One of the reasons behind the low-level open() function is to access non-traditional files. This stems from the UNIX environment’s treatment of every device as a file. Sometimes you need low-level access to accomplish specific tasks, such as accessing a device driver. Yet, in the C language universe, an interesting crossover is provided between low-level raw file access and formatted file access.
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Along with open() as a raw file access function comes raw functions to read and write data. Last week’s Lesson covered the read() function. This week covers its twin sibling, write().
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When you use the fopen() function to open a file for reading, a buncha functions are available for reading data: fread(), fgets(), fgetc(), and others I’m too lazy to look up. Reading files by using the open() function, however, gives you this choice: the read() function.
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The fopen() function opens a file or stream for formatted input. The “formatted” is where the function gets its f prefix, which I always thought stood for file. It doesn’t. The fopen() function is the formatted file (and stream) function, the open() function is for low-level, unformatted file access.
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I plan my Lessons weeks in advance. So, only recently did it dawn upon me that today is March 14th, 3/14, known to nerds all over as Pi Day. Here is yet another nerdy program I wrote to calculate the value of π:
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Being traditional and, to be honest, ancient, the C language deals primarily with two-way evaluations: a > b, c != d, r <= 0, and so on. Complex comparisons build upon these atomic nuggets, but among the trendy languages a newer alternative exists: the three-way evaluation.
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