A contiguous sequence of characters terminated by the `NUL` character (refer to [[ascii|ASCII]]). Text data is said to be more platform-independent than [[endianness|binary]] data since it is unaffected by word size or byte ordering.
%%ANKI
Basic
What is a C-style string?
Back: A character array terminated with a `NUL` character.
Reference: Bryant, Randal E., and David O'Hallaron. *Computer Systems: A Programmer's Perspective*. Third edition, Global edition. Always Learning. Pearson, 2016.
<!--ID: 1707758281264-->
END%%
%%ANKI
Basic
What character terminates all C-style strings?
Back: `NUL`
Reference: Bryant, Randal E., and David O'Hallaron. *Computer Systems: A Programmer's Perspective*. Third edition, Global edition. Always Learning. Pearson, 2016.
<!--ID: 1707758281266-->
END%%
%%ANKI
Basic
What is the decimal value of `NUL` in ASCII encoding?
Back: `0`
Reference: Bryant, Randal E., and David O'Hallaron. *Computer Systems: A Programmer's Perspective*. Third edition, Global edition. Always Learning. Pearson, 2016.
<!--ID: 1707758281268-->
END%%
%%ANKI
Basic
Text is more platform-independent than binary because it is unaffected by what two properties?
Back: Word size and byte ordering.
Reference: Bryant, Randal E., and David O'Hallaron. *Computer Systems: A Programmer's Perspective*. Third edition, Global edition. Always Learning. Pearson, 2016.
What four optional parts make up a `printf` argument?
Back: Flags, width, precision, and length.
Reference: “Printf,” in *Wikipedia*, January 18, 2024, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962).
Reference: “Printf,” in *Wikipedia*, January 18, 2024, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962).
Reference: “Printf,” in *Wikipedia*, January 18, 2024, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962).
The {`width` and `precision`} fields are output related whereas the {`length`} field is input related.
Reference: “Printf,” in *Wikipedia*, January 18, 2024, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962).
Reference: “Printf,” in *Wikipedia*, January 18, 2024, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962).
Reference: “Printf,” in *Wikipedia*, January 18, 2024, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962).
Reference: “Printf,” in *Wikipedia*, January 18, 2024, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962).
Reference: “Printf,” in *Wikipedia*, January 18, 2024, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962).
Reference: “Printf,” in *Wikipedia*, January 18, 2024, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962).
Reference: “Printf,” in *Wikipedia*, January 18, 2024, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962).
Reference: “Printf,” in *Wikipedia*, January 18, 2024, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962).
Reference: “Printf,” in *Wikipedia*, January 18, 2024, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962).
How does the precision field affect `"%s"` parameters?
Back: Strings are truncated if longer than the specified precision.
Reference: “Printf,” in *Wikipedia*, January 18, 2024, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962).
How does the precision field affect `"%f"` parameters?
Back: Decimal values are truncated if longer than the specified precision.
Reference: “Printf,” in *Wikipedia*, January 18, 2024, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962).
Back: This is actually a positive width with a `-` (left-align) flag.
Reference: “Printf,” in *Wikipedia*, January 18, 2024, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962).
Reference: “Printf,” in *Wikipedia*, January 18, 2024, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962).
Reference: “Printf,” in *Wikipedia*, January 18, 2024, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962).
Back: Nothing is prepended to positive signed-numeric types by default.
Reference: “Printf,” in *Wikipedia*, January 18, 2024, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962).
Reference: “Printf,” in *Wikipedia*, January 18, 2024, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962).
Back: Nothing is prepended to positive signed-numeric types by default.
Reference: “Printf,” in *Wikipedia*, January 18, 2024, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962).
Back: Both prepend a character to positive signed-numeric types.
Reference: “Printf,” in *Wikipedia*, January 18, 2024, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962).
Reference: “Printf,” in *Wikipedia*, January 18, 2024, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962).
Reference: “Printf,” in *Wikipedia*, January 18, 2024, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962).
Reference: “Printf,” in *Wikipedia*, January 18, 2024, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962).
Back: Spaces are used to match the "width" option by default.
Reference: “Printf,” in *Wikipedia*, January 18, 2024, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962).
`hh` | `int` sized integer argument promoted from a `char`
`h` | `int` sized integer argument promoted from a `short`
`l` | `long` sized integer argument
`ll` | `long long` sized integer argument
`z` | `size_t` sized integer argument
%%ANKI
Basic
*Why* do length modifiers for e.g. `char` exist?
Back: For maximum portability in the face of default argument promotions.
Reference: “Printf,” in *Wikipedia*, January 18, 2024, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962).
The {`hh`} length corresponds to the {`char`} type declaration.
Reference: “Printf,” in *Wikipedia*, January 18, 2024, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962).
The {`h`} length corresponds to the {`short`} type declaration.
Reference: “Printf,” in *Wikipedia*, January 18, 2024, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962).
The {`l`} length corresponds to the {`long`} type declaration.
Reference: “Printf,” in *Wikipedia*, January 18, 2024, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962).
