Thread: Help with functions

  1. #1
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    Help with functions

    The ciphertext is almost identical to the message:

    Code:
    #include <iostream>
    #include <string>
    using namespace std;
    
    #define DEBUG
    
    
    char* shift(char* k) {
    
      // return an (odd) permutation of `k'
    
      int sz = sizeof(k)/sizeof(char);
    
      for(int i = 0; i < sz; i++) {
        char t = k[i];
        k[i] = k[i+1];
        k[i+1] = t;
      }
    
      return k;
    
    }
    
    char* forward(char* m, char* k) {
    
      // forward cipher (encryption)
    
      int sz_m = sizeof(m)/sizeof(char);
    
      while(*m++ ^= *k) {
        k = shift(k); // algorithm (symmetric difference)
    #ifdef DEBUG
        cout << k << '\n';
    #endif
      }
      return m;
    }
    
    int main(int argc, char* argv[]) {
    
      char** args = argv;
    
      char* mess;
      char* key;
    
      switch(argc) {
      case 3:
        mess = args[1];
        key = args[2];
        break;
      default:
        cout <<"usage: encrypt message key\n";
        return 1;
      }
    
      cout << "Encrypted message is: \n"
           <<"\n\t" << forward(mess, key) << '\n';
    
      return 0;
    }
    The `shift' function is supposed to rotate through each character in the key, so that a (somewhat) different comparison is done for as many characters as the unencrypted message contains. But the output points to a problem:

    Code:
    oops% encrypt bell-labs message
    Encrypted message is:
    
            ll-labs
    Any ideas? Great help on past issues--thanks.

  2. #2
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    Code:
    >  int sz = sizeof(k)/sizeof(char);
    Perhaps you want to use the length of the key here:
    Code:
      int sz = strlen(k);

  3. #3
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    Thanks, but I still have the same problem : (

  4. #4
    Frequently Quite Prolix dwks's Avatar
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    To expand on swoopy's response, sizeof(array)/sizeof(*array) only works on proper arrays. It doesn't work on pointers to strings or anything like that. And since, when passed to functions, arrays "degrade" (sorry, Prelude) into pointers, you can't use that trick to determine the number of elements in an array inside of a function that was passed that array. That's why you have to pass the size into the function as a separate parameter.

    I'm examining your code in greater detail now.

    [edit] Your shift function can return void. It doesn't have to return the pointer, because you don't modify it in any way.

    You don't need to use args, argv will do just fine.

    What if the encrypted message contains NULLs? . . . .

    Anyway, I experimented a bit, and this is what I came up with. It's not pretty, but hey.
    Code:
    #include <iostream>
    #include <string>
    #include <cctype>
    using namespace std;
    
    #define DEBUG
    
    
    void shift(char* k) {
    
      // return an (odd) permutation of `k'
    
      int sz = strlen(k);
    
      for(int i = 0; i < sz-1; i++) {
        char t = k[i];
        k[i] = k[i+1];
        k[i+1] = t;
      }
    }
    
    char* forward(char* m, char* k) {
    
      // forward cipher (encryption)
    
      int sz_m = strlen(m);
    
      for(;;) {
        *m ^= *k;
        if(!*++m) break;
        cout << "[message: " << m << "]\n";
    
        shift(k); // algorithm (symmetric difference)
    #ifdef DEBUG
        cout << k << '\n';
    #endif
      }
      return m;
    }
    
    int main(int argc, char* argv[]) {
    
      char* mess;
      char* key;
    
      switch(argc) {
      case 3:
        mess = argv[1];
        key = argv[2];
        break;
      default:
        cout <<"usage: encrypt message key\n";
        return 1;
      }
    
      {
        cout << "Encrypted message is: \n"
             <<"\n\t";
        int len = strlen(mess);
        const char *message = forward(mess, key);
        for(int x = 0; x < len; x ++) {
            cout << (int)mess[x] << ' ' << (isprint(mess[x]) ? (char)mess[x] : '-') << endl;
        }
      }
    
      return 0;
    }
    Hopefully that helps. [/edit]
    Last edited by dwks; 12-19-2007 at 05:06 PM.
    dwk

    Seek and ye shall find. quaere et invenies.

    "Simplicity does not precede complexity, but follows it." -- Alan Perlis
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  5. #5
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    Code:
    >  while(*m++ ^= *k) {
    Either change this to:
    Code:
    size_t len = strlen(m);
    for (int i=0; i<len; i++)
    {
    	*m++ ^= *k;
    Or be sure you don't xor a letter with itself, which results in a null terminatro (\0), and consequently the loop terminates.

    >oops&#37; encrypt bell-labs message
    xor e with e and you get 0.

  6. #6
    The larch
    Join Date
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    Code:
    #include <string>
    Are you aware that you are not using anything from that header?

    C-style array functionality (strlen, strcpy etc) are in <cstring>.

    This might be a large part of your problem, as it seems that you are quite relaxed about array bounds.

    Edit: Using std::string might also take care of the 0-character problem because std::string doesn't use '\0' for anything special.

    Code:
    char* forward(char* m, char* k) {
    
      // forward cipher (encryption)
    
      int sz_m = sizeof(m)/sizeof(char);
    
      while(*m++ ^= *k) {
        k = shift(k); // algorithm (symmetric difference)
    #ifdef DEBUG
        cout << k << '\n';
    #endif
      }
      return m;
    }
    Note that sz_m isn't used. Are you quite sure that the while loop condition respects the different lengths of the two buffers? What if key is shorter than message? Or the other way round?

    The shift function appears simply to chops characters from the beginning of the key, making it even shorter.
    Last edited by anon; 12-19-2007 at 05:06 PM.
    I might be wrong.

    Thank you, anon. You sure know how to recognize different types of trees from quite a long way away.
    Quoted more than 1000 times (I hope).

  7. #7
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    Thanks all! It works, and the code is much cleaner.

    Now I have to go backward( ) ; )

  8. #8
    Registered User
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    Dec 2007
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    2
    Great info, thanks for sharing

    Toni Rudolf Vlaic

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