Path: ...!news.mixmin.net!eternal-september.org!feeder3.eternal-september.org!news.eternal-september.org!.POSTED!not-for-mail
From: "Chris M. Thomasson" <chris.m.thomasson.1@gmail.com>
Newsgroups: comp.lang.c
Subject: Re: Implicit String-Literal Concatenation
Date: Thu, 7 Mar 2024 16:17:20 -0800
Organization: A noiseless patient Spider
Lines: 45
Message-ID: <usdleg$1ambo$1@dont-email.me>
References: <urdsob$1e8e4$7@dont-email.me> <urj1qv$2p32o$1@dont-email.me>
 <urk6um$33nqv$1@dont-email.me> <urlgfn$3d1ah$3@dont-email.me>
 <urlmo7$3eg2j$1@dont-email.me> <urn6sv$3s62i$2@dont-email.me>
 <urnbh6$3t14d$1@dont-email.me> <87frxcuv87.fsf@nosuchdomain.example.com>
 <urq4fe$lapm$1@dont-email.me> <urq7fd$lupv$1@dont-email.me>
 <urqrsu$q361$1@dont-email.me> <87o7bzrll5.fsf@nosuchdomain.example.com>
 <urquvb$qn8n$2@dont-email.me> <87bk7ysysj.fsf@nosuchdomain.example.com>
 <us6876$3jpc3$5@dont-email.me> <87y1axp9a7.fsf@nosuchdomain.example.com>
 <usdad0$18du3$3@dont-email.me> <20240307133736.732@kylheku.com>
 <87o7bpof0z.fsf@nosuchdomain.example.com>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8; format=flowed
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit
Injection-Date: Fri, 8 Mar 2024 00:17:20 -0000 (UTC)
Injection-Info: dont-email.me; posting-host="c15478cdd59e0ca934cfd72d78b3f41f";
	logging-data="1399160"; mail-complaints-to="abuse@eternal-september.org";	posting-account="U2FsdGVkX1/1eDbLEh+T3xzYTlnFAIXr5CH7r5RE8YI="
User-Agent: Mozilla Thunderbird
Cancel-Lock: sha1:iWZP28FICzMt4iGaBMg+zAUCMg4=
Content-Language: en-US
In-Reply-To: <87o7bpof0z.fsf@nosuchdomain.example.com>
Bytes: 3308

On 3/7/2024 2:25 PM, Keith Thompson wrote:
> Kaz Kylheku <433-929-6894@kylheku.com> writes:
>> On 2024-03-07, Lawrence D'Oliveiro <ldo@nz.invalid> wrote:
>>> On Mon, 04 Mar 2024 20:55:28 -0800, Keith Thompson wrote:
>>>> Lawrence D'Oliveiro <ldo@nz.invalid> writes:
>>>>> On Thu, 29 Feb 2024 14:14:52 -0800, Keith Thompson wrote:
>>>>>> "A *string* is a contiguous sequence of characters terminated by and
>>>>>> including the first null character."
>>>>>
>>>>> So how come strlen(3) does not include the null?
>>>>
>>>> Because the *length of a string* is by definition "the number of bytes
>>>> preceding the null character".
>>>
>>> So the “string” itself includes the null character, but its “length” does
>>> not?
>>
>> That's correct. However, its size includes it.
>>
>>   sizeof "abc" == 4
>>
>>   strlen("abc") == 3
>>
>> The abstract string does not include the null character;
>> we understand "abc" to be a three character string.
> 
> Sure, if you define "abstract string" that way.  I'll just note that C's
> definition of the word "string" does include the terminating null
> character, and does not talk about "abstract strings".  (A string in the
> abstract machine clearly includes the null character, but that's a bit
> of a stretch.)
> 
> Yes, I'm being annoyingly pedantic.

:^D The ADA vs Ada was a little pedantic, so to speak. ;^)


> 
>> The C representation of the string includes the null character;
>> the size is a representational concept so it counts it.
>>
>> It is common for C programs to break encapsulation and openly deal with
>> that terminating null.
>