C Programming: Strange looking array declaration - c

I'm looking at the source code in one of the FFMPEG files and found a construct that looks really strange to me. Can sb please explain what is happening here?
init and query_formats are actually functions that have been declared before in the file.
AVFilter avfilter_vf_fade = {
.name = "fade",
.description = NULL_IF_CONFIG_SMALL("Fade in/out input video"),
.init = init,
.priv_size = sizeof(FadeContext),
.query_formats = query_formats,
.inputs = (AVFilterPad[]) {{ .name = "default",
.type = AVMEDIA_TYPE_VIDEO,
.config_props = config_props,
.get_video_buffer = avfilter_null_get_video_buffer,
.start_frame = avfilter_null_start_frame,
.draw_slice = draw_slice,
.end_frame = end_frame,
.min_perms = AV_PERM_READ | AV_PERM_WRITE,
.rej_perms = AV_PERM_PRESERVE, },
{ .name = NULL}},
.outputs = (AVFilterPad[]) {{ .name = "default",
.type = AVMEDIA_TYPE_VIDEO, },
{ .name = NULL}},
};
What are the "." doing in there. How would you access all these points. What would be saved in the compartments of the array (pointer addresses?!)?
I'm a bit confused..
Also, how do you learn about how the code of a third party programmer works, if there are almost no comments around? Documentation doesn't exist either..
PS: This is what the init function looks like:
static av_cold int init(AVFilterContext *ctx, const char *args, void *opaque)
{
...
}

This is C99.
It allows to initialize structures by name.
For example the structure:
struct foo {
int x,y;
char *name;
};
Can be initialized as:
struct foo f = {
.name = "Point",
.x=10,
.y=20
};
This requires up-to-date compiler that supports the latest
standards: C99.

It's called a designated initializer, and is part of the C99 standard. Have a look here to learn more.

Related

How does this enumeration work in this driver?

As I was studying the code of the mxs-auart.c driver I noticed the following declaration:
enum mxs_auart_type {
IMX23_AUART,
IMX28_AUART,
ASM9260_AUART,
};
and then later on:
static const struct platform_device_id mxs_auart_devtype[] = {
{ .name = "mxs-auart-imx23", .driver_data = IMX23_AUART },
{ .name = "mxs-auart-imx28", .driver_data = IMX28_AUART },
{ .name = "as-auart-asm9260", .driver_data = ASM9260_AUART },
{ /* sentinel */ }
};
MODULE_DEVICE_TABLE(platform, mxs_auart_devtype);
static const struct of_device_id mxs_auart_dt_ids[] = {
{
.compatible = "fsl,imx28-auart",
.data = &mxs_auart_devtype[IMX28_AUART]
}, {
.compatible = "fsl,imx23-auart",
.data = &mxs_auart_devtype[IMX23_AUART]
}, {
.compatible = "alphascale,asm9260-auart",
.data = &mxs_auart_devtype[ASM9260_AUART]
}, { /* sentinel */ }
};
MODULE_DEVICE_TABLE(of, mxs_auart_dt_ids);
The thing I don't understand about this is how can IMX28_AUART, for example, be used like .data = &mxs_auart_devtype[IMX28_AUART]. Don't we have to instanciate a variable beforehand to use the enum values by doing as an example enum mxs_auart_type value = IMX28_AUART?
I am aware that in enumerations in C, values are equal to integer starting by default at 0 but I can't help but feel confused about this.
Can anyone help me understand this a bit better?
Thanks
Don't we have to instanciate a variable beforehand to use the enum values by doing as an example enum mxs_auart_type value = IMX28_AUART?
Not at all.
After doing this:
enum MyEnum {A, B, C};
You will have three globally available names: A, B, and C, with fixed integer values of 0, 1, and 2 accordingly.
Take a look at this useful post to know more: "static const" vs "#define" vs "enum".
An enum allows you to give names to constant values. For all intents and purposes, you can treat the enum name as an integer literal.
In this case:
.data = &mxs_auart_devtype[IMX28_AUART]
The name IMX28_AUART is treated like 1, so the code is the same as:
.data = &mxs_auart_devtype[1]

I can't understand this code structure. Can someboy explame how to execute this code?