The {`ll`} length corresponds to the {`long long`} type declaration.
Reference: “Printf,” in *Wikipedia*, January 18, 2024, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962).
The {`z`} length corresponds to the {`size_t`} type declaration.
Reference: “Printf,” in *Wikipedia*, January 18, 2024, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962).
`p` | `void*` address in an implementation-defined format
%%ANKI
Basic
What character do `printf` format specifiers start with?
Back: `%`
Reference: “Printf,” in *Wikipedia*, January 18, 2024, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962).
Tags: printf
<!--ID: 1707852083029-->
END%%
%%ANKI
Basic
Why is `printf` named the way it is?
Back: It stands for **print f**ormatted.
Reference: “Printf,” in *Wikipedia*, January 18, 2024, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962).
Reference: “Printf,” in *Wikipedia*, January 18, 2024, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962).
Reference: “Printf,” in *Wikipedia*, January 18, 2024, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962).
Reference: “Printf,” in *Wikipedia*, January 18, 2024, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962).
Reference: “Printf,” in *Wikipedia*, January 18, 2024, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962).
Reference: “Printf,” in *Wikipedia*, January 18, 2024, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962).
Back: The former is for signed integers, the latter unsigned.
Reference: “Printf,” in *Wikipedia*, January 18, 2024, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962).
Reference: “Printf,” in *Wikipedia*, January 18, 2024, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962).
Reference: “Printf,” in *Wikipedia*, January 18, 2024, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962).
Reference: “Printf,” in *Wikipedia*, January 18, 2024, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962).
Reference: “Printf,” in *Wikipedia*, January 18, 2024, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962).
Back: The former outputs lowercase hex digits, the latter uppercase.
Reference: “Printf,” in *Wikipedia*, January 18, 2024, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962).
Reference: “Printf,” in *Wikipedia*, January 18, 2024, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962).
Back: There is no distinction between lower and uppercase octal digits.
Reference: “Printf,” in *Wikipedia*, January 18, 2024, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962).
Reference: “Printf,” in *Wikipedia*, January 18, 2024, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962).
Reference: “Printf,” in *Wikipedia*, January 18, 2024, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962).
Reference: “Printf,” in *Wikipedia*, January 18, 2024, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962).
Reference: “Printf,” in *Wikipedia*, January 18, 2024, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962).
Reference: “Printf,” in *Wikipedia*, January 18, 2024, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962).
Reference: “Printf,” in *Wikipedia*, January 18, 2024, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962).
Reference: “Printf,” in *Wikipedia*, January 18, 2024, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962).
Given `int64_t x`, why is `printf("%d", x)` a problem?
Back: `%d` matches an `int` which is not necessarily 64-bits.
Reference: Bryant, Randal E., and David O'Hallaron. *Computer Systems: A Programmer's Perspective*. Third edition, Global edition. Always Learning. Pearson, 2016.
What must you use when invoking `printf` with a fixed-width integer type?
Back: `printf`-specific macros.
Reference: Bryant, Randal E., and David O'Hallaron. *Computer Systems: A Programmer's Perspective*. Third edition, Global edition. Always Learning. Pearson, 2016.
Tags: printf
<!--ID: 1708454462777-->
END%%
%%ANKI
Basic
What is `PRId32` an example macro for?
Back: A macro that expands to the correct specifier for a 32-bit signed integral type.
Reference: Bryant, Randal E., and David O'Hallaron. *Computer Systems: A Programmer's Perspective*. Third edition, Global edition. Always Learning. Pearson, 2016.
Tags: printf
<!--ID: 1708454462780-->
END%%
%%ANKI
Cloze
{`PRId32`} is to signed whereas {`PRIu32`} is to unsigned.
Reference: “Printf,” in *Wikipedia*, January 18, 2024, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962).
Tags: printf
<!--ID: 1708454462784-->
END%%
%%ANKI
Basic
Which C header specifies `printf` macros for fixed-width integral types?
Back: `<inttypes.h>`
Reference: “Printf,” in *Wikipedia*, January 18, 2024, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962).
Tags: printf
<!--ID: 1708454462788-->
END%%
%%ANKI
Basic
Given `int32_t x`, how might we invoke `printf` on it?
Back: `printf("%" PRId32, x)`
Reference: Bryant, Randal E., and David O'Hallaron. *Computer Systems: A Programmer's Perspective*. Third edition, Global edition. Always Learning. Pearson, 2016.
Tags: printf
<!--ID: 1708454584564-->
END%%
%%ANKI
Basic
What prefix do `printf` macros from `<inttypes.h>` share?
Back: `PRI`
Reference: Bryant, Randal E., and David O'Hallaron. *Computer Systems: A Programmer's Perspective*. Third edition, Global edition. Always Learning. Pearson, 2016.
* Bryant, Randal E., and David O'Hallaron. *Computer Systems: A Programmer's Perspective*. Third edition, Global edition. Always Learning. Pearson, 2016.
* “Printf,” in *Wikipedia*, January 18, 2024, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Printf&oldid=1196716962).