The best way to avoid this is to store the label address only in
automatic variables and never pass it as an argument.

   An alternate way to write the above example is

     static const int array[] = { &&foo - &&foo, &&bar - &&foo,
                                  &&hack - &&foo };
     goto *(&&foo + array[i]);

This is more friendly to code living in shared libraries, as it reduces
the number of dynamic relocations that are needed, and by consequence,
allows the data to be read-only.

   ---------- Footnotes ----------

   (1) The analogous feature in Fortran is called an assigned goto, but
that name seems inappropriate in C, where one can do more than simply
store label addresses in label variables.


File: gcc.info,  Node: Nested Functions,  Next: Constructing Calls,  Prev: Labels as Values,  Up: C Extensions

Nested Functions
================

   A "nested function" is a function defined inside another function.
(Nested functions are not supported for GNU C++.)  The nested function's
name is local to the block where it is defined.  For example, here we
define a nested function named `square', and call it twice:

     foo (double a, double b)
     {
       double square (double z) { return z * z; }
     
       return square (a) + square (b);
     }

   The nested function can access all the variables of the containing
function that are visible at the point of its definition.  This is
called "lexical scoping".  For example, here we show a nested function
which uses an inherited variable named `offset':

     bar (int *array, int offset, int size)
     {
       int access (int *array, int index)
         { return array[index + offset]; }
       int i;
       ...
       for (i = 0; i < size; i++)
         ... access (array, i) ...
     }

   Nested function definitions are permitted within functions in the
places where variable definitions are allowed; that is, in any block,
before the first statement in the block.

   It is possible to call the nested function from outside the scope of
its name by storing its address or passing the address to another
function:

     hack (int *array, int size)
     {
       void store (int index, int value)
         { array[index] = value; }
     
       intermediate (store, size);
     }

   Here, the function `intermediate' receives the address of `store' as
an argument.  If `intermediate' calls `store', the arguments given to
`store' are used to store into `array'.  But this technique works only
so long as the containing function (`hack', in this example) does not
exit.

   If you try to call the nested function through its address after the
containing function has exited, all hell will break loose.  If you try
to call it after a containing scope level has exited, and if it refers
to some of the variables that are no longer in scope, you may be lucky,
but it's not wise to take the risk.  If, however, the nested function
does not refer to anything that has gone out of scope, you should be
safe.

   GCC implements taking the address of a nested function using a
technique called "trampolines".   A paper describing them is available
as `http://people.debian.org/~karlheg/Usenix88-lexic.pdf'.

   A nested function can jump to a label inherited from a containing
function, provided the label was explicitly declared in the containing
function (*note Local Labels::).  Such a jump returns instantly to the
containing function, exiting the nested function which did the `goto'
and any intermediate functions as well.  Here is an example:

     bar (int *array, int offset, int size)
     {
       __label__ failure;
       int access (int *array, int index)
         {
           if (index > size)
             goto failure;
           return array[index + offset];
         }
       int i;
       ...
       for (i = 0; i < size; i++)
         ... access (array, i) ...
       ...
       return 0;
     
      /* Control comes here from `access'
         if it detects an error.  */
      failure:
       return -1;
     }

   A nested function always has internal linkage.  Declaring one with
`extern' is erroneous.  If you need to declare the nested function
before its definition, use `auto' (which is otherwise meaningless for
function declarations).

     bar (int *array, int offset, int size)
     {
       __label__ failure;
       auto int access (int *, int);
       ...
       int access (int *array, int index)
         {
           if (index > size)
             goto failure;
           return array[index + offset];
         }
       ...
     }


File: gcc.info,  Node: Constructing Calls,  Next: Naming Types,  Prev: Nested Functions,  Up: C Extensions

Constructing Function Calls
===========================

   Using the built-in functions described below, you can record the
arguments a function received, and call another function with the same
arguments, without knowing the number or types of the arguments.

   You can also record the return value of that function call, and
later return that value, without knowing what data type the function
tried to return (as long as your caller expects that data type).

 - Built-in Function: void * __builtin_apply_args ()
     This built-in function returns a pointer to data describing how to
     perform a call with the same arguments as were passed to the
     current function.

