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1=head1 LIBECB - e-C-Builtins
2
1=head1 LIBECB 3=head2 ABOUT LIBECB
2 4
3You suck, we don't(tm) 5Libecb is currently a simple header file that doesn't require any
6configuration to use or include in your project.
7
8It's part of the e-suite of libraries, other members of which include
9libev and libeio.
10
11Its homepage can be found here:
12
13 http://software.schmorp.de/pkg/libecb
14
15It mainly provides a number of wrappers around many compiler built-ins,
16together with replacement functions for other compilers. In addition
17to this, it provides a number of other lowlevel C utilities, such as
18endianness detection, byte swapping or bit rotations.
19
20Or in other words, things that should be built into any standard C
21system, but aren't, implemented as efficient as possible with GCC (clang,
22msvc...), and still correct with other compilers.
23
24More might come.
4 25
5=head2 ABOUT THE HEADER 26=head2 ABOUT THE HEADER
6 27
7- how to include it 28At the moment, all you have to do is copy F<ecb.h> somewhere where your
8- it includes inttypes.h 29compiler can find it and include it:
9- no .a
10- whats a bool
11 30
31 #include <ecb.h>
32
33The header should work fine for both C and C++ compilation, and gives you
34all of F<inttypes.h> in addition to the ECB symbols.
35
36There are currently no object files to link to - future versions might
37come with an (optional) object code library to link against, to reduce
38code size or gain access to additional features.
39
40It also currently includes everything from F<inttypes.h>.
41
42=head2 ABOUT THIS MANUAL / CONVENTIONS
43
44This manual mainly describes each (public) function available after
45including the F<ecb.h> header. The header might define other symbols than
46these, but these are not part of the public API, and not supported in any
47way.
48
49When the manual mentions a "function" then this could be defined either as
50as inline function, a macro, or an external symbol.
51
52When functions use a concrete standard type, such as C<int> or
53C<uint32_t>, then the corresponding function works only with that type. If
54only a generic name is used (C<expr>, C<cond>, C<value> and so on), then
55the corresponding function relies on C to implement the correct types, and
56is usually implemented as a macro. Specifically, a "bool" in this manual
57refers to any kind of boolean value, not a specific type.
58
59=head2 TYPES / TYPE SUPPORT
60
61ecb.h makes sure that the following types are defined (in the expected way):
62
63 int8_t uint8_
64 int16_t uint16_t
65 int32_t uint32_
66 int64_t uint64_t
67 int_fast8_t uint_fast8_t
68 int_fast16_t uint_fast16_t
69 int_fast32_t uint_fast32_t
70 int_fast64_t uint_fast64_t
71 intptr_t uintptr_t
72
73The macro C<ECB_PTRSIZE> is defined to the size of a pointer on this
74platform (currently C<4> or C<8>) and can be used in preprocessor
75expressions.
76
77For C<ptrdiff_t> and C<size_t> use C<stddef.h>/C<cstddef>.
78
79=head2 LANGUAGE/ENVIRONMENT/COMPILER VERSIONS
80
81All the following symbols expand to an expression that can be tested in
82preprocessor instructions as well as treated as a boolean (use C<!!> to
83ensure it's either C<0> or C<1> if you need that).
84
85=over
86
87=item ECB_C
88
89True if the implementation defines the C<__STDC__> macro to a true value,
90while not claiming to be C++, i..e C, but not C++.
91
92=item ECB_C99
93
94True if the implementation claims to be compliant to C99 (ISO/IEC
959899:1999) or any later version, while not claiming to be C++.
96
97Note that later versions (ECB_C11) remove core features again (for
98example, variable length arrays).
99
100=item ECB_C11, ECB_C17
101
102True if the implementation claims to be compliant to C11/C17 (ISO/IEC
1039899:2011, :20187) or any later version, while not claiming to be C++.
104
105=item ECB_CPP
106
107True if the implementation defines the C<__cplusplus__> macro to a true
108value, which is typically true for C++ compilers.
109
110=item ECB_CPP11, ECB_CPP14, ECB_CPP17
111
112True if the implementation claims to be compliant to C++11/C++14/C++17
113(ISO/IEC 14882:2011, :2014, :2017) or any later version.
114
115Note that many C++20 features will likely have their own feature test
116macros (see e.g. L<http://eel.is/c++draft/cpp.predefined#1.8>).
117
118=item ECB_OPTIMIZE_SIZE
119
120Is C<1> when the compiler optimizes for size, C<0> otherwise. This symbol
121can also be defined before including F<ecb.h>, in which case it will be
122unchanged.
123
124=item ECB_GCC_VERSION (major, minor)
125
126Expands to a true value (suitable for testing by the preprocessor) if the
127compiler used is GNU C and the version is the given version, or higher.
128
129This macro tries to return false on compilers that claim to be GCC
130compatible but aren't.
131
132=item ECB_EXTERN_C
133
134Expands to C<extern "C"> in C++, and a simple C<extern> in C.
135
136This can be used to declare a single external C function:
137
138 ECB_EXTERN_C int printf (const char *format, ...);
139
140=item ECB_EXTERN_C_BEG / ECB_EXTERN_C_END
141
142These two macros can be used to wrap multiple C<extern "C"> definitions -
143they expand to nothing in C.
144
145They are most useful in header files:
146
147 ECB_EXTERN_C_BEG
148
149 int mycfun1 (int x);
150 int mycfun2 (int x);
151
152 ECB_EXTERN_C_END
153
154=item ECB_STDFP
155
156If this evaluates to a true value (suitable for testing by the
157preprocessor), then C<float> and C<double> use IEEE 754 single/binary32
158and double/binary64 representations internally I<and> the endianness of
159both types match the endianness of C<uint32_t> and C<uint64_t>.
160
161This means you can just copy the bits of a C<float> (or C<double>) to an
162C<uint32_t> (or C<uint64_t>) and get the raw IEEE 754 bit representation
163without having to think about format or endianness.
164
165This is true for basically all modern platforms, although F<ecb.h> might
166not be able to deduce this correctly everywhere and might err on the safe
167side.
