Given the following two procs:
proc firstOne(): void =
echo "X"
proc secondOne(): void =
echo "X"
discard
What functional difference, if any, is there between them? And if they are the same, what is the purpose of discard if void type discards the result?
The discard in the second procedure is superfluous. A discard without an argument is simply a no-op. It is normally used (like pass in Python) where the language syntax requires a statement, but where you don't want to do anything. An example would be an empty procedure:
proc doNothing() =
discard
You can still add discard even where it is not syntactically necessary because as a no-op it doesn't do anything.
This is different from discard with an argument, whose purpose is to call a function for its side effects and ignore the result.
Related
I don't understand why the recursive function always gives me zero result, even if I put values inside the array.
it seems that size (a) == 0
recursive function binarySearch_R (a, value) result (bsresult)
real, intent(in) :: a(6), value
integer :: bsresult, mid
mid = size(a)/2 + 1
if (size(a) == 0) then
bsresult = 0 ! not found
else if (a(mid) > value) then
bsresult= binarySearch_R(a(:mid-1), value)
else if (a(mid) < value) then
bsresult = binarySearch_R(a(mid+1:), value)
if (bsresult /= 0) then
bsresult = mid + bsresult
end if
else
bsresult = mid ! SUCCESS!!
end if
end function binarySearch_R
program hji
read*, a
read*, value
print*, binarySearch_R
end program hji
Chapter 1: The dangers of implicit typing
The first thing I strongly recommend you do is to include the line
implicit none
after the program line. This will suppress implicit typing, and the resulting errors will give you some useful insight into what is happening.
If you did that, you'd get an error message:
$ gfortran -o binsearch binsearch.f90
binsearch.f90:23:12:
read*, a
1
Error: Symbol ‘a’ at (1) has no IMPLICIT type
binsearch.f90:27:25:
print*,binarySearch_R
1
Error: Symbol ‘binarysearch_r’ at (1) has no IMPLICIT type
binsearch.f90:24:16:
read*, value
1
Error: Symbol ‘value’ at (1) has no IMPLICIT type
It doesn't matter that a, value, and binarySearch_R were defined in the function. As the function is not part of the program block, the program doesn't know what these are.
With implicit typing active, it simply assumed that all three are simple real variables. (The type depends on the first letter of the variable name, i through n are integer, everything else is real)
Because this implicit typing can so easily hide coding errors, it's strongly, strongly suggested to always switch it off.
Which also means that we have to declare the variables a and value in the program:
program hji
implicit none
real :: a(6), value
...
end program hji
Chapter 2: How to introduce a function to the program?
So how does the program get access to the function? There are four ways:
The best way: Use a module
module mod_binsearch
implicit none
contains
recursive function binarySearch_R (a, value) result (bsresult)
...
end function binarySearch_R
end module mod_binsearch
program hji
use mod_binsearch
implicit none
real :: a(6), value
...
end program hji
Note that the use statement has to be before the implicit none.
This method leaves the function separate, but callable.
It automatically checks that the parameters (that's something we'll be coming to in a bit) are correct.
Have the function contained in the program.
Between the final line of code of the program and the end program statement, add the keyword contains, followed by the function code (everything from recursive function ... to end function ...).
This is the quick-and-dirty method. You have to be careful with this method as the function will automatically have access to the program's variables unless there's a new variable with that name declared inside the function.
The convoluted way: Interfaces
Create an interface block in the declaration section of your program's source code,
and repeat the interface information in there.
This still allows the compiler to check whether the function is invoked correctly, but it's up to you to ensure that this interface block is correct and matches the actual implementation.
The really, really ugly way: Declare it like a variable, invoke it like a function.
Please don't do that.
Chapter 3: Calling a function
When you call a function, you have to use the parentheses and give it all the parameters that it expects. In your case, you need to type
print *, binarySearch_r(a, value)
Chapter 4: Dynamic arrays as dummy parameters
In the successive recursive calls to the function, the array gets smaller and smaller.
But the dummy parameter is always the same size (6). Not only will this interfere with your algorithm, but this can also lead to dangerously undefined memory access.
Fortunately, specially for intent(in) dummy parameters, you can use dynamic arrays:
recursive function binarySearch_R(a, value)
real, intent(in) :: a(:), value
The single colon tells the compiler to expect a one-dimensional array, but not the length of it. Since you're already using size(a), it should automatically work.
Too long for a comment, but not an answer (and to any Fortran experts reading this, yes, there are one or two places where I gloss over some details because I think they are unimportant at this stage) ...
The way the code is written does not allow the compiler to help you. As far as the compiler is concerned there is no connection between the function and the program. As far as the program is concerned a is, because you haven't told the compiler otherwise, assumed to be a real scalar value. The a in the program is not the same thing as the a in the function - there is no connection between the function and the program.