     The function saves the arg pointer register, structure value
     address, and all registers that might be used to pass arguments to
     a function into a block of memory allocated on the stack.  Then it
     returns the address of that block.

 - Built-in Function: void * __builtin_apply (void (*FUNCTION)(), void
          *ARGUMENTS, size_t SIZE)
     This built-in function invokes FUNCTION with a copy of the
     parameters described by ARGUMENTS and SIZE.

     The value of ARGUMENTS should be the value returned by
     `__builtin_apply_args'.  The argument SIZE specifies the size of
     the stack argument data, in bytes.

     This function returns a pointer to data describing how to return
     whatever value was returned by FUNCTION.  The data is saved in a
     block of memory allocated on the stack.

     It is not always simple to compute the proper value for SIZE.  The
     value is used by `__builtin_apply' to compute the amount of data
     that should be pushed on the stack and copied from the incoming
     argument area.

 - Built-in Function: void __builtin_return (void *RESULT)
     This built-in function returns the value described by RESULT from
     the containing function.  You should specify, for RESULT, a value
     returned by `__builtin_apply'.


File: gcc.info,  Node: Naming Types,  Next: Typeof,  Prev: Constructing Calls,  Up: C Extensions

Naming an Expression's Type
===========================

   You can give a name to the type of an expression using a `typedef'
declaration with an initializer.  Here is how to define NAME as a type
name for the type of EXP:

     typedef NAME = EXP;

   This is useful in conjunction with the statements-within-expressions
feature.  Here is how the two together can be used to define a safe
"maximum" macro that operates on any arithmetic type:

     #define max(a,b) \
       ({typedef _ta = (a), _tb = (b);  \
         _ta _a = (a); _tb _b = (b);     \
         _a > _b ? _a : _b; })

   The reason for using names that start with underscores for the local
variables is to avoid conflicts with variable names that occur within
the expressions that are substituted for `a' and `b'.  Eventually we
hope to design a new form of declaration syntax that allows you to
declare variables whose scopes start only after their initializers;
this will be a more reliable way to prevent such conflicts.


File: gcc.info,  Node: Typeof,  Next: Lvalues,  Prev: Naming Types,  Up: C Extensions

Referring to a Type with `typeof'
=================================

   Another way to refer to the type of an expression is with `typeof'.
The syntax of using of this keyword looks like `sizeof', but the
construct acts semantically like a type name defined with `typedef'.

   There are two ways of writing the argument to `typeof': with an
expression or with a type.  Here is an example with an expression:

     typeof (x[0](1))

This assumes that `x' is an array of pointers to functions; the type
described is that of the values of the functions.

   Here is an example with a typename as the argument:

     typeof (int *)

Here the type described is that of pointers to `int'.

   If you are writing a header file that must work when included in ISO
C programs, write `__typeof__' instead of `typeof'.  *Note Alternate
Keywords::.

   A `typeof'-construct can be used anywhere a typedef name could be
used.  For example, you can use it in a declaration, in a cast, or
inside of `sizeof' or `typeof'.

   * This declares `y' with the type of what `x' points to.

          typeof (*x) y;

   * This declares `y' as an array of such values.

          typeof (*x) y[4];

   * This declares `y' as an array of pointers to characters:

          typeof (typeof (char *)[4]) y;

     It is equivalent to the following traditional C declaration:

          char *y[4];

     To see the meaning of the declaration using `typeof', and why it
     might be a useful way to write, let's rewrite it with these macros:

          #define pointer(T)  typeof(T *)
          #define array(T, N) typeof(T [N])

     Now the declaration can be rewritten this way:

          array (pointer (char), 4) y;

     Thus, `array (pointer (char), 4)' is the type of arrays of 4
     pointers to `char'.


File: gcc.info,  Node: Lvalues,  Next: Conditionals,  Prev: Typeof,  Up: C Extensions

Generalized Lvalues
===================

   Compound expressions, conditional expressions and casts are allowed
as lvalues provided their operands are lvalues.  This means that you
can take their addresses or store values into them.