168
169=item ECB_64BIT_NATIVE
170
171Evaluates to a true value (suitable for both preprocessor and C code
172testing) if 64 bit integer types on this architecture are evaluated
173"natively", that is, with similar speeds as 32 bit integerss. While 64 bit
174integer support is very common (and in fatc required by libecb), 32 bit
175cpus have to emulate operations on them, so you might want to avoid them.
176
177=item ECB_AMD64, ECB_AMD64_X32
178
179These two macros are defined to C<1> on the x86_64/amd64 ABI and the X32
180ABI, respectively, and undefined elsewhere.
181
182The designers of the new X32 ABI for some inexplicable reason decided to
183make it look exactly like amd64, even though it's completely incompatible
184to that ABI, breaking about every piece of software that assumed that
185C<__x86_64> stands for, well, the x86-64 ABI, making these macros
186necessary.
187
188=back
189
190=head2 MACRO TRICKERY
191
192=over
193
194=item ECB_CONCAT (a, b)
195
196Expands any macros in C<a> and C<b>, then concatenates the result to form
197a single token. This is mainly useful to form identifiers from components,
198e.g.:
199
200 #define S1 str
201 #define S2 cpy
202
203 ECB_CONCAT (S1, S2)(dst, src); // == strcpy (dst, src);
204
205=item ECB_STRINGIFY (arg)
206
207Expands any macros in C<arg> and returns the stringified version of
208it. This is mainly useful to get the contents of a macro in string form,
209e.g.:
210
211 #define SQL_LIMIT 100
212 sql_exec ("select * from table limit " ECB_STRINGIFY (SQL_LIMIT));
213
214=item ECB_STRINGIFY_EXPR (expr)
215
216Like C<ECB_STRINGIFY>, but additionally evaluates C<expr> to make sure it
217is a valid expression. This is useful to catch typos or cases where the
218macro isn't available:
219
220 #include <errno.h>
221
222 ECB_STRINGIFY (EDOM); // "33" (on my system at least)
223 ECB_STRINGIFY_EXPR (EDOM); // "33"
224
225 // now imagine we had a typo:
226
227 ECB_STRINGIFY (EDAM); // "EDAM"
228 ECB_STRINGIFY_EXPR (EDAM); // error: EDAM undefined
229
230=back
231
12=head2 GCC ATTRIBUTES 232=head2 ATTRIBUTES
13 233
14blabla where to put, what others 234A major part of libecb deals with additional attributes that can be
235assigned to functions, variables and sometimes even types - much like
236C<const> or C<volatile> in C. They are implemented using either GCC
237attributes or other compiler/language specific features. Attributes
238declarations must be put before the whole declaration:
15 239
240 ecb_const int mysqrt (int a);
241 ecb_unused int i;
242
16=over 4 243=over
17
18=item ecb_attribute ((attrs...))
19
20A simple wrapper that expands to C<__attribute__((attrs))> on GCC, and
21to nothing on other compilers, so the effect is that only GCC sees these.
22 244
23=item ecb_unused 245=item ecb_unused
24 246
25Marks a function or a variable as "unused", which simply suppresses a 247Marks a function or a variable as "unused", which simply suppresses a
26warning by GCC when it detects it as unused. This is useful when you e.g. 248warning by the compiler when it detects it as unused. This is useful when
27declare a variable but do not always use it: 249you e.g. declare a variable but do not always use it:
28 250
251 {
252 ecb_unused int var;
253
254 #ifdef SOMECONDITION
255 var = ...;
256 return var;
257 #else
258 return 0;
259 #endif
260 }
261
262=item ecb_deprecated
263
264Similar to C<ecb_unused>, but marks a function, variable or type as
265deprecated. This makes some compilers warn when the type is used.
266
267=item ecb_deprecated_message (message)
268
269Same as C<ecb_deprecated>, but if possible, the specified diagnostic is
270used instead of a generic depreciation message when the object is being
271used.
272
273=item ecb_inline
274
275Expands either to (a compiler-specific equivalent of) C<static inline> or
276to just C<static>, if inline isn't supported. It should be used to declare
277functions that should be inlined, for code size or speed reasons.
278
279Example: inline this function, it surely will reduce codesize.
280
281 ecb_inline int
282 negmul (int a, int b)
29 { 283 {
30 int var ecb_unused; 284 return - (a * b);
31
32 #ifdef SOMECONDITION
33 var = ...;
34 return var;
35 #else
36 return 0;
37 #endif
38 } 285 }
39 286
40=item ecb_noinline 287=item ecb_noinline
41 288
42Prevent a function from being inlined - it might be optimsied away, but 289Prevents a function from being inlined - it might be optimised away, but
43not inlined into other functions. This is useful if you know your function 290not inlined into other functions. This is useful if you know your function
44is rarely called and large enough for inlining not to be helpful. 291is rarely called and large enough for inlining not to be helpful.
45 292
46=item ecb_noreturn 293=item ecb_noreturn
47 294
295Marks a function as "not returning, ever". Some typical functions that
296don't return are C<exit> or C<abort> (which really works hard to not
297return), and now you can make your own:
298
299 ecb_noreturn void
300 my_abort (const char *errline)
301 {
302 puts (errline);
303 abort ();
304 }
305
306In this case, the compiler would probably be smart enough to deduce it on
307its own, so this is mainly useful for declarations.
308
309=item ecb_restrict
310
311Expands to the C<restrict> keyword or equivalent on compilers that support
312them, and to nothing on others. Must be specified on a pointer type or
313an array index to indicate that the memory doesn't alias with any other
314restricted pointer in the same scope.
315
316Example: multiply a vector, and allow the compiler to parallelise the
317loop, because it knows it doesn't overwrite input values.
318
319 void
320 multiply (ecb_restrict float *src,
321 ecb_restrict float *dst,
322 int len, float factor)
323 {
324 int i;
325
326 for (i = 0; i < len; ++i)
327 dst [i] = src [i] * factor;
328 }
329
48=item ecb_const 330=item ecb_const
49 331
332Declares that the function only depends on the values of its arguments,
333much like a mathematical function. It specifically does not read or write
334any memory any arguments might point to, global variables, or call any
335non-const functions. It also must not have any side effects.
