Parse error has me stumped - possible issue with header files?

I think my errors and code will explain the issue fairly well (my thoughts at the bottom):

When I compile:

Code:

In file included from mylib/physics.h:21,
                 from mylib/level.h:26,
                 from mylib/gameload.h:14,
                 from mylib/game.h:17,
                 from mylib.h:4,
                 from main.c:13:
mylib/gameupdate.h:46: error: parse error before '*' token
In file included from mylib/physics.h:21,
                 from mylib/level.h:26,
                 from mylib/level.c:14:
mylib/gameupdate.h:46: error: parse error before '*' token
In file included from mylib/physics.h:21,
                 from mylib/level.h:26,
                 from mylib/gameload.h:14,
                 from mylib/gameload.c:14:
mylib/gameupdate.h:46: error: parse error before '*' token
In file included from mylib/physics.h:21,
                 from mylib/level.h:26,
                 from mylib/gamedraw.h:24,
                 from mylib/gamedraw.c:14:
mylib/gameupdate.h:46: error: parse error before '*' token
In file included from mylib/physics.h:21,
                 from mylib/level.h:26,
                 from mylib/gameload.h:14,
                 from mylib/game.h:17,
                 from mylib/game.c:14:
mylib/gameupdate.h:46: error: parse error before '*' token

The offending code from gameupdate.h

Code:

#ifndef GAMEUPDATE_H
#define GAMEUPDATE_H

#include <stdio.h> 
#include <time.h>

#include "level.h" /* <-- Level header included here! */

#include "gameobj.h"
#include "entity.h"
#include "worldgeo.h"

#include "graphics.h"
#include "bool.h"
#include "artasset.h"
#include "physics.h"
#include "linklist_go.h"
#include "linklist_aa.h"
#include "gameState.h"
#include "custmath.h"

...

void Update(Level *level, /* <-- Errors are from here! */
  gameState *currentState,
  LinkedList_GO *layers,
  bool changeTracker[SCREEN_HEIGHT][SCREEN_WIDTH],
  Entity* player);

...

#endif

Definition of Level in level.h

Code:

#ifndef LEVEL_H
#define LEVEL_H

#include "gameobj.h"
#include "entity.h"
#include "worldgeo.h"

#include "graphics.h"
#include "bool.h"
#include "artasset.h"
#include "physics.h"
#include "linklist_go.h"
#include "linklist_aa.h"
#include "gameState.h"
#include "custmath.h"

...

typedef struct Level /* <-- Definition here! */
{
  char name[32];
  
  /* 
    Layers:
        0 - Background (Map)
        1 - Geometry
        2 - Entities
        3 - HUD
  */
  LinkedList_GO layers[4];
  LinkedList_AA artBank;
  Entity player;
  WorldGeometry map;
  
} Level;

...

#endif

From my understanding this parse error would indicate that the compiler doesn't know what "Level" is when it reaches the line where the error is. Does it matter that I have "level.h" including "gameupdate.h" and "gameupdate.h" including "level.h"? If so - how could I resolve this (I have need to use level in gameupdate, and I have one function in gameupdate that level needs), if not - any ideas? I'm stumped ...

Thanks a ton in advance for your time and assistance!

EDIT: I forgot to mention - all my files except main.c are in a folder named mylib in the same directory as main.c.

I know the compiler says line 46, but sometimes it can get confused when you have a function definition spanning several lines. Perhaps try adding temporary prototypes to isolate which type in the parameter list is causing the problem:

Code:

void foo(Level *);
void bar(gameState *);
// etc

You may find that it's not actually the definition of Level that it's missing. I have a slight hunch it might be gameState, since all of your other types start with a capital letter and that one doesn't. Check it against what's in gameState.h.

Originally Posted by Feversaint

Does it matter that I have "level.h" including "gameupdate.h" and "gameupdate.h" including "level.h"?

Very likely it does.

how could I resolve this (I have need to use level in gameupdate, and I have one function in gameupdate that level needs)

If this function's parameters include a type defined in level.h, but level.h includes gameupdate.h before that type is declared, that is a problem.

The simplest solution may be to define the type in level.h before you include gameupdate.h (the #include statements do not have to be before everything else). The best solution is probably to think a little bit about your headers and their purpose. You do not need to have a one to one .c -> .h relationship; you can use additional headers (eg, declaring and defining common types) that are included in multiple .c or .h files (using include guards, of course). That kind of a header will not have any function prototypes in it, so it does not need a corresponding .c; all it does is declare and define types, constants, #defines, and enums.

Thanks for the advice! Not working quite yet, but I am going to reconsider my design (and I did verify that level is the problem thanks to the other suggestion).

The number of possible causes of your problem is huge.

The compiler only reports errors at the point it detects a problem. In practice, if a parse error is reported at line 46, the cause can be in any code up to and including line 46. If line 46 is a multi-line statement (as it is in your case) the cause can be after line 46 (within the same statement).

The most common causes are misplaced semi-colons, missing brackets or braces, using a type name where the compiler expects a variable name (or vice versa).

It is also possible the cause of your problem is a macro definition in one of your header files. A common symptom of a macro containing a misplaced semi-colon, for example, is a parse error when the macro is later used but there will often be no error reported for the actual definition of the macro. That is a result of how the preprocessor works (by text substitution, after which the modified code is interpreted by the compiler).

Well since you have over a dozen header files, I'm guessing a similar number of source files as well.

In which case, it's time to investigate Revision control - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

In particular, it would help you solve the current problem.
It would be able to do this, by allowing you to compare the last known good version with the one you have.

Searching through a few pages of diffs of the most recent edits would make this task a lot easier.

Code:

typedef struct Level /* <-- Definition here! */  /* tag name */
{
  char name[32];
  
  /* 
    Layers:
        0 - Background (Map)
        1 - Geometry
        2 - Entities
        3 - HUD
  */
  LinkedList_GO layers[4];
  LinkedList_AA artBank;
  Entity player;
  WorldGeometry map;
  
} Level; /* type name */

Some old compilers needed the tag name and type name to be different.

Tim S.

Originally Posted by stahta01

Code:

typedef struct Level /* <-- Definition here! */  /* tag name */
{
  char name[32];
  
  /* 
    Layers:
        0 - Background (Map)
        1 - Geometry
        2 - Entities
        3 - HUD
  */
  LinkedList_GO layers[4];
  LinkedList_AA artBank;
  Entity player;
  WorldGeometry map;
  
} Level; /* type name */

Some old compilers needed the tag name and type name to be different.

Tim S.

New ones too...
In Pelles, I get a "redefinition" error if they're the same...
In fact it is an error.

It is not an error according to the C standard: struct type names and typedef names belong in different name spaces. However, it is one of those things that a fair percentage of C compilers, old and new, get wrong and therefore misdiagnose.