   Standard C++ allows compound expressions and conditional expressions
as lvalues, and permits casts to reference type, so use of this
extension is deprecated for C++ code.

   For example, a compound expression can be assigned, provided the last
expression in the sequence is an lvalue.  These two expressions are
equivalent:

     (a, b) += 5
     a, (b += 5)

   Similarly, the address of the compound expression can be taken.
These two expressions are equivalent:

     &(a, b)
     a, &b

   A conditional expression is a valid lvalue if its type is not void
and the true and false branches are both valid lvalues.  For example,
these two expressions are equivalent:

     (a ? b : c) = 5
     (a ? b = 5 : (c = 5))

   A cast is a valid lvalue if its operand is an lvalue.  A simple
assignment whose left-hand side is a cast works by converting the
right-hand side first to the specified type, then to the type of the
inner left-hand side expression.  After this is stored, the value is
converted back to the specified type to become the value of the
assignment.  Thus, if `a' has type `char *', the following two
expressions are equivalent:

     (int)a = 5
     (int)(a = (char *)(int)5)

   An assignment-with-arithmetic operation such as `+=' applied to a
cast performs the arithmetic using the type resulting from the cast,
and then continues as in the previous case.  Therefore, these two
expressions are equivalent:

     (int)a += 5
     (int)(a = (char *)(int) ((int)a + 5))

   You cannot take the address of an lvalue cast, because the use of its
address would not work out coherently.  Suppose that `&(int)f' were
permitted, where `f' has type `float'.  Then the following statement
would try to store an integer bit-pattern where a floating point number
belongs:

     *&(int)f = 1;

   This is quite different from what `(int)f = 1' would do--that would
convert 1 to floating point and store it.  Rather than cause this
inconsistency, we think it is better to prohibit use of `&' on a cast.

   If you really do want an `int *' pointer with the address of `f',
you can simply write `(int *)&f'.


File: gcc.info,  Node: Conditionals,  Next: Long Long,  Prev: Lvalues,  Up: C Extensions

Conditionals with Omitted Operands
==================================

   The middle operand in a conditional expression may be omitted.  Then
if the first operand is nonzero, its value is the value of the
conditional expression.

   Therefore, the expression

     x ? : y

has the value of `x' if that is nonzero; otherwise, the value of `y'.

   This example is perfectly equivalent to

     x ? x : y

In this simple case, the ability to omit the middle operand is not
especially useful.  When it becomes useful is when the first operand
does, or may (if it is a macro argument), contain a side effect.  Then
repeating the operand in the middle would perform the side effect
twice.  Omitting the middle operand uses the value already computed
without the undesirable effects of recomputing it.


File: gcc.info,  Node: Long Long,  Next: Complex,  Prev: Conditionals,  Up: C Extensions

Double-Word Integers
====================

   ISO C99 supports data types for integers that are at least 64 bits
wide, and as an extension GCC supports them in C89 mode and in C++.
Simply write `long long int' for a signed integer, or `unsigned long
long int' for an unsigned integer.  To make an integer constant of type
`long long int', add the suffix `LL' to the integer.  To make an
integer constant of type `unsigned long long int', add the suffix `ULL'
to the integer.

   You can use these types in arithmetic like any other integer types.
Addition, subtraction, and bitwise boolean operations on these types
are open-coded on all types of machines.  Multiplication is open-coded
if the machine supports fullword-to-doubleword a widening multiply
instruction.  Division and shifts are open-coded only on machines that
provide special support.  The operations that are not open-coded use
special library routines that come with GCC.

   There may be pitfalls when you use `long long' types for function
arguments, unless you declare function prototypes.  If a function
expects type `int' for its argument, and you pass a value of type `long
long int', confusion will result because the caller and the subroutine
will disagree about the number of bytes for the argument.  Likewise, if
the function expects `long long int' and you pass `int'.  The best way
to avoid such problems is to use prototypes.


File: gcc.info,  Node: Complex,  Next: Hex Floats,  Prev: Long Long,  Up: C Extensions

Complex Numbers
===============

   ISO C99 supports complex floating data types, and as an extension GCC
supports them in C89 mode and in C++, and supports complex integer data
types which are not part of ISO C99.  You can declare complex types
using the keyword `_Complex'.  As an extension, the older GNU keyword
`__complex__' is also supported.