336
337Such a function can be optimised much more aggressively by the compiler -
338for example, multiple calls with the same arguments can be optimised into
339a single call, which wouldn't be possible if the compiler would have to
340expect any side effects.
341
342It is best suited for functions in the sense of mathematical functions,
343such as a function returning the square root of its input argument.
344
345Not suited would be a function that calculates the hash of some memory
346area you pass in, prints some messages or looks at a global variable to
347decide on rounding.
348
349See C<ecb_pure> for a slightly less restrictive class of functions.
350
50=item ecb_pure 351=item ecb_pure
51 352
353Similar to C<ecb_const>, declares a function that has no side
354effects. Unlike C<ecb_const>, the function is allowed to examine global
355variables and any other memory areas (such as the ones passed to it via
356pointers).
357
358While these functions cannot be optimised as aggressively as C<ecb_const>
359functions, they can still be optimised away in many occasions, and the
360compiler has more freedom in moving calls to them around.
361
362Typical examples for such functions would be C<strlen> or C<memcmp>. A
363function that calculates the MD5 sum of some input and updates some MD5
364state passed as argument would I<NOT> be pure, however, as it would modify
365some memory area that is not the return value.
366
52=item ecb_hot 367=item ecb_hot
53 368
369This declares a function as "hot" with regards to the cache - the function
370is used so often, that it is very beneficial to keep it in the cache if
371possible.
372
373The compiler reacts by trying to place hot functions near to each other in
374memory.
375
376Whether a function is hot or not often depends on the whole program,
377and less on the function itself. C<ecb_cold> is likely more useful in
378practise.
379
54=item ecb_cold 380=item ecb_cold
55 381
382The opposite of C<ecb_hot> - declares a function as "cold" with regards to
383the cache, or in other words, this function is not called often, or not at
384speed-critical times, and keeping it in the cache might be a waste of said
385cache.
386
387In addition to placing cold functions together (or at least away from hot
388functions), this knowledge can be used in other ways, for example, the
389function will be optimised for size, as opposed to speed, and codepaths
390leading to calls to those functions can automatically be marked as if
391C<ecb_expect_false> had been used to reach them.
392
393Good examples for such functions would be error reporting functions, or
394functions only called in exceptional or rare cases.
395
56=item ecb_artificial 396=item ecb_artificial
57 397
398Declares the function as "artificial", in this case meaning that this
399function is not really meant to be a function, but more like an accessor
400- many methods in C++ classes are mere accessor functions, and having a
401crash reported in such a method, or single-stepping through them, is not
402usually so helpful, especially when it's inlined to just a few instructions.
403
404Marking them as artificial will instruct the debugger about just this,
405leading to happier debugging and thus happier lives.
406
407Example: in some kind of smart-pointer class, mark the pointer accessor as
408artificial, so that the whole class acts more like a pointer and less like
409some C++ abstraction monster.
410
411 template<typename T>
412 struct my_smart_ptr
413 {
414 T *value;
415
416 ecb_artificial
417 operator T *()
418 {
419 return value;
420 }
421 };
422
58=back 423=back
59 424
60=head2 OPTIMISATION HINTS 425=head2 OPTIMISATION HINTS
61 426
62=over 4 427=over
63 428
64=item bool ecb_is_constant(expr) 429=item bool ecb_is_constant (expr)
65 430
66Returns true iff the expression can be deduced to be a compile-time 431Returns true iff the expression can be deduced to be a compile-time
67constant, and false otherwise. 432constant, and false otherwise.
68 433
69For example, when you have a C<rndm16> function that returns a 16 bit 434For example, when you have a C<rndm16> function that returns a 16 bit
710..n-1, then you could use this inline function in a header file: 4360..n-1, then you could use this inline function in a header file:
72 437
73 ecb_inline uint32_t 438 ecb_inline uint32_t
74 rndm (uint32_t n) 439 rndm (uint32_t n)
75 { 440 {
76 return n * (uint32_t)rndm16 ()) >> 16; 441 return (n * (uint32_t)rndm16 ()) >> 16;
77 } 442 }
78 443
79However, for powers of two, you could use a normal mask, but that is only 444However, for powers of two, you could use a normal mask, but that is only
80worth it if, at compile time, you can detect this case. This is the case 445worth it if, at compile time, you can detect this case. This is the case
81when the passed number is a constant and also a power of two (C<n & (n - 446when the passed number is a constant and also a power of two (C<n & (n -
84 ecb_inline uint32_t 449 ecb_inline uint32_t
85 rndm (uint32_t n) 450 rndm (uint32_t n)
86 { 451 {
87 return is_constant (n) && !(n & (n - 1)) 452 return is_constant (n) && !(n & (n - 1))
88 ? rndm16 () & (num - 1) 453 ? rndm16 () & (num - 1)
89 : (uint32_t)rndm16 ()) >> 16; 454 : (n * (uint32_t)rndm16 ()) >> 16;
90 } 455 }
91 456
92=item bool ecb_expect(expr,value) 457=item ecb_expect (expr, value)
93 458
94=item bool ecb_unlikely(bool) 459Evaluates C<expr> and returns it. In addition, it tells the compiler that
460the C<expr> evaluates to C<value> a lot, which can be used for static
461branch optimisations.
95 462
96=item bool ecb_likely(bool) 463Usually, you want to use the more intuitive C<ecb_expect_true> and
464C<ecb_expect_false> functions instead.
97 465
466=item bool ecb_expect_true (cond)
467
468=item bool ecb_expect_false (cond)
469
470These two functions expect a expression that is true or false and return
471C<1> or C<0>, respectively, so when used in the condition of an C<if> or
472other conditional statement, it will not change the program:
473
474 /* these two do the same thing */
475 if (some_condition) ...;
476 if (ecb_expect_true (some_condition)) ...;
477
478However, by using C<ecb_expect_true>, you tell the compiler that the
479condition is likely to be true (and for C<ecb_expect_false>, that it is
480unlikely to be true).
