Re: libnettle/libhogweed WIP

[Eli Zaretskii]

> From: Ted Zlatanov <address@hidden>
> Date: Mon, 17 Apr 2017 12:55:32 -0400
> 
> EZ> Why not use my suggestion, producing a Lisp string out of C string
> EZ> just before returning?
> 
> I don't see the difference between allocating a C string +
> make_unibyte_string(), and doing
> 
>   Lisp_Object storage = make_uninit_string (storage_length);
>   ...
>   return make_unibyte_string (SSDATA (storage), storage_length);

It's a minor issue, admittedly.  make_unibyte_string allocates a Lisp
string, which does more than just allocate the string data (e.g., Lisp
memory allocation is non-reentrant, so it calls block_input).  It also
requires allocation whose alignment is potentially more stringent than
simple C memory allocation, certainly so if SAFE_ALLOCA decides to use
alloca, not malloc, so it slightly increases memory pressure.

IOW, it's a kind of aesthetic issue: code that allocates a Lisp string
just so it could use its data as storage, and then actually makes a
different string to return to the caller, looks less elegant to me.

> because either way the data has to be copied, and the latter needs less
> care with freeing the memory.

Using SAFE_ALLOCA is not complicated, either.

> It's really not a big deal to switch to your suggestion, I just
> don't know why it matters?

I hope the above explains why.