   For example, `_Complex double x;' declares `x' as a variable whose
real part and imaginary part are both of type `double'.  `_Complex
short int y;' declares `y' to have real and imaginary parts of type
`short int'; this is not likely to be useful, but it shows that the set
of complex types is complete.

   To write a constant with a complex data type, use the suffix `i' or
`j' (either one; they are equivalent).  For example, `2.5fi' has type
`_Complex float' and `3i' has type `_Complex int'.  Such a constant
always has a pure imaginary value, but you can form any complex value
you like by adding one to a real constant.  This is a GNU extension; if
you have an ISO C99 conforming C library (such as GNU libc), and want
to construct complex constants of floating type, you should include
`<complex.h>' and use the macros `I' or `_Complex_I' instead.

   To extract the real part of a complex-valued expression EXP, write
`__real__ EXP'.  Likewise, use `__imag__' to extract the imaginary
part.  This is a GNU extension; for values of floating type, you should
use the ISO C99 functions `crealf', `creal', `creall', `cimagf',
`cimag' and `cimagl', declared in `<complex.h>' and also provided as
built-in functions by GCC.

   The operator `~' performs complex conjugation when used on a value
with a complex type.  This is a GNU extension; for values of floating
type, you should use the ISO C99 functions `conjf', `conj' and `conjl',
declared in `<complex.h>' and also provided as built-in functions by
GCC.

   GCC can allocate complex automatic variables in a noncontiguous
fashion; it's even possible for the real part to be in a register while
the imaginary part is on the stack (or vice-versa).  None of the
supported debugging info formats has a way to represent noncontiguous
allocation like this, so GCC describes a noncontiguous complex variable
as if it were two separate variables of noncomplex type.  If the
variable's actual name is `foo', the two fictitious variables are named
`foo$real' and `foo$imag'.  You can examine and set these two
fictitious variables with your debugger.

   A future version of GDB will know how to recognize such pairs and
treat them as a single variable with a complex type.


File: gcc.info,  Node: Hex Floats,  Next: Zero Length,  Prev: Complex,  Up: C Extensions

Hex Floats
==========

   ISO C99 supports floating-point numbers written not only in the usual
decimal notation, such as `1.55e1', but also numbers such as `0x1.fp3'
written in hexadecimal format.  As a GNU extension, GCC supports this
in C89 mode (except in some cases when strictly conforming) and in C++.
In that format the `0x' hex introducer and the `p' or `P' exponent
field are mandatory.  The exponent is a decimal number that indicates
the power of 2 by which the significant part will be multiplied.  Thus
`0x1.f' is 1 15/16, `p3' multiplies it by 8, and the value of `0x1.fp3'
is the same as `1.55e1'.

   Unlike for floating-point numbers in the decimal notation the
exponent is always required in the hexadecimal notation.  Otherwise the
compiler would not be able to resolve the ambiguity of, e.g., `0x1.f'.
This could mean `1.0f' or `1.9375' since `f' is also the extension for
floating-point constants of type `float'.


File: gcc.info,  Node: Zero Length,  Next: Variable Length,  Prev: Hex Floats,  Up: C Extensions

Arrays of Length Zero
=====================

   Zero-length arrays are allowed in GNU C.  They are very useful as the
last element of a structure which is really a header for a
variable-length object:

     struct line {
       int length;
       char contents[0];
     };
     
     struct line *thisline = (struct line *)
       malloc (sizeof (struct line) + this_length);
     thisline->length = this_length;

   In ISO C89, you would have to give `contents' a length of 1, which
means either you waste space or complicate the argument to `malloc'.

   In ISO C99, you would use a "flexible array member", which is
slightly different in syntax and semantics:

   * Flexible array members are written as `contents[]' without the `0'.

   * Flexible array members have incomplete type, and so the `sizeof'
     operator may not be applied.  As a quirk of the original
     implementation of zero-length arrays, `sizeof' evaluates to zero.

