comp.lang.c FAQ list · Question 1.31

Q: This code, straight out of a book, isn't compiling:

int f()
{
	char a[] = "Hello, world!";
}

A: Perhaps you have an old, pre-ANSI compiler, which doesn't allow initialization of ``automatic aggregates'' (i.e. non-static local arrays, structures, or unions). You have four possible workarounds:

1. If the array won't be written to or if you won't need a fresh copy during any subsequent calls, you can declare it static (or perhaps make it global).
2. If the array won't be written to, you could replace it with a pointer:

   	f()
   	{
   		char *a = "Hello, world!";
   	}
   

   You can always initialize local char * variables to point to string literals (but see question 1.32).
3. If neither of the above conditions hold, you'll have to initialize the array by hand with strcpy when the function is called:

   	f()
   	{
   		char a[14];
   		strcpy(a, "Hello, world!");
   	}
   

4. Get an ANSI-compatible compiler.

See also question 11.29a.

Hosted by