In mediastreamer2, I saw a lot of this weird code that I don't understand.
static MSFilterMethod sender_methods[] = {
{MS_RTP_SEND_MUTE, sender_mute},
{MS_RTP_SEND_UNMUTE, sender_unmute},
{MS_RTP_SEND_SET_SESSION, sender_set_session},
{MS_RTP_SEND_SEND_DTMF, sender_send_dtmf},
{MS_RTP_SEND_SET_RELAY_SESSION_ID, sender_set_relay_session_id},
{MS_FILTER_GET_SAMPLE_RATE, sender_get_sr },
{MS_FILTER_GET_NCHANNELS, sender_get_ch },
{MS_RTP_SEND_SET_DTMF_DURATION, sender_set_dtmf_duration },
{MS_RTP_SEND_SEND_GENERIC_CN, sender_send_generic_cn },
{0, NULL}
};
and this
MSFilterDesc ms_rtp_send_desc = {
MS_RTP_SEND_ID,
"MSRtpSend",
N_("RTP output filter"),
MS_FILTER_OTHER,
NULL,
1,
0,
sender_init,
NULL,
sender_process,
NULL,
sender_uninit,
sender_methods,
MS_FILTER_IS_PUMP
};
or
MSFilterDesc ms_rtp_send_desc = {
.id = MS_RTP_SEND_ID,
.name = "MSRtpSend",
.text = N_("RTP output filter"),
.category = MS_FILTER_OTHER,
.ninputs = 1,
.noutputs = 0,
.init = sender_init,
.process = sender_process,
.uninit = sender_uninit,
.methods = sender_methods,
.flags=MS_FILTER_IS_PUMP
};
in sender_methods, those "sender_" are function in the same file. I don't know how other function to call then. because I don't see those function appear in other files.
The whole projet is in Github: https://github.com/BelledonneCommunications/mediastreamer2.
Thank you.
Take for example .init = sender_init: This will initialize the init structure member of the MSFilterDesc structure to a pointer to the sender_init function. The two things to know for this is structure initialization and pointers to functions.
For the others, the first is a plain initialization of an array of structures. And the second is a plain and simple initialization of a structure.

Dynamically adding entries to sysctl

Consider this code:
int procmon_state = 0;
static struct ctl_table_header *procmon_table_header;
static ctl_table state_table[] = {
{
.procname = "state", .mode = 0666,
.proc_handler = &proc_dointvec_minmax,
.data = &procmon_state, .maxlen = sizeof(int),
.extra1 = "\x00\x00\x00\x00" /*0*/, .extra2 = "\x01\x00\x00\x00" /*1*/
},
{ 0 }
};
static ctl_table procmon_table[] = {
{
.procname = "procmon", .mode = 0555,
.child = state_table
},
{ 0 }
};
procmon_table_header = register_sysctl_table(procmon_table);
This will create an entry in /proc/sys (so I could then just sysctl procmon.state=1).
My question is: Once that entry is created, how can I add more entries?
EDIT: More entries inside procmon, that is. For example, procmon.another_state
There are no functions for changing sysctl tables in sysctl.h.
You have to list all entries that you might need before calling register_sysctl_table.
If you really need to change the table afterwards, you have to call unregister_sysctl_table before doing your modifications, and then register it again.
Yes, you can, just look into the linux kernel's drivers directory for many examples. Essentially, you just need to call register_sysctl_table() multiple times, for for each call you make, you will be creating a branch off an existing branch.
The details are covered here:
https://tthtlc.wordpress.com/2016/05/26/how-to-add-new-entries-to-sysctl-with-the-same-root/