The same is true for value.
The same is true for binarysearch_r - and if you don't believe this delete the function definition from the source code and recompile the program.
So, what must you do to fix the code ?
First step: modify your source code so that it looks like this:
program hji
... program code goes here ...
contains
recursive function binarySearch_R (a, value) result (bsresult)
... function code goes here ...
end function binarySearch_R
end program hji
This first step allows the compiler to see the connection between the program and the function.
Second step: insert the line implicit none immediately after the line program hji. This second step allows the compiler to spot any errors you make with the types (real or integer, etc) and ranks (scalar, array, etc) of the variables you declare.
Third step: recompile and start dealing with the errors the compiler identifies. One of them will be that you do not pass the arguments to the function so the line
print*, binarySearch_R
in the program will have to change to
print*, binarySearch_R(a, value)
def check_the_input_only_allows_digits_only(inp):
# A function for validating the input, the purpose of this is to let
# the user enter only digits.
if inp.isdigit() or inp is "" or inp == "\b" or inp is None:
return True
else:
return False
reg = creditor.register(check_the_input_only_allows_digits_only)
amount.config(validate = "key",validatecommand = (reg,"%P"))
I have understood that the function check_the_input_only_allows_digits_only is registered and for every character the user enters, the function is called and the input is validated. But why is the .register required, couldn't the function be called without .register every time the user enters something? What exactly is happening beneath the hood?
The important thing to know is that Tkinter is just a thin wrapper around an embedded Tcl interpreter. That means there are sometimes small compromises due to fundamental differences in the two languages.
The Tcl Way
When doing input validation in Tcl you specify a Tcl script rather than just a callable function. Tcl will scan the code for special character sequences (such as %P, %S, etc), and substitute them with information about the data to be validated.
When written in Tcl your code might look something like this:
entry .amount -validate key -validatecommand {
expr {[string is int %P] || [string length %P]==0}
}
Or, using a Tcl function:
proc check_the_input_only_allows_digits_only {P} {
expr {[string is int P] || [string length P] == 0}
}
entry .amount \
-validate key \
-validatecommand {check_the_input_only_allows_digits_only %P}
The Python Way
Python doesn't have an easy way to pass around code as a string, and even if it did Tcl wouldn't understand it. Instead, in python you must pass a reference to a callable -- typically a reference to a function or method.
In order to pass in those special substitution characters where python expects a callable, you must create a Tcl procedure which acts as a proxy to your python function. This command is created when you call the register function.
proc = creditor.register(check_the_input_only_allows_digits_only)
amount.config(validate = "key", validatecommand = (proc,"%P"))
If you do not use these characters, you don't need to register the command. For example, the following code is a valid way to call a function that takes no parameters:
def check_the_input_only_allows_digits_only():
...
amount.config(validate = "key",validatecommand = check_the_input_only_allows_digits_only)
Of course, being passed the values for %P and the other special character sequences is what makes the validation function so powerful.
Could you please explain differences between and definition of call by value, call by reference, call by name and call by need?
Call by value
Call-by-value evaluation is the most common evaluation strategy, used in languages as different as C and Scheme. In call-by-value, the argument expression is evaluated, and the resulting value is bound to the corresponding variable in the function (frequently by copying the value into a new memory region). If the function or procedure is able to assign values to its parameters, only its local copy is assigned — that is, anything passed into a function call is unchanged in the caller's scope when the function returns.
Call by reference
In call-by-reference evaluation (also referred to as pass-by-reference), a function receives an implicit reference to a variable used as argument, rather than a copy of its value. This typically means that the function can modify (i.e. assign to) the variable used as argument—something that will be seen by its caller. Call-by-reference can therefore be used to provide an additional channel of communication between the called function and the calling function. A call-by-reference language makes it more difficult for a programmer to track the effects of a function call, and may introduce subtle bugs.
differences
call by value example
If data is passed by value, the data is copied from the variable used in for example main() to a variable used by the function. So if the data passed (that is stored in the function variable) is modified inside the function, the value is only changed in the variable used inside the function. Let’s take a look at a call by value example:
#include <stdio.h>
void call_by_value(int x) {
printf("Inside call_by_value x = %d before adding 10.\n", x);
x += 10;
printf("Inside call_by_value x = %d after adding 10.\n", x);
}
int main() {
int a=10;
printf("a = %d before function call_by_value.\n", a);
call_by_value(a);
printf("a = %d after function call_by_value.\n", a);
return 0;
}
The output of this call by value code example will look like this:
a = 10 before function call_by_value.
Inside call_by_value x = 10 before adding 10.