481
482For example, when you check for a null pointer and expect this to be a
483rare, exceptional, case, then use C<ecb_expect_false>:
484
485 void my_free (void *ptr)
486 {
487 if (ecb_expect_false (ptr == 0))
488 return;
489 }
490
491Consequent use of these functions to mark away exceptional cases or to
492tell the compiler what the hot path through a function is can increase
493performance considerably.
494
495You might know these functions under the name C<likely> and C<unlikely>
496- while these are common aliases, we find that the expect name is easier
497to understand when quickly skimming code. If you wish, you can use
498C<ecb_likely> instead of C<ecb_expect_true> and C<ecb_unlikely> instead of
499C<ecb_expect_false> - these are simply aliases.
500
501A very good example is in a function that reserves more space for some
502memory block (for example, inside an implementation of a string stream) -
503each time something is added, you have to check for a buffer overrun, but
504you expect that most checks will turn out to be false:
505
506 /* make sure we have "size" extra room in our buffer */
507 ecb_inline void
508 reserve (int size)
509 {
510 if (ecb_expect_false (current + size > end))
511 real_reserve_method (size); /* presumably noinline */
512 }
513
98=item bool ecb_assume(cond) 514=item ecb_assume (cond)
99 515
516Tries to tell the compiler that some condition is true, even if it's not
517obvious. This is not a function, but a statement: it cannot be used in
518another expression.
519
520This can be used to teach the compiler about invariants or other
521conditions that might improve code generation, but which are impossible to
522deduce form the code itself.
523
524For example, the example reservation function from the C<ecb_expect_false>
525description could be written thus (only C<ecb_assume> was added):
526
527 ecb_inline void
528 reserve (int size)
529 {
530 if (ecb_expect_false (current + size > end))
531 real_reserve_method (size); /* presumably noinline */
532
533 ecb_assume (current + size <= end);
534 }
535
536If you then call this function twice, like this:
537
538 reserve (10);
539 reserve (1);
540
541Then the compiler I<might> be able to optimise out the second call
542completely, as it knows that C<< current + 1 > end >> is false and the
543call will never be executed.
544
100=item bool ecb_unreachable() 545=item ecb_unreachable ()
101 546
547This function does nothing itself, except tell the compiler that it will
548never be executed. Apart from suppressing a warning in some cases, this
549function can be used to implement C<ecb_assume> or similar functionality.
550
102=item bool ecb_prefetch(addr,rw,locality) 551=item ecb_prefetch (addr, rw, locality)
103 552
104=back 553Tells the compiler to try to prefetch memory at the given C<addr>ess
554for either reading (C<rw> = 0) or writing (C<rw> = 1). A C<locality> of
555C<0> means that there will only be one access later, C<3> means that
556the data will likely be accessed very often, and values in between mean
557something... in between. The memory pointed to by the address does not
558need to be accessible (it could be a null pointer for example), but C<rw>
559and C<locality> must be compile-time constants.
105 560
561This is a statement, not a function: you cannot use it as part of an
562expression.
563
564An obvious way to use this is to prefetch some data far away, in a big
565array you loop over. This prefetches memory some 128 array elements later,
566in the hope that it will be ready when the CPU arrives at that location.
567
568 int sum = 0;
569
570 for (i = 0; i < N; ++i)
571 {
572 sum += arr [i]
573 ecb_prefetch (arr + i + 128, 0, 0);
574 }
575
576It's hard to predict how far to prefetch, and most CPUs that can prefetch
577are often good enough to predict this kind of behaviour themselves. It
578gets more interesting with linked lists, especially when you do some fair
579processing on each list element:
580
581 for (node *n = start; n; n = n->next)
582 {
583 ecb_prefetch (n->next, 0, 0);
584 ... do medium amount of work with *n
585 }
586
587After processing the node, (part of) the next node might already be in
588cache.
589
590=back
591
106=head2 BIT FIDDLING / BITSTUFFS 592=head2 BIT FIDDLING / BIT WIZARDRY
107 593
108=over 4 594=over
109 595
110=item bool ecb_big_endian () 596=item bool ecb_big_endian ()
111 597
112=item bool ecb_little_endian () 598=item bool ecb_little_endian ()
113 599
600These two functions return true if the byte order is big endian
601(most-significant byte first) or little endian (least-significant byte
602first) respectively.
603
604On systems that are neither, their return values are unspecified.
605
114=item int ecb_ctz32 (uint32_t x) 606=item int ecb_ctz32 (uint32_t x)
115 607
608=item int ecb_ctz64 (uint64_t x)
609
610=item int ecb_ctz (T x) [C++]
611
612Returns the index of the least significant bit set in C<x> (or
613equivalently the number of bits set to 0 before the least significant bit
614set), starting from 0. If C<x> is 0 the result is undefined.
615
616For smaller types than C<uint32_t> you can safely use C<ecb_ctz32>.
617
618The overloaded C++ C<ecb_ctz> function supports C<uint8_t>, C<uint16_t>,
619C<uint32_t> and C<uint64_t> types.
620
621For example:
622
623 ecb_ctz32 (3) = 0
624 ecb_ctz32 (6) = 1
625
626=item bool ecb_is_pot32 (uint32_t x)
627
628=item bool ecb_is_pot64 (uint32_t x)
629
630=item bool ecb_is_pot (T x) [C++]
631
632Returns true iff C<x> is a power of two or C<x == 0>.
633
634For smaller types than C<uint32_t> you can safely use C<ecb_is_pot32>.
635
636The overloaded C++ C<ecb_is_pot> function supports C<uint8_t>, C<uint16_t>,
637C<uint32_t> and C<uint64_t> types.
638
639=item int ecb_ld32 (uint32_t x)
640
641=item int ecb_ld64 (uint64_t x)
642
643=item int ecb_ld64 (T x) [C++]
644
645Returns the index of the most significant bit set in C<x>, or the number
646of digits the number requires in binary (so that C<< 2**ld <= x <
6472**(ld+1) >>). If C<x> is 0 the result is undefined. A common use case is
648to compute the integer binary logarithm, i.e. C<floor (log2 (n))>, for
649example to see how many bits a certain number requires to be encoded.