   * Flexible array members may only appear as the last member of a
     `struct' that is otherwise non-empty.  GCC currently allows
     zero-length arrays anywhere.  You may encounter problems, however,
     defining structures containing only a zero-length array.  Such
     usage is deprecated, and we recommend using zero-length arrays
     only in places in which flexible array members would be allowed.

   GCC versions before 3.0 allowed zero-length arrays to be statically
initialized.  In addition to those cases that were useful, it also
allowed initializations in situations that would corrupt later data.
Non-empty initialization of zero-length arrays is now deprecated.

   Instead GCC allows static initialization of flexible array members.
This is equivalent to defining a new structure containing the original
structure followed by an array of sufficient size to contain the data.
I.e. in the following, `f1' is constructed as if it were declared like
`f2'.

     struct f1 {
       int x; int y[];
     } f1 = { 1, { 2, 3, 4 } };
     
     struct f2 {
       struct f1 f1; int data[3];
     } f2 = { { 1 }, { 2, 3, 4 } };

The convenience of this extension is that `f1' has the desired type,
eliminating the need to consistently refer to `f2.f1'.

   This has symmetry with normal static arrays, in that an array of
unknown size is also written with `[]'.

   Of course, this extension only makes sense if the extra data comes at
the end of a top-level object, as otherwise we would be overwriting
data at subsequent offsets.  To avoid undue complication and confusion
with initialization of deeply nested arrays, we simply disallow any
non-empty initialization except when the structure is the top-level
object.  For example:

     struct foo { int x; int y[]; };
     struct bar { struct foo z; };
     
     struct foo a = { 1, { 2, 3, 4 } };        // Valid.
     struct bar b = { { 1, { 2, 3, 4 } } };    // Invalid.
     struct bar c = { { 1, { } } };            // Valid.
     struct foo d[1] = { { 1 { 2, 3, 4 } } };  // Invalid.


File: gcc.info,  Node: Variable Length,  Next: Variadic Macros,  Prev: Zero Length,  Up: C Extensions

Arrays of Variable Length
=========================

   Variable-length automatic arrays are allowed in ISO C99, and as an
extension GCC accepts them in C89 mode and in C++.  (However, GCC's
implementation of variable-length arrays does not yet conform in detail
to the ISO C99 standard.)  These arrays are declared like any other
automatic arrays, but with a length that is not a constant expression.
The storage is allocated at the point of declaration and deallocated
when the brace-level is exited.  For example:

     FILE *
     concat_fopen (char *s1, char *s2, char *mode)
     {
       char str[strlen (s1) + strlen (s2) + 1];
       strcpy (str, s1);
       strcat (str, s2);
       return fopen (str, mode);
     }

   Jumping or breaking out of the scope of the array name deallocates
the storage.  Jumping into the scope is not allowed; you get an error
message for it.

   You can use the function `alloca' to get an effect much like
variable-length arrays.  The function `alloca' is available in many
other C implementations (but not in all).  On the other hand,
variable-length arrays are more elegant.

   There are other differences between these two methods.  Space
allocated with `alloca' exists until the containing _function_ returns.
The space for a variable-length array is deallocated as soon as the
array name's scope ends.  (If you use both variable-length arrays and
`alloca' in the same function, deallocation of a variable-length array
will also deallocate anything more recently allocated with `alloca'.)

   You can also use variable-length arrays as arguments to functions:

     struct entry
     tester (int len, char data[len][len])
     {
       ...
     }

   The length of an array is computed once when the storage is allocated
and is remembered for the scope of the array in case you access it with
`sizeof'.

   If you want to pass the array first and the length afterward, you can
use a forward declaration in the parameter list--another GNU extension.

     struct entry
     tester (int len; char data[len][len], int len)
     {
       ...
     }

   The `int len' before the semicolon is a "parameter forward
declaration", and it serves the purpose of making the name `len' known
when the declaration of `data' is parsed.

   You can write any number of such parameter forward declarations in
the parameter list.  They can be separated by commas or semicolons, but
the last one must end with a semicolon, which is followed by the "real"
parameter declarations.  Each forward declaration must match a "real"
declaration in parameter name and data type.  ISO C99 does not support
parameter forward declarations.

