VistaIOIdentifyFiles(3)


NAME

   VistaIOIdentifyFiles   -  identify  files  specified  by  command  line
   arguments

SYNOPSIS

   #include <vistaio.h>

   VistaIOBoolean VistaIOIdentifyFiles (noptions, options, keyword, argc, argv, fd)
          int noptions;
          VistaIOOptionDescRec options[noptions];
          VistaIOStringConst keyword;
          int *argc;
          char *argv;
          int fd;

ARGUMENTS

   noptions  Specifies the number  of  entries  in  the  table  of  option
             descriptors.

   options   Specifies the location of the table of option descriptors.

   keyword   Specifies the option keyword that is used on the command line
             to specify filenames.

   argc      Specifies the number of command line arguments to be  parsed,
             and  returns the number of arguments that were not recognized
             as valid filenames.

   argv      Specifies a vector of command line arguments  to  be  parsed,
             and   returns  a  vector  of  the  arguments  that  were  not
             recognized as valid filenames.

   fd        May specify an open file descriptor that should be checked to
             ensure  it  corresponds to a file or pipe if no filenames are
             explicitly given by command line arguments. Or it may  be  -1
             to indicate that no such checking should be done.

DESCRIPTION

   By convention, a Vista program that reads one or more files can be told
   of those files in any of three ways:

     (a) the filenames can be supplied as  arguments  to  a  command  line
         option (e.g., vxview -in file1 file2 ...);

     (b) the  filenames  can  be  supplied  as  command line arguments not
         associated     with     any     particular     option      (e.g.,
         vxview file1 file2 ...); or

     (c) a  file  can  be  directed to the program's standard input stream
         (e.g., vxview < file1).

   In parsing a command's arguments, these alternatives are considered  in
   order. That is, first the program looks for an appropriate command line
   option (e.g., -in). If no such option has been specified, it checks for
   command  line  arguments  not  associated with any option. If those are
   also absent, it tries to read its file from the standard input stream.

   Similarly, an output file may be specified using a command line  option
   (e.g.,  vconvolve -out file1), or, by omitting the option and directing
   the program's standard output stream (e.g., vconvolve > file1).

   VistaIOIdentifyFiles identifies a program's input files or output files
   according to this convention. It is called after VistaIOParseCommand(3)
   has parsed any  command  line  arguments  that  can  be  identified  as
   options,   leaving   the   remaining   arguments  in  *argc  and  argv.
   VistaIOIdentifyFiles is then called once to identify any  input  files,
   and perhaps again to identify an output file.

   The  noptions  and options parameters specify the table used earlier by
   VistaIOParseCommand   to   parse    command    line    options.    (See
   VistaIOoption(3)  for  details.) The argc and argv parameters specify a
   list of command line arguments that VistaIOParseCommand has returned as
   unparsed  (including  the program's name, which should be first in this
   list). The keyword parameter specifies the command line option that may
   be  used  to  specify  filenames  (e.g., ``in'' or ``out''), absent any
   ``-'' prefix. The entry in the option table for the option specified by
   keyword must (a) refer to a ``found'' flag that VistaIOParseCommand can
   use to record whether or not the option is present on the command line,
   and (b) refer to a location where the option's arguments can be stored.

   VistaIOIdentifyFiles  consults  the ``found'' flag to determine whether
   the  option  was  present   on   the   command   line.   If   it   was,
   VistaIOIdentifyFiles  returns  immediately. Otherwise, it then examines
   *argc to determine whether an appropriate number  of  unparsed  command
   line  arguments  exist.  If  there are a sufficient number of arguments
   present, they are interpreted as filenames and stored at  the  location
   indicated by the option table entry

   Finally,  if  no  filenames are found either as arguments to a -keyword
   option or as additional command  line  arguments,  VistaIOIdentifyFiles
   considers  the  possibility  that  a  file  has been attached to a file
   descriptor such as the standard input or output stream. You may wish to
   ensure  that  a file is allowed to default to one of these streams only
   if the stream has been associated with  a  file  or  pipe,  and  not  a
   terminal.  In that case, pass as fd the file descriptor that will serve
   as   the   default   source   or   destination   of   the   file,   and
   VistaIOIdentifyFiles  will  check  that  it is indeed associated with a
   file or pipe. Otherwise, pass -1 for fd and it will  not  perform  this
   check.