650
651This function is similar to the "count leading zero bits" function, except
652that that one returns how many zero bits are "in front" of the number (in
653the given data type), while C<ecb_ld> returns how many bits the number
654itself requires.
655
656For smaller types than C<uint32_t> you can safely use C<ecb_ld32>.
657
658The overloaded C++ C<ecb_ld> function supports C<uint8_t>, C<uint16_t>,
659C<uint32_t> and C<uint64_t> types.
660
116=item int ecb_popcount32 (uint32_t x) 661=item int ecb_popcount32 (uint32_t x)
117 662
663=item int ecb_popcount64 (uint64_t x)
664
665=item int ecb_popcount (T x) [C++]
666
667Returns the number of bits set to 1 in C<x>.
668
669For smaller types than C<uint32_t> you can safely use C<ecb_popcount32>.
670
671The overloaded C++ C<ecb_popcount> function supports C<uint8_t>, C<uint16_t>,
672C<uint32_t> and C<uint64_t> types.
673
674For example:
675
676 ecb_popcount32 (7) = 3
677 ecb_popcount32 (255) = 8
678
679=item uint8_t ecb_bitrev8 (uint8_t x)
680
681=item uint16_t ecb_bitrev16 (uint16_t x)
682
683=item uint32_t ecb_bitrev32 (uint32_t x)
684
685=item T ecb_bitrev (T x) [C++]
686
687Reverses the bits in x, i.e. the MSB becomes the LSB, MSB-1 becomes LSB+1
688and so on.
689
690The overloaded C++ C<ecb_bitrev> function supports C<uint8_t>, C<uint16_t> and C<uint32_t> types.
691
692Example:
693
694 ecb_bitrev8 (0xa7) = 0xea
695 ecb_bitrev32 (0xffcc4411) = 0x882233ff
696
697=item T ecb_bitrev (T x) [C++]
698
699Overloaded C++ bitrev function.
700
701C<T> must be one of C<uint8_t>, C<uint16_t> or C<uint32_t>.
702
703=item uint32_t ecb_bswap16 (uint32_t x)
704
118=item uint32_t ecb_bswap32 (uint32_t x) 705=item uint32_t ecb_bswap32 (uint32_t x)
119 706
120=item uint32_t ecb_bswap16 (uint32_t x) 707=item uint64_t ecb_bswap64 (uint64_t x)
708
709=item T ecb_bswap (T x)
710
711These functions return the value of the 16-bit (32-bit, 64-bit) value
712C<x> after reversing the order of bytes (0x11223344 becomes 0x44332211 in
713C<ecb_bswap32>).
714
715The overloaded C++ C<ecb_bswap> function supports C<uint8_t>, C<uint16_t>,
716C<uint32_t> and C<uint64_t> types.
717
718=item uint8_t ecb_rotl8 (uint8_t x, unsigned int count)
719
720=item uint16_t ecb_rotl16 (uint16_t x, unsigned int count)
721
722=item uint32_t ecb_rotl32 (uint32_t x, unsigned int count)
723
724=item uint64_t ecb_rotl64 (uint64_t x, unsigned int count)
725
726=item uint8_t ecb_rotr8 (uint8_t x, unsigned int count)
727
728=item uint16_t ecb_rotr16 (uint16_t x, unsigned int count)
121 729
122=item uint32_t ecb_rotr32 (uint32_t x, unsigned int count) 730=item uint32_t ecb_rotr32 (uint32_t x, unsigned int count)
123 731
124=item uint32_t ecb_rotl32 (uint32_t x, unsigned int count) 732=item uint64_t ecb_rotr64 (uint64_t x, unsigned int count)
733
734These two families of functions return the value of C<x> after rotating
735all the bits by C<count> positions to the right (C<ecb_rotr>) or left
736(C<ecb_rotl>).
737
738Current GCC/clang versions understand these functions and usually compile
739them to "optimal" code (e.g. a single C<rol> or a combination of C<shld>
740on x86).
741
742=item T ecb_rotl (T x, unsigned int count) [C++]
743
744=item T ecb_rotr (T x, unsigned int count) [C++]
745
746Overloaded C++ rotl/rotr functions.
747
748C<T> must be one of C<uint8_t>, C<uint16_t>, C<uint32_t> or C<uint64_t>.
749
750=back
751
752=head2 HOST ENDIANNESS CONVERSION
753
754=over
755
756=item uint_fast16_t ecb_be_u16_to_host (uint_fast16_t v)
757
758=item uint_fast32_t ecb_be_u32_to_host (uint_fast32_t v)
759
760=item uint_fast64_t ecb_be_u64_to_host (uint_fast64_t v)
761
762=item uint_fast16_t ecb_le_u16_to_host (uint_fast16_t v)
763
764=item uint_fast32_t ecb_le_u32_to_host (uint_fast32_t v)
765
766=item uint_fast64_t ecb_le_u64_to_host (uint_fast64_t v)
767
768Convert an unsigned 16, 32 or 64 bit value from big or little endian to host byte order.
769
770The naming convention is C<ecb_>(C<be>|C<le>)C<_u>C<16|32|64>C<_to_host>,
771where C<be> and C<le> stand for big endian and little endian, respectively.
772
773=item uint_fast16_t ecb_host_to_be_u16 (uint_fast16_t v)
774
775=item uint_fast32_t ecb_host_to_be_u32 (uint_fast32_t v)
776
777=item uint_fast64_t ecb_host_to_be_u64 (uint_fast64_t v)
778
779=item uint_fast16_t ecb_host_to_le_u16 (uint_fast16_t v)
780
781=item uint_fast32_t ecb_host_to_le_u32 (uint_fast32_t v)
782
783=item uint_fast64_t ecb_host_to_le_u64 (uint_fast64_t v)
784
785Like above, but converts I<from> host byte order to the specified
786endianness.
787
788=back
789
790In C++ the following additional template functions are supported:
791
792=over
793
794=item T ecb_be_to_host (T v)
795
796=item T ecb_le_to_host (T v)
797
798=item T ecb_host_to_be (T v)
799
800=item T ecb_host_to_le (T v)
801
802=back
803
804These functions work like their C counterparts, above, but use templates,
805which make them useful in generic code.
