The Hacker's Guide to the MiNTLib
=================================

Please read this file if you intend to contribute code to the MiNTLib
project.

Patches
-------

Please always send patches, never complete files unless you have
really rewritten them from the scratch.  Otherwise you will make
it very difficult to integrate your code into the source tree.

Patches are actually easy to create (even if you don't know how
to apply them).  If you have rpm (the Redhat Package Manager)
installed, you will have a shell script /usr/bin/gendiff.  If
not, here you are:

#!/bin/sh

[ -z "$1" -o -z "$2" ] && {
# usage
  echo "usage: $0 <directory> <diff-extension>" 1>&2
  exit 1
}

find $1 \( -name "*$2" -o -name ".*$2" \) -print |
while read f; do
        diff -u --new-file $f `echo $f | sed s/$2\$//`
done

Install the script as /usr/bin/gendiff or whatever.

If you change a file make a copy of the original file and
add some descriptive extender; your name is probably a good
idea:

	cp stdlib/foobar.c stdlib/foobar.c.harry
	
Do that with every file you change.  If you add new files to
the source tree you should create an empty reference file
first with one of the following commands:

	cat /dev/null >stdlib/newfile.c.harry

or

	touch stdlib/newfile.c.harry

It doesn't matter how you create the file but "stdlib/newfile.c.harry"
should be empty whereas "stdlib/newfile.c" should contain your
changes.  Be sure that you update the files SRCFILES, MISCFILES and BINFILES
if you add files, otherwise they will not get included in the
distribution (the same applies if you rename files).  Have a look
into SRCFILES, MISCFILES and BINFILES and search for similar files
to find out which of them you need to change.  In any case, in your
accompanying e-mail you should mention which files are new.

Once you have done all your changes cd into the directory that
contains your source tree, for example "/usr/local/src".  In that
directory run the gendiff script:

	gendiff mintlib-1.2.3 .harry >harry.patch

What happens here in brief is:  The entire directory "mintlib-1.2.3"
(the directory that the source archive unpacks to) is searched recursively
for files that end in ".harry".  If such a file is found it is
diffed against the same file but without the ".harry" extension
and the diff output is appended to your patch file "harry.patch".

If you do big modifications it is probably a good idea to choose
multiple extenders instead of just ".harry" and to create several
patches to group related things.  For example:

	gendiff mintlib-1.2.3 .stdiobug >stdiobug.patch
	gendiff mintlib-1.2.3 .i18n >i18n.patch

You have to be a little careful with the extenders that you choose.
Make sure that they are never used for regular files in the library.
For example ".c", ".h", ".o", or ".SP" are probably not a good idea.

Of course, if you only make minor modifications you can also diff
the individual files.  But making a source distribution ensures
that your patch is complete.

If your patches don't follow these rules, don't be surprised if they
will not be accepted.  I rather spend my time on coding then on 
figuring out what the heck you have modified.

Style
-----

The MiNTLib hasn't got any conventions for your code (unfortunately).
Feel free to code as you like it best but please be consequent.  Use
your style throughout the file.

If you change an existing file, please follow the style of the original
author or change it completely.  But be consistent.

Carriage Returns
----------------

Avoid them like the plague.  If your compiler needs carriage returns
please remove them before mailing patches (for example with the crlf
program, or with "tr -d '\r'").  If you can't remove the carriage
returns please mention that fact in the accompanying mail.

Tab stops
---------

It is up to you to use tab stops or not.  But if you use them they 
should be 8 characters wide (this is a must).

Namespace and Global Variables
------------------------------

Avoid global variables (unless documented) like the plague.  If you
absolutely need a global variable (or a global function) make sure
that it is prepended with a double underscore:

int __my_internal_function (int foobar);
int __my_internal_variable;

The MiNTLib namespace is currently very polluted; but don't follow
this example, do it better and remove namespace pollutions whereever
you encounter them.