Multi-language GUI setup with a string array

I am working on the Keil uv4 IDE with an ARM Cortex-M3 in a bare metal C application. I have a GUI that I created that is currently in English, but I would like to give the user the ability to go between other languages like you can on a cell phone.
I have created a structure with all the words that are used called string_table_t.
struct string_table_t
{
char *word1;
char *word2;
char *word3;
};
My thought process was to have plain text files for the different languages and the list of words used contained in each one. Then I would do a load function that would link the pointers of the string table with the actual word.
Now, my initial menu is created statically by defining it like so. It is based off of Altium software platform.
// Test structure
struct string_table_t string_table = {"Main Menu","test1","test2"};
form_t mainmenu_form =
{
.obj.x = 0,
.obj.y = 0,
.obj.width = 240,
.obj.height = 320,
.obj.draw = form_draw,
.obj.handler = mainmenu_form_handler,
.obj.parent = NULL,
.obj.agui_index = 0,
.obj.visible = __TRUE,
.obj.enabled = __TRUE,
.caption.x = 0,
.caption.y = 0,
.caption.text = "Main Menu",
.caption.font = &helveticaneueltstdltext18_2BPP,
.caption.color = RGB(230,230,230),
.caption_line_color = RGB(241,101,33),
.caption.fontstyle = FS_NONE,
.caption.align = ALIGN_CENTRE,
.captionbarcolor = RGB(88,89,91),
.children = mainmenu_children,
.n_children = 4,
.relief = RELIEF_NONE,
.color = RGB(65,64,66),
};
What I want to do is replace the "Main Menu" of the caption.text with string_table.word1. Therefore, if I load a different language set, the menu will automatically be pointing to the correct char array. Doing this currently results in a error expression must have a constant value.
Now, I can get this to work by leaving the text null in the menu component and adding:
Link_pointer_to_menu() {
mainmenu_form.caption.text = string_table.Main_menu_text;
}
This will compile and work, but I would rather not have to have 100 or so of these statements. Is there a more optimal way of doing this?
I would recommend something like that:
enum MyWords
{
msgHello,
msgOpen,
msgClose,
msgMainMenu,
num_Messages,
};
char *string_table_t[num_Messages];
You should write code that loads your language file and assigns pointers in this array. After that in your code:
.caption.text = string_table_t[msgMainMenu];
The idea is that you give each string a symbolic name that is an offset in the table of strings. After that you use this offset as an index into the table.