806
807C<T> must be one of C<uint8_t>, C<uint16_t>, C<uint32_t> or C<uint64_t>
808(so unlike their C counterparts, there is a version for C<uint8_t>, which
809again can be useful in generic code).
810
811=head2 UNALIGNED LOAD/STORE
812
813These function load or store unaligned multi-byte values.
814
815=over
816
817=item uint_fast16_t ecb_peek_u16_u (const void *ptr)
818
819=item uint_fast32_t ecb_peek_u32_u (const void *ptr)
820
821=item uint_fast64_t ecb_peek_u64_u (const void *ptr)
822
823These functions load an unaligned, unsigned 16, 32 or 64 bit value from
824memory.
825
826=item uint_fast16_t ecb_peek_be_u16_u (const void *ptr)
827
828=item uint_fast32_t ecb_peek_be_u32_u (const void *ptr)
829
830=item uint_fast64_t ecb_peek_be_u64_u (const void *ptr)
831
832=item uint_fast16_t ecb_peek_le_u16_u (const void *ptr)
833
834=item uint_fast32_t ecb_peek_le_u32_u (const void *ptr)
835
836=item uint_fast64_t ecb_peek_le_u64_u (const void *ptr)
837
838Like above, but additionally convert from big endian (C<be>) or little
839endian (C<le>) byte order to host byte order while doing so.
840
841=item ecb_poke_u16_u (void *ptr, uint16_t v)
842
843=item ecb_poke_u32_u (void *ptr, uint32_t v)
844
845=item ecb_poke_u64_u (void *ptr, uint64_t v)
846
847These functions store an unaligned, unsigned 16, 32 or 64 bit value to
848memory.
849
850=item ecb_poke_be_u16_u (void *ptr, uint_fast16_t v)
851
852=item ecb_poke_be_u32_u (void *ptr, uint_fast32_t v)
853
854=item ecb_poke_be_u64_u (void *ptr, uint_fast64_t v)
855
856=item ecb_poke_le_u16_u (void *ptr, uint_fast16_t v)
857
858=item ecb_poke_le_u32_u (void *ptr, uint_fast32_t v)
859
860=item ecb_poke_le_u64_u (void *ptr, uint_fast64_t v)
861
862Like above, but additionally convert from host byte order to big endian
863(C<be>) or little endian (C<le>) byte order while doing so.
864
865=back
866
867In C++ the following additional template functions are supported:
868
869=over
870
871=item T ecb_peek<T> (const void *ptr)
872
873=item T ecb_peek_be<T> (const void *ptr)
874
875=item T ecb_peek_le<T> (const void *ptr)
876
877=item T ecb_peek_u<T> (const void *ptr)
878
879=item T ecb_peek_be_u<T> (const void *ptr)
880
881=item T ecb_peek_le_u<T> (const void *ptr)
882
883Similarly to their C counterparts, these functions load an unsigned 8, 16,
88432 or 64 bit value from memory, with optional conversion from big/little
885endian.
886
887Since the type cannot be deduced, it has to be specified explicitly, e.g.
888
889 uint_fast16_t v = ecb_peek<uint16_t> (ptr);
890
891C<T> must be one of C<uint8_t>, C<uint16_t>, C<uint32_t> or C<uint64_t>.
892
893Unlike their C counterparts, these functions support 8 bit quantities
894(C<uint8_t>) and also have an aligned version (without the C<_u> prefix),
895all of which hopefully makes them more useful in generic code.
896
897=item ecb_poke (void *ptr, T v)
898
899=item ecb_poke_be (void *ptr, T v)
900
901=item ecb_poke_le (void *ptr, T v)
902
903=item ecb_poke_u (void *ptr, T v)
904
905=item ecb_poke_be_u (void *ptr, T v)
906
907=item ecb_poke_le_u (void *ptr, T v)
908
909Again, similarly to their C counterparts, these functions store an
910unsigned 8, 16, 32 or z64 bit value to memory, with optional conversion to
911big/little endian.
912
913C<T> must be one of C<uint8_t>, C<uint16_t>, C<uint32_t> or C<uint64_t>.
914
915Unlike their C counterparts, these functions support 8 bit quantities
916(C<uint8_t>) and also have an aligned version (without the C<_u> prefix),
917all of which hopefully makes them more useful in generic code.
918
919=back
920
921=head2 FAST INTEGER TO STRING
922
923Libecb defines a set of very fast integer to decimal string (or integer
924to ascii, short C<i2a>) functions. These work by converting the integer
925to a fixed point representation and then successively multiplying out
926the topmost digits. Unlike some other, also very fast, libraries, ecb's
927algorithm should be completely branchless per digit, and does not rely on
928the presence of special cpu functions (such as clz).
929
930There is a high level API that takes an C<int32_t>, C<uint32_t>,
931C<int64_t> or C<uint64_t> as argument, and a low-level API, which is
932harder to use but supports slightly more formatting options.
933
934=head3 HIGH LEVEL API
935
936The high level API consists of four functions, one each for C<int32_t>,
937C<uint32_t>, C<int64_t> and C<uint64_t>:
938
939=over
940
941=item ECB_I2A_I32_DIGITS (=11)
942
943=item char *ecb_i2a_u32 (char *ptr, uint32_t value)
944
945Takes an C<uint32_t> I<value> and formats it as a decimal number starting
946at I<ptr>, using at most C<ECB_I2A_I32_DIGITS> characters. Returns a
947pointer to just after the generated string, where you would normally put
948the temrinating C<0> character. This function outputs the minimum number
949of digits.
950
951=item ECB_I2A_U32_DIGITS (=10)
952
953=item char *ecb_i2a_i32 (char *ptr, int32_t value)
954
955Same as C<ecb_i2a_u32>, but formats a C<int32_t> value, including a minus
956sign if needed.
957
958=item ECB_I2A_I64_DIGITS (=20)
959
960=item char *ecb_i2a_u64 (char *ptr, uint64_t value)
961
962=item ECB_I2A_U64_DIGITS (=21)
963
964=item char *ecb_i2a_i64 (char *ptr, int64_t value)
965
966Similar to their 32 bit counterparts, these take a 64 bit argument.
