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Re: [PATCH] Improve printf DFP support
Daniel Jacobowitz <drow at false.org> writes:
> On Tue, Jan 08, 2008 at 01:19:06PM -0200, Thiago Jung Bauermann wrote:
>> param_ptr should be a const gdb_byte *, and the cast here should be
>> removed. In addition, I believe the use of value_offset here is wrong.
>> Other uses of value_offset are to obtain a memory address in the
>> inferior address space, not in GDB's. Also, I think that value_contents
>> should be used intead of value_contents_all so that the value's
>> embedded_offset can be taken into account.
>
> I believe that you are correct. The value handling is another area of
> GDB that could do with some cleaning up; I am not convinced the
> multiple offsets dance is necessary...
I think the origin of GDB's confusion is that we didn't follow through
with any consistent decision about whether a value should act like an
instance of its static type or its dynamic type. So value_type (v) is
v's static type, but value_address (v) returns the address of the
instance of the dynamic type --- thus the need to add
value_embedded_offset to it.
So, if I were going to take a shot at it, here are the decisions I
think would make sense:
1) Use the C++ terminology --- 'static type' and 'dynamic type' ---
whereever the distinction needs to be made, instead of 'embedded'
and 'enclosing'. For example, value_enclosing_type should be
value_dynamic_type.
2) Use the static type as the default for most value_ operations
within GDB:
- value_type should return the static type.
- value_contents should return the contents of the portion of the
object corresponding to the static type (i.e. it should have
value_embedded_offset added in)
- value_contents_all should be called value_dynamic_type_contents
3) Use the dynamic type by default when printing objects. objectprint
should be 1 by default. We can count on run-time type information
nowadays, right?
I don't know how much of this still applies, but this is what I wrote
on the topic a long time ago:
http://sourceware.org/ml/gdb/2001-05/msg00306.html