Convert objective-c typedef to its string equivalent

Assuming that I have a typedef declared in my .h file as such:
typedef enum {
JSON,
XML,
Atom,
RSS
} FormatType;
I would like to build a function that converts the numeric value of the typedef to a string. For example, if the message [self toString:JSON] was sent; it would return 'JSON'.
The function would look something like this:
-(NSString *) toString:(FormatType)formatType {
//need help here
return [];
}
Incidentally, if I try this syntax
[self toString:FormatType.JSON];
to pass the typedef value to the method, I get an error. What am I missing?
This is really a C question, not specific to Objective-C (which is a superset of the C language). Enums in C are represented as integers. So you need to write a function that returns a string given an enum value. There are many ways to do this. An array of strings such that the enum value can be used as an index into the array or a map structure (e.g. an NSDictionary) that maps an enum value to a string work, but I find that these approaches are not as clear as a function that makes the conversion explicit (and the array approach, although the classic C way is dangerous if your enum values are not continguous from 0). Something like this would work:
- (NSString*)formatTypeToString:(FormatType)formatType {
NSString *result = nil;
switch(formatType) {
case JSON:
result = #"JSON";
break;
case XML:
result = #"XML";
break;
case Atom:
result = #"Atom";
break;
case RSS:
result = #"RSS";
break;
default:
[NSException raise:NSGenericException format:#"Unexpected FormatType."];
}
return result;
}
Your related question about the correct syntax for an enum value is that you use just the value (e.g. JSON), not the FormatType.JSON sytax. FormatType is a type and the enum values (e.g. JSON, XML, etc.) are values that you can assign to that type.
You can't do it easily. In C and Objective-C, enums are really just glorified integer constants. You'll have to generate a table of names yourself (or with some preprocessor abuse). For example:
// In a header file
typedef enum FormatType {
JSON,
XML,
Atom,
RSS
} FormatType;
extern NSString * const FormatType_toString[];
// In a source file
// initialize arrays with explicit indices to make sure
// the string match the enums properly
NSString * const FormatType_toString[] = {
[JSON] = #"JSON",
[XML] = #"XML",
[Atom] = #"Atom",
[RSS] = #"RSS"
};
...
// To convert enum to string:
NSString *str = FormatType_toString[theEnumValue];
The danger of this approach is that if you ever change the enum, you have to remember to change the array of names. You can solve this problem with some preprocessor abuse, but it's tricky and ugly.
Also note that this assumes you have a valid enum constant. If you have an integer value from an untrusted source, you additionally need to do a check that your constant is valid, e.g. by including a "past max" value in your enum, or by checking if it's less than the array length, sizeof(FormatType_toString) / sizeof(FormatType_toString[0]).
My solution:
edit: I've added even a better solution at the end, using Modern Obj-C
1.Put names as keys in an array.
Make sure the indexes are the appropriate enums, and in the right order (otherwise exception).
note: names is a property synthesized as *_names*;
code was not checked for compilation, but I used the same technique in my app.
typedef enum {
JSON,
XML,
Atom,
RSS
} FormatType;
+ (NSArray *)names
{
static NSMutableArray * _names = nil;
static dispatch_once_t onceToken;
dispatch_once(&onceToken, ^{
_names = [NSMutableArray arrayWithCapacity:4];
[_names insertObject:#"JSON" atIndex:JSON];
[_names insertObject:#"XML" atIndex:XML];
[_names insertObject:#"Atom" atIndex:Atom];
[_names insertObject:#"RSS" atIndex:RSS];
});
return _names;
}
+ (NSString *)nameForType:(FormatType)type
{
return [[self names] objectAtIndex:type];
}
//
2.Using Modern Obj-C you we can use a dictionary to tie descriptions to keys in the enum.Order DOES NOT matter.
typedef NS_ENUM(NSUInteger, UserType) {
UserTypeParent = 0,
UserTypeStudent = 1,
UserTypeTutor = 2,
UserTypeUnknown = NSUIntegerMax
};
#property (nonatomic) UserType type;
+ (NSDictionary *)typeDisplayNames
{
return #{#(UserTypeParent) : #"Parent",
#(UserTypeStudent) : #"Student",
#(UserTypeTutor) : #"Tutor",
#(UserTypeUnknown) : #"Unknown"};
}
- (NSString *)typeDisplayName
{
return [[self class] typeDisplayNames][#(self.type)];
}