967
968=item ECB_I2A_MAX_DIGITS (=21)
969
970Instead of using a type specific length macro, youi can just use
971C<ECB_I2A_MAX_DIGITS>, which is good enough for any C<ecb_i2a> function.
972
973=back
974
975=head3 LOW-LEVEL API
976
977The functions above use a number of low-level APIs which have some strict
978limitaitons, but cna be used as building blocks (study of C<ecb_i2a_i32>
979and related cunctions is recommended).
980
981There are three families of functions: functions that convert a number
982to a fixed number of digits with leading zeroes (C<ecb_i2a_0N>, C<0>
983for "leading zeroes"), functions that generate up to N digits, skipping
984leading zeroes (C<_N>), and functions that can generate more digits, but
985the leading digit has limited range (C<_xN>).
986
987None of the functions deal with negative numbera.
988
989=over
990
991=item char *ecb_i2a_02 (char *ptr, uint32_t value) // 32 bit
992
993=item char *ecb_i2a_03 (char *ptr, uint32_t value) // 32 bit
994
995=item char *ecb_i2a_04 (char *ptr, uint32_t value) // 32 bit
996
997=item char *ecb_i2a_05 (char *ptr, uint32_t value) // 64 bit
998
999=item char *ecb_i2a_06 (char *ptr, uint32_t value) // 64 bit
1000
1001=item char *ecb_i2a_07 (char *ptr, uint32_t value) // 64 bit
1002
1003=item char *ecb_i2a_08 (char *ptr, uint32_t value) // 64 bit
1004
1005=item char *ecb_i2a_09 (char *ptr, uint32_t value) // 64 bit
1006
1007The C<< ecb_i2a_0I<N> > functions take an unsigned I<value> and convert
1008them to exactly I<N> digits, returning a pointer to the first character
1009after the digits. The I<value> must be in range. The functions marked with
1010I<32 bit> do their calculations internally in 32 bit, the ones marked with
1011I<64 bit> internally use 64 bit integers, which might be slow on 32 bit
1012architectures (the high level API decides on 32 vs. 64 bit versions using
1013C<ECB_64BIT_NATIVE>).
1014
1015=item char *ecb_i2a_2 (char *ptr, uint32_t value) // 32 bit
1016
1017=item char *ecb_i2a_3 (char *ptr, uint32_t value) // 32 bit
1018
1019=item char *ecb_i2a_4 (char *ptr, uint32_t value) // 32 bit
1020
1021=item char *ecb_i2a_5 (char *ptr, uint32_t value) // 64 bit
1022
1023=item char *ecb_i2a_6 (char *ptr, uint32_t value) // 64 bit
1024
1025=item char *ecb_i2a_7 (char *ptr, uint32_t value) // 64 bit
1026
1027=item char *ecb_i2a_8 (char *ptr, uint32_t value) // 64 bit
1028
1029=item char *ecb_i2a_9 (char *ptr, uint32_t value) // 64 bit
1030
1031Similarly, the C<< ecb_i2a_I<N> > functions take an unsigned I<value>
1032and convert them to at most I<N> digits, suppressing leading zeroes, and
1033returning a pointer to the first character after the digits.
1034
1035=item ECB_I2A_MAX_X5 (=59074)
1036
1037=item char *ecb_i2a_x5 (char *ptr, uint32_t value) // 32 bit
1038
1039=item ECB_I2A_MAX_X10 (=2932500665)
1040
1041=item char *ecb_i2a_x10 (char *ptr, uint32_t value) // 64 bit
1042
1043The C<< ecb_i2a_xI<N> >> functions are similar to the C<< ecb_i2a_I<N> >
1044functions, but they can generate one digit more, as long as the number
1045is within range, which is given by the symbols C<ECB_I2A_MAX_X5> (almost
104616 bit range) and C<ECB_I2A_MAX_X10> (a bit more than 31 bit range),
1047respectively.
1048
1049For example, the sigit part of a 32 bit signed integer just fits into the
1050C<ECB_I2A_MAX_X10> range, so while C<ecb_i2a_x10> cannot convert a 10
1051digit number, it can convert all 32 bit signed numbers. Sadly, it's not
1052good enough for 32 bit unsigned numbers.
1053
1054=back
1055
1056=head2 FLOATING POINT FIDDLING
1057
1058=over
1059
1060=item ECB_INFINITY [-UECB_NO_LIBM]
1061
1062Evaluates to positive infinity if supported by the platform, otherwise to
1063a truly huge number.
1064
1065=item ECB_NAN [-UECB_NO_LIBM]
1066
1067Evaluates to a quiet NAN if supported by the platform, otherwise to
1068C<ECB_INFINITY>.
1069
1070=item float ecb_ldexpf (float x, int exp) [-UECB_NO_LIBM]
1071
1072Same as C<ldexpf>, but always available.
1073
1074=item uint32_t ecb_float_to_binary16 (float x) [-UECB_NO_LIBM]
1075
1076=item uint32_t ecb_float_to_binary32 (float x) [-UECB_NO_LIBM]
1077
1078=item uint64_t ecb_double_to_binary64 (double x) [-UECB_NO_LIBM]
1079
1080These functions each take an argument in the native C<float> or C<double>
1081type and return the IEEE 754 bit representation of it (binary16/half,
1082binary32/single or binary64/double precision).
1083
1084The bit representation is just as IEEE 754 defines it, i.e. the sign bit
1085will be the most significant bit, followed by exponent and mantissa.
1086
1087This function should work even when the native floating point format isn't
1088IEEE compliant, of course at a speed and code size penalty, and of course
1089also within reasonable limits (it tries to convert NaNs, infinities and
1090denormals, but will likely convert negative zero to positive zero).
1091
1092On all modern platforms (where C<ECB_STDFP> is true), the compiler should
1093be able to optimise away this function completely.
1094
1095These functions can be helpful when serialising floats to the network - you
1096can serialise the return value like a normal uint16_t/uint32_t/uint64_t.
1097
1098Another use for these functions is to manipulate floating point values
1099directly.