Inside call_by_value x = 20 after adding 10.
a = 10 after function call_by_value.
call by reference example
If data is passed by reference, a pointer to the data is copied instead of the actual variable as is done in a call by value. Because a pointer is copied, if the value at that pointers address is changed in the function, the value is also changed in main(). Let’s take a look at a code example:
#include <stdio.h>
void call_by_reference(int *y) {
printf("Inside call_by_reference y = %d before adding 10.\n", *y);
(*y) += 10;
printf("Inside call_by_reference y = %d after adding 10.\n", *y);
}
int main() {
int b=10;
printf("b = %d before function call_by_reference.\n", b);
call_by_reference(&b);
printf("b = %d after function call_by_reference.\n", b);
return 0;
}
The output of this call by reference source code example will look like this:
b = 10 before function call_by_reference.
Inside call_by_reference y = 10 before adding 10.
Inside call_by_reference y = 20 after adding 10.
b = 20 after function call_by_reference.
when to use which
One advantage of the call by reference method is that it is using pointers, so there is no doubling of the memory used by the variables (as with the copy of the call by value method). This is of course great, lowering the memory footprint is always a good thing. So why don’t we just make all the parameters call by reference?
There are two reasons why this is not a good idea and that you (the programmer) need to choose between call by value and call by reference. The reason are: side effects and privacy. Unwanted side effects are usually caused by inadvertently changes that are made to a call by reference parameter. Also in most cases you want the data to be private and that someone calling a function only be able to change if you want it. So it is better to use a call by value by default and only use call by reference if data changes are expected.
call by name
In call-by-name evaluation, the arguments to a function are not evaluated before the function is called — rather, they are substituted directly into the function body (using capture-avoiding substitution) and then left to be evaluated whenever they appear in the function.
call by need
Lazy evaluation, or call-by-need is an evaluation strategy which delays the evaluation of an expression until its value is needed (non-strict evaluation) and which also avoids repeated evaluations
I suppose this:
public static string abc()
{
return "abc";
}
Is better to call this function in this way:
string call = abc();
Console.writeline(call);
Than this?
console.writeline(abc());
is there any reason to prefer one to the other?
Both are valid. However, out of experience I have concluded that the first option is more suitable for readability and ease of maintenance. I can't count how many times I have changed from the "compact" style to the first one as a help for a debugging session.
For example, this style makes it easy to check the correctness intermediate of an intermediate result:
string call = abc();
assert(!call.empty()); // Just an example.
Console.writeline(call);
Also, it helps to make the code more robust later, adding a conditional check before the subsequent action that checks call's value, for example if the design does not guarantee that the condition of the previous assert holds but you still need to check it.
string call = abc();
if (!call.empty())
{
Console.writeline(call);
}
Note also that with this style you will be able to easily inspect the value of call in your debugger.
Given your exact example (one parameter, value not used elsewhere, no side effects), it's just a matter of style. However, it gets more interesting if there are multiple parameters and the methods have side effects. For example:
int counter;
int Inc() { counter += 1; return counter }
void Foo(int a, int b) { Console.WriteLine(a + " " + b); }
void Bar()
{
Foo(Inc(), Inc());
}
What would you expect Foo to print here? Depending on the language there might not even be a predictable result. In this situation, assigning the values to a variable first should cause the compiler (depending on language) to evaluate the calls in a predictable order.
Actually I don't see a difference if you don't have any error checking.
This would make a difference
string call = abc();
# if call is not empty
{
Console.writeline(call);
}
The above method could avoid empty string being written.
I was wondering. Are there languages that use only pass-by-reference as their eval strategy?
I don't know what an "eval strategy" is, but Perl subroutine calls are pass-by-reference only.
sub change {
$_[0] = 10;
}
$x = 5;
change($x);
print $x; # prints "10"
change(0); # raises "Modification of a read-only value attempted" error
VB (pre .net), VBA & VBS default to ByRef although it can be overriden when calling/defining the sub or function.
FORTRAN does; well, preceding such concepts as pass-by-reference, one should probably say that it uses pass-by-address; a FORTRAN function like:
INTEGER FUNCTION MULTIPLY_TWO_INTS(A, B)
INTEGER A, B
MULTIPLY_BY_TWO_INTS = A * B
RETURN
will have a C-style prototype of:
extern int MULTIPLY_TWO_INTS(int *A, int *B);
and you could call it via something like:
int result, a = 1, b = 100;
result = MULTIPLY_TWO_INTS(&a, &b);
Another example are languages that do not know function arguments as such but use stacks. An example would be Forth and its derivatives, where a function can change the variable space (stack) in whichever way it wants, modifying existing elements as well as adding/removing elements. "prototype comments" in Forth usually look something like
(argument list -- return value list)
and that means the function takes/processes a certain, not necessarily constant, number of arguments and returns, again, not necessarily a constant, number of elements. I.e. you can have a function that takes a number N as argument and returns N elements - preallocating an array, if you so like.
How about Brainfuck?