Usage (in a class instance method):
NSLog(#"%#", [self typeDisplayName]);
Combining #AdamRosenfield answer, #Christoph comment and another trick to handle plain C enums I suggest:
// In a header file
typedef enum {
JSON = 0, // explicitly indicate starting index
XML,
Atom,
RSS,
FormatTypeCount, // keep track of the enum size automatically
} FormatType;
extern NSString *const FormatTypeName[FormatTypeCount];
// In a source file
NSString *const FormatTypeName[FormatTypeCount] = {
[JSON] = #"JSON",
[XML] = #"XML",
[Atom] = #"Atom",
[RSS] = #"RSS",
};
// Usage
NSLog(#"%#", FormatTypeName[XML]);
In the worst case - like if you change the enum but forget to change the names array - it will return nil for this key.
define typedef enum in class header:
typedef enum {
IngredientType_text = 0,
IngredientType_audio = 1,
IngredientType_video = 2,
IngredientType_image = 3
} IngredientType;
write a method like this in class:
+ (NSString*)typeStringForType:(IngredientType)_type {
NSString *key = [NSString stringWithFormat:#"IngredientType_%i", _type];
return NSLocalizedString(key, nil);
}
have the strings inside Localizable.strings file:
/* IngredientType_text */
"IngredientType_0" = "Text";
/* IngredientType_audio */
"IngredientType_1" = "Audio";
/* IngredientType_video */
"IngredientType_2" = "Video";
/* IngredientType_image */
"IngredientType_3" = "Image";
I would use the compiler's # string token (along with macros to make it all more compact):
#define ENUM_START \
NSString* ret; \
switch(value) {
#define ENUM_CASE(evalue) \
case evalue: \
ret = ##evalue; \
break;
#define ENUM_END \
} \
return ret;
NSString*
_CvtCBCentralManagerStateToString(CBCentralManagerState value)
{
ENUM_START
ENUM_CASE(CBCentralManagerStateUnknown)
ENUM_CASE(CBCentralManagerStateResetting)
ENUM_CASE(CBCentralManagerStateUnsupported)
ENUM_CASE(CBCentralManagerStateUnauthorized)
ENUM_CASE(CBCentralManagerStatePoweredOff)
ENUM_CASE(CBCentralManagerStatePoweredOn)
ENUM_END
}
I like the #define way of doing this:
// Place this in your .h file, outside the #interface block
typedef enum {
JPG,
PNG,
GIF,
PVR
} kImageType;
#define kImageTypeArray #"JPEG", #"PNG", #"GIF", #"PowerVR", nil
// Place this in the .m file, inside the #implementation block
// A method to convert an enum to string
-(NSString*) imageTypeEnumToString:(kImageType)enumVal
{
NSArray *imageTypeArray = [[NSArray alloc] initWithObjects:kImageTypeArray];
return [imageTypeArray objectAtIndex:enumVal];
}
source (source no longer available)
I made a sort of mix of all solutions found on this page to create mine, it's a kind of object oriented enum extension or
something.
In fact if you need more than just constants (i.e. integers), you probably need a model object (We're all talking about MVC, right?)
Just ask yourself the question before using this, am I right, don't you, in fact, need a real model object, initialized from a webservice, a plist, an SQLite database or CoreData ?
Anyway here comes the code (MPI is for "My Project Initials", everybody use this or their name, it seems) :
MyWonderfulType.h :
typedef NS_ENUM(NSUInteger, MPIMyWonderfulType) {
MPIMyWonderfulTypeOne = 1,
MPIMyWonderfulTypeTwo = 2,
MPIMyWonderfulTypeGreen = 3,
MPIMyWonderfulTypeYellow = 4,
MPIMyWonderfulTypePumpkin = 5
};
#import <Foundation/Foundation.h>
#interface MyWonderfulType : NSObject
+ (NSString *)displayNameForWonderfulType:(MPIMyWonderfulType)wonderfulType;
+ (NSString *)urlForWonderfulType:(MPIMyWonderfulType)wonderfulType;
#end
And MyWonderfulType.m :
#import "MyWonderfulType.h"
#implementation MyWonderfulType
+ (NSDictionary *)myWonderfulTypeTitles
{
return #{
#(MPIMyWonderfulTypeOne) : #"One",
#(MPIMyWonderfulTypeTwo) : #"Two",
#(MPIMyWonderfulTypeGreen) : #"Green",
#(MPIMyWonderfulTypeYellow) : #"Yellow",
#(MPIMyWonderfulTypePumpkin) : #"Pumpkin"
};
}
+ (NSDictionary *)myWonderfulTypeURLs
{
return #{
#(MPIMyWonderfulTypeOne) : #"http://www.theone.com",
#(MPIMyWonderfulTypeTwo) : #"http://www.thetwo.com",
#(MPIMyWonderfulTypeGreen) : #"http://www.thegreen.com",
#(MPIMyWonderfulTypeYellow) : #"http://www.theyellow.com",
#(MPIMyWonderfulTypePumpkin) : #"http://www.thepumpkin.com"
};
}
+ (NSString *)displayNameForWonderfulType:(MPIMyWonderfulType)wonderfulType {
return [MPIMyWonderfulType myWonderfulTypeTitles][#(wonderfulType)];
}
+ (NSString *)urlForWonderfulType:(MPIMyWonderfulType)wonderfulType {
return [MPIMyWonderfulType myWonderfulTypeURLs][#(wonderfulType)];
