Question

String handling in C seems challenging (compared to most languages which aren't Assembly :-P ).

Anyone got any good tips that will save me lots of trouble when I work with strings in C? Are there better ways to implement strings in C besides that standard NUL-terminated one?

Answer 1

you can also implement strings using pointers.

Answer 2

how?

Answer 3

Always always always use the *n* functions. So strncat, strncomp, etc. These take explicit lengths for their actions, and ensure that you don't accidentally overflow the end of your string.

Other than that, yeah, strings can be a pain in C. Just the way of things :)

(Implementing strings using pointers -> just remember arrays are a very thin veneer on pointers. You're already using strings as pointers ;) )

Answer 4

I know this is basic, but IMHO, when it's overlooked life becomes difficult: C doesn't have strings, it has array of char. Any of the "string" functions are iterating over an array.

Answer 5

@rsmith

You're absolutely right, unfortunately :( and the only support C has for strings would be converting string literals in code into NUL terminated arrays of characters, and string.h for basic manipulation of NUL terminated strings.