RETURN VALUES

   VistaIOIdentifyFiles  returns  TRUE  if  it  finds  one  or  more files
   specified on the command line, and if the number of files specified  is
   compatible  with the number field of the option table entry. It returns
   FALSE if no files were specified, if the wrong  number  of  files  were
   specified,  or  if  the file would default to a file descriptor but the
   file descriptor fd is not associated with a file or pipe.

   On successful return VistaIOIdentifyFiles will  have  eliminated,  from
   the list represented by *argc and argv, any command line arguments that
   it identified as filenames. Also, the filenames found will be stored at
   the location indicated by the option table entry for keyword. A default
   to the standard input or output stream will be identified by a filename
   of ``-''.

EXAMPLE

   The  following  fragment is drawn from a program that reads one or more
   files and writes a single file. The input files may be specified with a
   -in  option,  as  extra command line arguments, or by being directed to
   the standard input stream. The output file may be specified with a -out
   option, and, if that option is not present, the file will be written to
   the standard output stream regardless of whether it is associated  with
   a file or a terminal.

   VistaIOArgVector in_filenames;
   VistaIOStringConst out_filename;
   VistaIOBoolean in_found, out_found;

   VistaIOOptionDescRec options[] = {
        { "in", VistaIOStringRepn, 0, & in_filenames, & in_found,
             NULL, "Input file(s)" },
        { "out", VistaIOStringRepn, 1, & out_filename, & out_found,
             NULL, "Output file" }
   };

   main (int argc, char *argv)
   {
        /* Parse command line options: */
        if (! VistaIOParseCommand (VistaIONumber (options), options,
                            & argc, argv)) {
   Usage:         VistaIOReportUsage (argv[0], VistaIONumber (options), options,
                            "file1 file2...");
             exit (1);
        }

        /* Identify input file(s): */
        if (! VistaIOIdentifyFiles (VistaIONumber (options), options, "in",
                            & argc, argv, 0))
             goto Usage;

        /* Any remaining unparsed arguments are erroneous: */
        if (argc > 1) {
             VistaIOReportBadArgs (argc, argv);
             goto Usage;
        }

        /* Identify output file: */
        if (! VistaIOIdentifyFiles (VistaIONumber (options), options, "out",
                            & argc, argv, -1))
             goto Usage;

        /* Open and process each input file: */
        for (i = 0; i < in_filenames.number; i++) {
             filename = ((VistaIOStringConst *) in_filename.vector)[i];
             if (strcmp (filename, "-") != 0) {
                  f = fopen (filename, "r");
                  if (f == NULL)
                       VistaIOError ("Unable to open file \"%s\"", filename);
             } else f = stdin;

             ...

        }
   }

SEE ALSO

   VistaIOOpenFile(3), VistaIOParseCommand(3), VistaIOReportBadArgs(3),
   VistaIOReportUsage(3),
   VistaIOoption(3),

DIAGNOSTICS

   VistaIOIdentifyFiles reports errors in command line options by printing
   directly  to  the  standard  error  stream.  Error  reports include the
   program name obtained from  argv[0].  The  following  messages  may  be
   produced:

   ``n files must be specified by -keyword or extra command arguments''
          The  program requires that n files be specified (n > 1). Neither
          a -keyword option was present on  the  command  line,  nor  were
          there at least n unparsed arguments that could be interpreted as
          filenames.

   ``No file specified by -keyword, extra command argument, or <''
          The program requires that at least one file be specified, and it
          can  be  specified  in  any  of  three  ways. However, it wasn't
          specified in any form.

   In addition, VistaIOIdentifyFiles  may  invoke  VistaIOError  with  the
   following messages:

   ``Option -keyword not defined in option table''
          The  keyword  parameter  specified  a keyword not defined in the
          option table.

   ``No value storage for option -keyword''
          The keyword parameter specifies  an  option  table  entry  whose
          value field is NULL

   ``No "found" flag for option -keyword''
          The  keyword  parameter  specifies  an  option table entry whose
          found  field  doesn't  point  to  a   dedicated   VistaIOBoolean
          variable.

   ``Failed to fstat() fd fd''
          An fstat() call failed on the supplied file descriptor, fd.

AUTHOR

   Art Pope <pope@cs.ubc.ca>

   Adaption to vistaio: Gert Wollny <gw.fossdev@gmail.com>





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