Re: 'Image for composite types

[Martin <martin.dowie@btopenworld.com>]

On May 31, 1:17 pm, Stephen Leake <stephen_le...@stephe-leake.org>
wrote:
> Martin <martin.do...@btopenworld.com> writes:
> > Is it just me that gets fed up with the lack of 'Image on composite
> > types?
>
> > I'm thinking in particular of when I'm testing / debugging and usually
> > end up writing lots of 'Put_Line' code for each and every record. And
> > then having to maintain them.
>
> That's what Auto_Text_IO is forhttp://www.stephe-leake.org/ada/auto_text_io.html
>
> > It got me thinking that the language could be expanded to include some
> > helper attributes for easily composing a function that could return a
> > String a la 'Image for scalar types.
>
> I should think the compiler could just compose 'Image for each
> component.
>
> That won't work for access types, or task types (and probably others);
> there would have to be a way to provide user functions for those; a
> defineable 'Image attribute would be good, as you propose.
>
> --
> -- Stephe

Thanks for the link - just wish it was part of the language, make life
even easier.

Cheers
-- Martin