A related problem: Of course you can reference other library functions
at your will.  But be careful with the use of non-standard functions.
For example the function stpcpy() is very handy to use but it is
a GNU extension.  If you compile a program without "-D_GNU_SOURCE"
the symbol "stpcpy" shouldn't be defined because the user is free
to define it himself (and maybe his definition conflicts with the
definition in the library).  Therefore: never (NEVER!) use any
library functions that are not ANSI C (the minimal standard of the
library).

There is one important (very important) exception to that rule:
All names (symbols and preprocessor macros) with a leading underscore
are reserved for the libc and you can use them.  By the way: the
MiNTLib prefers a double underscore "__".

What you if you want to use non-standard functions like stpcpy() is
using a version of them that begins with a double underscore, i. e.
not 

	char* tail = stpcpy (dest, src);

but

	char* tail = __stpcpy (dest, src);

For many non-standard functions there is an equivalent definition with
a double underscore available, if in doubt either run "nm" on the 
library or look in the corresponding source file.  To stick with the
stpcpy example, look in string/stpcpy.c.  It looks roughly like

	char*
	__stpcpy (char* dest, const char* src)
	{
		/* Code ... */
	}
	weak_alias (__stpcpy, stpcpy)

So, what's this "weak alias"?  As you can see the library doesn't use
the "forbidden" name "stpcpy", it uses the legal name "__stpcpy" 
instead.  The macro "weak_alias" expands into some assembler magic
that will define the name "stpcpy" as a weak alias for "__stpcpy".

Now imagine that the user compiles a source without "-D_GNU_SOURCE".
In this case the prototype for stpcpy() is not included from
<string.h>.  The name "stpcpy" is still available for the application
code.  The client programmer may define the symbol in a absolutely
incompatible way.  Undefined references to "stpcpy" will be satisfied
by the user code and since "stpcpy" in the library is a weak symbol
that will not cause any name conflicts ("doubly defined symbol").
Neither does it hurt the library code because it always references
the safe and approved __stpcpy() from the library itself.

However, if the user compiles with -D_GNU_SOURCE, the prototype
for stpcpy() gets included and any conflicting definition in the
client code will lead to a compile-time error.  If the user references
the symbol "stpcpy" however the weak definition of "stpcpy" which
is equivalent to "__stpcpy" is sufficient.

For advanced readers: If you are working on a GNU extension it is
of course safe to use other GNU extensions without worrying about
all this.  For example in wordexp() (ok, that's a POSIX extension)
it is safe to reference fnmatch() because if the user references
wordexp() the other extension fnmatch() is also allowed to be
defined.  But if you are not absolutely sure, please keep the 
namespace clean and use the safe versions with the double
underscore.  They have no performance penalty, nor do they increase
the size of the resulting code.

You can also benefit from weak symbols in assembler files that are
run through the preprocessor (.SP files in the library).  But
you should keep in mind that the symbol "foobar" in a C file is
equivalent to the symbol "_foobar" in assembler.  However the
macro weak_alias() uses the C symbol names, for example:

	#include <libc-symbols.h>
	.globl	___foobar
	weak_alias (__foobar, foobar)

	___foobar:
		movel	#114, d0
		...
		
On assembler level (which is displayed by the nm command) this would 
define a global symbol "___foobar" with "_foobar" being a weak alias
for it.  But from a C source the symbols "__foobar" (the strong
definition) and the weak alias "foobar" would be visible and should
therefore be used as arguments to the weak_alias macro.

You haven't understood a word of that?  OK, that's it in brief:
Don't use non-ANSI functions.  If you do, rename the function you
reference from forbidden() to __forbidden() (in forbidden.c) and
add a line "weak_alias (__forbidden, forbidden)" to forbidden.c.

Like this:

	myfunc.c:
	
	int 
	myfunc (int x)
	{
		return forbidden (-x);
	}

	Should become now:
	
	__EXTERN __forbidden __P ((int __x));
	int 
	myfunc (int x)
	{
		return __forbidden (-x);
	}
	
	And forbidden.c should now look like:
	
	int
	__forbidden (int x)
	{
		do_something_with (x);
		return y;
	}
	weak_alias (__forbidden, forbidden)

Header Files
------------

Don't introduce non-standard header files.  At least put them into
subdirectories like "mint" or "sys".

