String/Array Question

[Matthew Alton]

Why does this code generate a SIGSEGV?

#include <stdio.h>

int
main(void)
{
char *s = "ABC";

s[1] = 'X';

return(0);
}

while this does not:

#include <stdio.h>

int
main(void)
{
char s[] = "ABC";

s[1] = 'X';

return(0);
}


The *s declaration followed by a reference to s[-1] is used in
FreeBSD's strsep(3). It dumps core on Red Hat Linux 7.x and NetBSD
1.6.1.

[Irrwahn Grausewitz]

Re: String/Array Question

malton@myit.biz (Matthew Alton) wrote:[color=blue]
>Why does this code generate a SIGSEGV?[/color]
[color=blue]
> char *s = "ABC";
> s[1] = 'X';[/color]

http://www.eskimo.com/~scs/C-faq/top.html Question 1.32

Regards
--
Irrwahn Grausewitz (irrwahn33@free net.de)
welcome to clc: http://www.ungerhu.com/jxh/clc.welcome.txt
clc faq-list : http://www.faqs.org/faqs/C-faq/faq/
clc OT guide : http://benpfaff.org/writings/clc/off-topic.html

[Barry Schwarz]

Re: String/Array Question

On 24 Apr 2004 17:03:01 -0700, malton@myit.biz (Matthew Alton) wrote:
[color=blue]
>Why does this code generate a SIGSEGV?
>
>#include <stdio.h>
>
>int
>main(void)
>{
> char *s = "ABC";
>
> s[1] = 'X';
>
> return(0);
>}
>
>while this does not:
>
>#include <stdio.h>
>
>int
>main(void)
>{
> char s[] = "ABC";
>
> s[1] = 'X';
>
> return(0);
>}
>[/color]

Because your compiler is doing it best to comply with the requirement
that a string literal be non-modifiable. See the faq at
http://www.eskimo.com/~scs/C-faq/top.html. The answer to your
question is near the beginning but you should read the whole thing.


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