Re: [HACKERS] What is nameout() for?

--- Bruce Momjian <maillist(at)candle(dot)pha(dot)pa(dot)us> wrote:
> I am confused by nameout(). There are a number of places where table
> names are output using nameout(), and many other cases where they are
> just output without calling nameout. Can someone explain why the dash
> is important? I can see the pstrdup as being important, but not in all
> of the cases where nameout is called.
>
>
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> /*
> * nameout - converts internal reprsentation to "..."
> */
> char *
> nameout(NameData *s)
> {
> if (s == NULL)
> return "-";
> else
> return pstrdup(s->data);
> }
>

Actually, I have 'C' question regarding the above code. Where does the
"-" live in RAM? Does the compiler generated a data hunk such that this
string will be apart of the final executable and each invocation of this
routine would result in a pointer to that 'global' location being
returned?
Or does it allocate the memory for, and initialize, the "-" on the stack?
If so, isn't returning a "-" a dangerous act?

In fact, isn't returning a "-" dangerous either way without the
protoype being:

const char *nameout(NameData *s);
^^^^^

Sorry to drift off topice, but I was just curious,

Mike Mascari
(mascarim(at)yahoo(dot)com)

=====

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