Allow multiple inclusion for every header file you add.  If you
create a file "foobar.h" and "sys/foobar.h" put the contents between
preprocessor macros:

#ifndef _FOOBAR_H
# define _FOOBAR_H 1  /* Allow multiple inclusion.  */

...
#endif /* not _FOOBAR_H */

#ifndef _SYS_FOOBAZ_H
# define _SYS_FOOBAZ_H 1  /* Allow multiple inclusion.  */

...
#endif /* not _SYS_FOOBAZ_H */

Please use a single leading underscore for the macro.

Make sure that your header file will work with C++:

...
_BEGIN_DECLS
/* Prototypes and other C stuff following.  */
_END_DECLS

The macros "_BEGIN_DECLS" and "_END_DECLS" are an abbreviation for:

#ifdef __cplusplus
extern "C" {
#endif

...

#ifdef __cplusplus
}
#endif

Please _always_ include the header file <features.h>, /before/ 
you do the C++ stuff:

#ifndef _FEATURES_H
# include <features.h>
#endif

When prototyping functions you should either use no argument names
at all or begin them with a double underscore:

NOT:  __EXTERN foobar __P ((int arg1));

BUT:  __EXTERN foobar __P ((int __arg1));
OR:   __EXTERN foobar __P ((int));

It is also a good idea to use descriptive names for arguments (not 
"__arg1", "__arg2", ...) and to place a short comment describing
the function before the prototype (convert argument names to
uppercase and omit the double underscore):

/* Return the `struct tm' representation
   of *TIMER in the local timezone.  */
__EXTERN struct tm *localtime __PROTO ((const time_t *__timer));

Comments
--------

Don't follow the rule "if it was hard to write it has to be hard
to read".  Make it easier for other people to fix bugs in your code
and write descriptive comments.

Describe as many variables that you use as possible.

The "errno" variable
--------------------

This is a bigger problem than you think.  First of all: Never assign
values directly to errno, i. e. don't

	errno = -retval;

but do

	__set_errno (retval);

The story behind that: A global errno variable is a very bad idea in
a multi-threaded applications.  In multi-threaded applications every
thread of execution should have an errno variable of its own.  It is
ok to check for certain values of errno like in

	if (errno == ENOTDIR)
		try_another_approach ();

The library will take care that you can always reference "errno" like
an int although it may expand into something more complicated.  But
setting errno should only be done with the __set_errno macro.

This is only important for future extensions but it will reduce the
amount of work necessary for making the library thread-safe.

A much more important problem which is already relevant today: You will
often call other library routines that may clobber errno, for example:

	int 
	rename (const char* before, const char* after)
	{
		struct stat sb;
		if (stat (after, &sb) == 0) {
			/* File exists.  */
			__set_errno (EEXIST);
			return -1;
		}
		...
		return 0;
	}
	
Looks harmless, but it is a bug.  You use the stat() function to check
if the target file exists and you are happy when stat() returns an error
because then it is ok to rename BEFORE to AFTER.  But you have forgotten
that the failed stat() has clobbered errno.  Your routine will possibly
succeed but nevertheless errno will be set to ENOENT.  This is not
acceptable!   What you have to do is:

	int 
	rename (const char* before, const char* after)
	{
		struct stat sb;
		int saved_errno = errno;
		
		if (stat (after, &sb) == 0) {
			/* File exists.  */
			__set_errno (EEXIST);
			return -1;
		}
		...
		__set_errno (saved_errno);
		return 0;
	}
	
Now if you return 0 (success) errno will always be reset to the value it
had before.

Please keep that in mind, it is a very common bug in the MiNTLib.

Coding style
------------

As mentioned above you are not forced to use a fixed style.  But please
make your code look nice, readable, and consistent.  If you use GNU
emacs, your code will be formatted according to the GNU conventions.
This is ugly but acceptable.

