#define DEBUG... (using printf for debugging)

[Karl Fox]

In article <40628 at cornell.UUCP> gordon at mimir.cs.cornell.edu (Jeffrey  Adam Gordon) writes:

   I want to have a DEBUG flag which controls whether diagnostic printfs
   are executed or not.

   The obvious way to do this is:

   #ifdef DEBUG
	   printf ("debugging information");
   #endif DEBUG

   But its a pain to have to type the #ifdef ... #endif all the time, and
   its less readable than simply having:

	   DEBUG ("debugging information");

   Now, I can use the latter format if I

   #define DEBUG printf

   but then how do I turn DEBUG off?


Here is a not-too-gross method I have seen suggested (and used):

    # define DEBUG(a) printf a

or, to disable it,

    # define DEBUG(a)

Then, call it with a double set of outer parentheses:

    DEBUG(("Warning: user %s has an ugly face!\n", user_name));

It even works as the THEN clause of an IF statement.
--
Karl Fox, Morning Star Technologies               karl at MorningStar.COM