}
#end
Another solution:
typedef enum BollettinoMavRavTypes {
AMZCartServiceOperationCreate,
AMZCartServiceOperationAdd,
AMZCartServiceOperationGet,
AMZCartServiceOperationModify
} AMZCartServiceOperation;
#define AMZCartServiceOperationValue(operation) [[[NSArray alloc] initWithObjects: #"CartCreate", #"CartAdd", #"CartGet", #"CartModify", nil] objectAtIndex: operation];
In your method you can use:
NSString *operationCheck = AMZCartServiceOperationValue(operation);
Improved #yar1vn answer by dropping string dependency:
#define VariableName(arg) (#""#arg)
typedef NS_ENUM(NSUInteger, UserType) {
UserTypeParent = 0,
UserTypeStudent = 1,
UserTypeTutor = 2,
UserTypeUnknown = NSUIntegerMax
};
#property (nonatomic) UserType type;
+ (NSDictionary *)typeDisplayNames
{
return #{#(UserTypeParent) : VariableName(UserTypeParent),
#(UserTypeStudent) : VariableName(UserTypeStudent),
#(UserTypeTutor) : VariableName(UserTypeTutor),
#(UserTypeUnknown) : VariableName(UserTypeUnknown)};
}
- (NSString *)typeDisplayName
{
return [[self class] typeDisplayNames][#(self.type)];
}
Thus when you'll change enum entry name corresponding string will be changed.
Useful in case if you are not going to show this string to user.
#pixel added the most brilliant answer here:
https://stackoverflow.com/a/24255387/1364257
Please, upvote him!
He uses the neat X macro from the 1960's. (I've changed his code a bit for the modern ObjC)
#define X(a, b, c) a b,
enum ZZObjectType {
XXOBJECTTYPE_TABLE
};
typedef NSUInteger TPObjectType;
#undef X
#define XXOBJECTTYPE_TABLE \
X(ZZObjectTypeZero, = 0, #"ZZObjectTypeZero") \
X(ZZObjectTypeOne, , #"ZZObjectTypeOne") \
X(ZZObjectTypeTwo, , #"ZZObjectTypeTwo") \
X(ZZObjectTypeThree, , #"ZZObjectTypeThree")
+ (NSString*)nameForObjectType:(ZZObjectType)objectType {
#define X(a, b, c) #(a):c,
NSDictionary *dict = #{XXOBJECTTYPE_TABLE};
#undef X
return dict[objectType];
}
That's it. Clean and neat.
Thanks to #pixel! https://stackoverflow.com/users/21804/pixel
Given an enum definition like:
typedef NS_ENUM(NSInteger, AssetIdentifier) {
Isabella,
William,
Olivia
};
We can define a macro to convert an enum value to its corresponding string, as shown below.
#define AssetIdentifier(asset) \
^(AssetIdentifier identifier) { \
switch (identifier) { \
case asset: \
default: \
return ##asset; \
} \
}(asset)
The switch statement used in the block is for type checking, and also to get the auto-complete support in Xcode.
I had a large enumerated type I wanted to convert it into an NSDictionary lookup. I ended up using sed from OSX terminal as:
$ sed -E 's/^[[:space:]]{1,}([[:alnum:]]{1,}).*$/ #(\1) : #"\1",/g' ObservationType.h
which can be read as: 'capture the first word on the line and output #(word) : #"word",'
This regex converts the enum in a header file named 'ObservationType.h' which contains:
typedef enum : int {
ObservationTypePulse = 1,
ObservationTypeRespRate = 2,
ObservationTypeTemperature = 3,
.
.
}
into something like:
#(ObservationTypePulse) : #"ObservationTypePulse",
#(ObservationTypeRespRate) : #"ObservationTypeRespRate",
#(ObservationTypeTemperature) : #"ObservationTypeTemperature",
.
.
which can then be wrapped in a method using modern objective-c syntax #{ } (as explained by #yar1vn above) to create a NSDictionary lookup :
-(NSDictionary *)observationDictionary
{
static NSDictionary *observationDictionary;
static dispatch_once_t onceToken;
dispatch_once(&onceToken, ^{
observationDictionary = [[NSDictionary alloc] initWithDictionary:#{
#(ObservationTypePulse) : #"ObservationTypePulse",
#(ObservationTypeRespRate) : #"ObservationTypeRespRate",
.
.
}];
});
return observationDictionary;
}
The dispatch_once boiler-plate is just to ensure that the static variable is initialised in a thread-safe manner.
Note: I found the sed regex expression on OSX odd - when I tried to use + to match 'one or more' it didn't work and had to resort to using {1,} as a replacement
I use a variation on Barry Walk's answer, that in order of importance:
Allows the compiler to check for missing case clauses (it can't if you have a default clause).
Uses an Objective-C typical name (rather than a Java like name).
Raises a specific exception.
Is shorter.
EG:
- (NSString*)describeFormatType:(FormatType)formatType {
switch(formatType) {
case JSON:
return #"JSON";
case XML:
return #"XML";
case Atom:
return #"Atom";
case RSS:
return #"RSS";
}