1100
1101Silly example: toggle the sign bit of a float.
1102
1103 /* On gcc-4.7 on amd64, */
1104 /* this results in a single add instruction to toggle the bit, and 4 extra */
1105 /* instructions to move the float value to an integer register and back. */
1106
1107 x = ecb_binary32_to_float (ecb_float_to_binary32 (x) ^ 0x80000000U)
1108
1109=item float ecb_binary16_to_float (uint16_t x) [-UECB_NO_LIBM]
1110
1111=item float ecb_binary32_to_float (uint32_t x) [-UECB_NO_LIBM]
1112
1113=item double ecb_binary64_to_double (uint64_t x) [-UECB_NO_LIBM]
1114
1115The reverse operation of the previous function - takes the bit
1116representation of an IEEE binary16, binary32 or binary64 number (half,
1117single or double precision) and converts it to the native C<float> or
1118C<double> format.
1119
1120This function should work even when the native floating point format isn't
1121IEEE compliant, of course at a speed and code size penalty, and of course
1122also within reasonable limits (it tries to convert normals and denormals,
1123and might be lucky for infinities, and with extraordinary luck, also for
1124negative zero).
1125
1126On all modern platforms (where C<ECB_STDFP> is true), the compiler should
1127be able to optimise away this function completely.
1128
1129=item uint16_t ecb_binary32_to_binary16 (uint32_t x)
1130
1131=item uint32_t ecb_binary16_to_binary32 (uint16_t x)
1132
1133Convert a IEEE binary32/single precision to binary16/half format, and vice
1134versa, handling all details (round-to-nearest-even, subnormals, infinity
1135and NaNs) correctly.
1136
1137These are functions are available under C<-DECB_NO_LIBM>, since
1138they do not rely on the platform floating point format. The
1139C<ecb_float_to_binary16> and C<ecb_binary16_to_float> functions are
1140usually what you want.
125 1141
126=back 1142=back
127 1143
128=head2 ARITHMETIC 1144=head2 ARITHMETIC
129 1145
130=over 4 1146=over
131 1147
132=item x = ecb_mod (m, n) [MACRO] 1148=item x = ecb_mod (m, n)
1149
1150Returns C<m> modulo C<n>, which is the same as the positive remainder
1151of the division operation between C<m> and C<n>, using floored
1152division. Unlike the C remainder operator C<%>, this function ensures that
1153the return value is always positive and that the two numbers I<m> and
1154I<m' = m + i * n> result in the same value modulo I<n> - in other words,
1155C<ecb_mod> implements the mathematical modulo operation, which is missing
1156in the language.
1157
1158C<n> must be strictly positive (i.e. C<< >= 1 >>), while C<m> must be
1159negatable, that is, both C<m> and C<-m> must be representable in its
1160type (this typically excludes the minimum signed integer value, the same
1161limitation as for C</> and C<%> in C).
1162
1163Current GCC/clang versions compile this into an efficient branchless
1164sequence on almost all CPUs.
1165
1166For example, when you want to rotate forward through the members of an
1167array for increasing C<m> (which might be negative), then you should use
1168C<ecb_mod>, as the C<%> operator might give either negative results, or
1169change direction for negative values:
1170
1171 for (m = -100; m <= 100; ++m)
1172 int elem = myarray [ecb_mod (m, ecb_array_length (myarray))];
1173
1174=item x = ecb_div_rd (val, div)
1175
1176=item x = ecb_div_ru (val, div)
1177
1178Returns C<val> divided by C<div> rounded down or up, respectively.
1179C<val> and C<div> must have integer types and C<div> must be strictly
1180positive. Note that these functions are implemented with macros in C
1181and with function templates in C++.
133 1182
134=back 1183=back
135 1184
136=head2 UTILITY 1185=head2 UTILITY
137 1186
138=over 4 1187=over
139 1188
140=item ecb_array_length (name) [MACRO] 1189=item element_count = ecb_array_length (name)
141 1190
142=back 1191Returns the number of elements in the array C<name>. For example:
143 1192
1193 int primes[] = { 2, 3, 5, 7, 11 };
1194 int sum = 0;
144 1195
1196 for (i = 0; i < ecb_array_length (primes); i++)
1197 sum += primes [i];
1198
1199=back
1200
1201=head2 SYMBOLS GOVERNING COMPILATION OF ECB.H ITSELF
1202
1203These symbols need to be defined before including F<ecb.h> the first time.
1204
1205=over
1206
1207=item ECB_NO_THREADS
1208
1209If F<ecb.h> is never used from multiple threads, then this symbol can
1210be defined, in which case memory fences (and similar constructs) are
1211completely removed, leading to more efficient code and fewer dependencies.
1212
1213Setting this symbol to a true value implies C<ECB_NO_SMP>.
1214
1215=item ECB_NO_SMP
1216
1217The weaker version of C<ECB_NO_THREADS> - if F<ecb.h> is used from
1218multiple threads, but never concurrently (e.g. if the system the program
1219runs on has only a single CPU with a single core, no hyperthreading and so
1220on), then this symbol can be defined, leading to more efficient code and
1221fewer dependencies.
1222
1223=item ECB_NO_LIBM
1224
1225When defined to C<1>, do not export any functions that might introduce
1226dependencies on the math library (usually called F<-lm>) - these are
1227marked with [-UECB_NO_LIBM].
1228
1229=back
1230
1231=head1 UNDOCUMENTED FUNCTIONALITY
1232
1233F<ecb.h> is full of undocumented functionality as well, some of which is
1234intended to be internal-use only, some of which we forgot to document, and
1235some of which we hide because we are not sure we will keep the interface
1236stable.
1237
1238While you are welcome to rummage around and use whatever you find useful
1239(we can't stop you), keep in mind that we will change undocumented
1240functionality in incompatible ways without thinking twice, while we are
1241considerably more conservative with documented things.
1242
1243=head1 AUTHORS
1244
1245C<libecb> is designed and maintained by:
1246
1247 Emanuele Giaquinta <e.giaquinta@glauco.it>
1248 Marc Alexander Lehmann <schmorp@schmorp.de>
1249
1250

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