If you don't mind I will be happy if you follow my coding style.  Distilled
it is:

- Always make sure that the name of a function starts in column 0, i. e.
don't do:

/* BAD.  */
int foobar (void)
{
	...
}

but

/* GOOD.  */
int
foobar (void)
{
}

Simple reason:  If you want to find out where the function "foobar" is 
defined you can do "grep '^foobar' *.c".

- Don't put curly braces in a line of their own:

	/* VERY BAD WINDOW$ STYLE.  */
	if (x == y)
	{
		...
	}
	else
	{
		...
	}
	
	/* STILL BAD.  */
	if (x == y)
	  {
	    ...
	  }
	else 
	  {
	    ...
	  }
	  
	/* GOOD.  */
	if (x == y) {
		...
	} else {
		...
	}

You will notice that the bad examples consume three more lines than the
good one.  But wasting lines is bad for readability because the more
lines of code fit into one screenful (resp. windowful) the better you
can follow the program flow.

- The language of the MiNTLib is English and the English language has
orthographic, typographic, and interpunction rules:

	o Frequent misspellings make your code look ugly.
	o Sentences start with a capital letter and end with a full stop.
	o Parentheses and operators that are words in spoken language
	  should be embedded in spaces:
	
		/* BAD.  */
		if((x==y)||(x==z)) {
			fprintf(stderr,"error %d\n",17);fflush(stderr);
		}
		
		/* GOOD.  */
		if ((x == y) || (x == z)) {
			fprintf (stderr, "error %d\n", 17); fflush (stderr);
		}
	
	  The same with a comma, semi-colon, colon, ...
	  
	o There should be two spaces behind a full stop.  Like here.
	o ...

- A variable and a pointer are distinct data types.  It is unlogical and
a common source of errors to write:

	/* BAD.  */
	char *text, the_char, **tail;
	
In our above example TEXT is a pointer to a char, not a char.  You should
therefore write:
	
	/* GOOD.  */
	char* text;
	char the_char;
	char** tail;

That leads to another rule that you should not mix pointers and lvalues
in declarations (even if this eats up several lines).  Of course you
shouldn't fall into that trap:

	/* Probably not what you mean: */
	char* text1, text2, text3;

- No line should be longer than 79 characters.  Otherwise popular editors
like vi or emacs will break these lines and in other editors you have
to scroll to see the entire line.  If your code intents so much that 79
characters are not sufficient it is probably bad anyways.  Use macros,
explicit inline functions (or trust the optimizer that simple functions
will be inlined anyway), revise your code ...

If you use string constants you can also do like this:

				printf ("\
This is a long line which doesn't fit at this level of indentation.\n");

- Avoid comments in the function body.  Comment your code above the
function header.  If you think that you need comments in the body,
better revise your code and make it understandable without comments.
One exception: You should comment automatic variables, unless the
meaning is obvious from the name:

	int
	foobar (char* str)
	{
		int i;
		size_t l;	/* Length of STR after normalization.  */
		int return_value;
		
		...
		for (i = 0; i < 100; i++) {
			...
		}
		
		return return_value;
	}

Every C programmer will correctly guess what the variable I is good for.
No need for a comment.  The variable RETURN_VALUE is self-explanatory.

- Declare automatic variables at the level where they are used:

	int
	foobar (char* str)
	{
		int i;
		
		for (i = 0; i < 100; i++) {
			size_t len;
			
			...
			if (isascii (str[i])) {
				char converted;
				...
			}
		}
		return 0;
	}
	
In long functions it is even no crime to use extra curly braces:

	static void
	foobar (char* str)
	{
		...
		...
		...
		{
			int i, j;	/* Only used around here.  */
			
			...
		}
		...
		...
		...
	}

Limiting the scope of automatic variables has several advantages.  It 
enhances the readability of your code because the reader doesn't have
to scroll back to find the declaration of a certain variable.  Furthermore
long lists of variable are painful to read and to remember.  A short
declaration list helps the reader to focus on the relevant things.
Last but not least, the compiler can do a much better and quicker job
optimizing your code.  Finally you also avoid stack overflows.