[NSException raise:NSInvalidArgumentException format:#"The given format type number, %ld, is not known.", formatType];
return nil; // Keep the compiler happy - does not understand above line never returns!
}
I combined several approaches here.
I like the idea of the preprocessor and the indexed list.
There's no extra dynamic allocation, and because of the inlining the compiler might be able to optimize the lookup.
typedef NS_ENUM(NSUInteger, FormatType) { FormatTypeJSON = 0, FormatTypeXML, FormatTypeAtom, FormatTypeRSS, FormatTypeCount };
NS_INLINE NSString *FormatTypeToString(FormatType t) {
if (t >= FormatTypeCount)
return nil;
#define FormatTypeMapping(value) [value] = ##value
NSString *table[FormatTypeCount] = {FormatTypeMapping(FormatTypeJSON),
FormatTypeMapping(FormatTypeXML),
FormatTypeMapping(FormatTypeAtom),
FormatTypeMapping(FormatTypeRSS)};
#undef FormatTypeMapping
return table[t];
}
First of all, with regards to FormatType.JSON: JSON is not a member of FormatType, it's a possible value of the type. FormatType isn't even a composite type — it's a scalar.
Second, the only way to do this is to create a mapping table. The more common way to do this in Objective-C is to create a series of constants referring to your "symbols", so you'd have NSString *FormatTypeJSON = #"JSON" and so on.
the following provides a solution such that to add a new enum requires
only a one-line edit, similar work to adding a single line in an enum {} list.
//------------------------------------------------------------------------------
// enum to string example
#define FOR_EACH_GENDER(tbd) \
tbd(GENDER_MALE) \
tbd(GENDER_FEMALE) \
tbd(GENDER_INTERSEX) \
#define ONE_GENDER_ENUM(name) name,
enum
{
FOR_EACH_GENDER(ONE_GENDER_ENUM)
MAX_GENDER
};
#define ONE_GENDER(name) #name,
static const char *enumGENDER_TO_STRING[] =
{
FOR_EACH_GENDER(ONE_GENDER)
};
// access string name with enumGENDER_TO_STRING[value]
// or, to be safe converting from a untrustworthy caller
static const char *enumGenderToString(unsigned int value)
{
if (value < MAX_GENDER)
{
return enumGENDER_TO_STRING[value];
}
return NULL;
}
static void printAllGenders(void)
{
for (int ii = 0; ii < MAX_GENDER; ii++)
{
printf("%d) gender %s\n", ii, enumGENDER_TO_STRING[ii]);
}
}
//------------------------------------------------------------------------------
// you can assign an arbitrary value and/or information to each enum,
#define FOR_EACH_PERSON(tbd) \
tbd(2, PERSON_FRED, "Fred", "Weasley", GENDER_MALE, 12) \
tbd(4, PERSON_GEORGE, "George", "Weasley", GENDER_MALE, 12) \
tbd(6, PERSON_HARRY, "Harry", "Potter", GENDER_MALE, 10) \
tbd(8, PERSON_HERMIONE, "Hermione", "Granger", GENDER_FEMALE, 10) \
#define ONE_PERSON_ENUM(value, ename, first, last, gender, age) ename = value,
enum
{
FOR_EACH_PERSON(ONE_PERSON_ENUM)
};
typedef struct PersonInfoRec
{
int value;
const char *ename;
const char *first;
const char *last;
int gender;
int age;
} PersonInfo;
#define ONE_PERSON_INFO(value, ename, first, last, gender, age) \
{ ename, #ename, first, last, gender, age },
static const PersonInfo personInfo[] =
{
FOR_EACH_PERSON(ONE_PERSON_INFO)
{ 0, NULL, NULL, NULL, 0, 0 }
};
// note: if the enum values are not sequential, you need another way to lookup
// the information besides personInfo[ENUM_NAME]
static void printAllPersons(void)
{
for (int ii = 0; ; ii++)
{
const PersonInfo *pPI = &personInfo[ii];
if (!pPI->ename)
{
break;
}
printf("%d) enum %-15s %8s %-8s %13s %2d\n",
pPI->value, pPI->ename, pPI->first, pPI->last,
enumGenderToString(pPI->gender), pPI->age);
}
}
Every answer here basically says the same thing, create a regular enum and then use a custom getter to switch between strings.
I employ a much simpler solution that is faster, shorter, and cleaner—using Macros!
#define kNames_allNames ((NSArray <NSString *> *)#[#"Alice", #"Bob", #"Eve"])
#define kNames_alice ((NSString *)kNames_allNames[0])
#define kNames_bob ((NSString *)kNames_allNames[1])
#define kNames_eve ((NSString *)kNames_allNames[2])
Then you can simply start to type kNam... and autocomplete will display the lists you desire!
Additionally, if you want to handle logic for all the names at once you can simply fast enumerate the literal array in order, as follows:
for (NSString *kName in kNames_allNames) {}
Lastly, the NSString casting in the macros ensures behavior similar to typedef!
Enjoy!
I think I just created the most elegant approach to solve this.
(inspired by #AdamRosenfield)
