Thread: function arguments

Hello

I've recently noticed that some of you define functions (prototypes) this way:

Code:

void some_function(int, int, int);

instead of

Code:

void some_function(int a, int b, int c);

Which way is better?

It depends. In most cases I would say the second one would be better assuming you provided descriptive variable names. That's because it helps to document to the user of the function what the parameters are supposed to mean.

The only case where it might be better to use the first method is for private implementation functions in a class. The implementation of those doesn't need to be known by the user of the class, so it may make sense to hide their meanings.

Originally Posted by Prelude

>Which way is better?
The only time the first option is better, is when you have unused parameters. This can suppress warnings about not using the parameter, and otherwise it's best to name your parameters so that the code documents itself.

But don't count on it. At least once I have seen screwy code of the form:

Code:

int foo(int a, int b, int c);

int foo(int b, int a, int c)
{
   ...
}

Can you guess how long it took me before I realized what was happening? Yeah.