For example, you may declare the enum like this:
typedef NS_ENUM(int, MyEnum) {
MyEnumDefault,
MyEnumOff,
MyEnumOn,
MyEnumMixed,
};
static NSString * const __SGEnumMap_MyEnum[] = {
[MyEnumDefault] = #"default",
[MyEnumOff] = #"off",
[MyEnumOn] = #"on",
[MyEnumMixed] = #"mixed"
};
SGENUM_DEFINE_ToString(MyEnum)
SGENUM_DEFINE_FromString(MyEnum)
Then, you get the two functions to convert between enums and strings:
NSString *result = MyEnumToString(MyEnumOn);
NSLog(#"%#", result);
// on
MyEnum value = MyEnumFromString(#"off", -1); // -1 as the default value
NSLog(#"%d", result);
// 1
Is that cool? Here are the magic macros:
#define SGENUM_DEFINE_ToString(name) NS_INLINE NSString *name##ToString(name value){\
int count = sizeof(__SGEnumMap_##name) / sizeof(NSString *);\
if (value > count || value < 0) return nil;\
return __SGEnumMap_##name[value];\
}
#define SGENUM_DEFINE_FromString(name) NS_INLINE name name##FromString(NSString *input, int defaultValue) {\
int count = sizeof(__SGEnumMap_##name) / sizeof(NSString *);\
for (int i = 0; i < count; i++) {\
NSString *str = __SGEnumMap_##name[i];\
if ([str isEqual:input]) {\
return i;\
}\
}\
return defaultValue;\
}
Many answers all fairly good.
If you are after a generic, Objective C solution that uses some macros...
Key feature is it uses the enum as an index into a static array of NSString constants.
the array itself is wrapped into a function to make it more like the suite of NSStringFromXXX functions prevalent in the Apple APIs.
you will need to #import "NSStringFromEnum.h" found here
http://pastebin.com/u83RR3Vk
[EDIT]
also needs #import "SW+Variadic.h" found here http://pastebin.com/UEqTzYLf
Example 1 : completely define a NEW enum typedef, with string converters.
in myfile.h
#import "NSStringFromEnum.h"
#define define_Dispatch_chain_cmd(enum)\
enum(chain_done,=0)\
enum(chain_entry)\
enum(chain_bg)\
enum(chain_mt)\
enum(chain_alt)\
enum(chain_for_c)\
enum(chain_while)\
enum(chain_continue_for)\
enum(chain_continue_while)\
enum(chain_break_for)\
enum(chain_break_while)\
enum(chain_previous)\
enum(chain_if)\
enum(chain_else)\
interface_NSString_Enum_DefinitionAndConverters(Dispatch_chain_cmd)
in myfile.m:
#import "myfile.h"
implementation_NSString_Enum_Converters(Dispatch_chain_cmd)
to use :
NSString *NSStringFromEnumDispatch_chain_cmd(enum Dispatch_chain_cmd value);
NSStringFromEnumDispatch_chain_cmd(chain_for_c) returns #"chain_for_c"
enum Dispatch_chain_cmd enumDispatch_chain_cmdFromNSString(NSString *value);
enumDispatch_chain_cmdFromNSString(#"chain_previous") returns chain_previous
Example 2: provide conversion routines for an existing enum
also demonstrates using a settings string, and renaming the typename used in the functions.
in myfile.h
#import "NSStringFromEnum.h"
#define CAEdgeAntialiasingMask_SETTINGS_PARAMS CAEdgeAntialiasingMask,mask,EdgeMask,edgeMask
interface_NSString_Enum_Converters(CAEdgeAntialiasingMask_SETTINGS_PARAMS)
in myfile.m:
// we can put this in the .m file as we are not defining a typedef, just the strings.
#define define_CAEdgeAntialiasingMask(enum)\
enum(kCALayerLeftEdge)\
enum(kCALayerRightEdge)\
enum(kCALayerBottomEdge)\
enum(kCALayerTopEdge)
implementation_NSString_Enum_Converters(CAEdgeAntialiasingMask_SETTINGS_PARAMS)
Here is working -> https://github.com/ndpiparava/ObjcEnumString
//1st Approach
#define enumString(arg) (#""#arg)
//2nd Approach
+(NSString *)secondApproach_convertEnumToString:(StudentProgressReport)status {
char *str = calloc(sizeof(kgood)+1, sizeof(char));
int goodsASInteger = NSSwapInt((unsigned int)kgood);
memcpy(str, (const void*)&goodsASInteger, sizeof(goodsASInteger));
NSLog(#"%s", str);
NSString *enumString = [NSString stringWithUTF8String:str];
free(str);
return enumString;
}
//Third Approcah to enum to string
NSString *const kNitin = #"Nitin";
NSString *const kSara = #"Sara";
typedef NS_ENUM(NSUInteger, Name) {
NameNitin,
NameSara,
};
+ (NSString *)thirdApproach_convertEnumToString :(Name)weekday {
__strong NSString **pointer = (NSString **)&kNitin;
pointer +=weekday;
return *pointer;
}
Depending on your needs, you could alternatively use compiler directives to simulate the behaviour you are looking for.
#define JSON #"JSON"
#define XML #"XML"
#define Atom #"Atom"
#define RSS #"RSS"
Just remember the usual compiler shortcomings, (not type safe, direct copy-paste makes source file larger)

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