GNU bug report logs - #714
directory-files: Doc string is irritatingly vague wrt sorting.

Previous Next

To add a comment to this bug, you must first unarchive it, by sending
a message to control AT debbugs.gnu.org, with unarchive 714 in the body.
You can then email your comments to 714 AT debbugs.gnu.org in the normal way.

Toggle the display of automated, internal messages from the tracker.

Message #5 received at submit <at> emacsbugs.donarmstrong.com (full text, mbox):

From: Alan Mackenzie <acm <at> muc.de>
To: bug-gnu-emacs <at> gnu.org
Subject: directory-files:  Doc string is irritatingly vague wrt sorting.
Date: Wed, 13 Aug 2008 19:11:41 +0000

Hi, Emacs!

The doc string for directory files is:

    directory-files is a built-in function in `src/dired.c'.
    (directory-files DIRECTORY &optional FULL MATCH NOSORT)

    Return a list of names of files in DIRECTORY.
    There are three optional arguments:
    If FULL is non-nil, return absolute file names.  Otherwise return names
    that are relative to the specified directory.
    If MATCH is non-nil, mention only file names that match the regexp MATCH.
    If NOSORT is non-nil, the list is not sorted--its order is unpredictable.
     NOSORT is useful if you plan to sort the result yourself.

This sort of implies (but doesn't state) that if NOSORT is nil, the
returned list is sorted.

More importantly, it doesn't state the predicate used for the sorting.
"Obviously", this will be some sort of alphabetical sort, but this gets
complicated for mixed case filenames and (more importantly) for character
sets which aren't vanilla ASCII.

-- 
Alan Mackenzie (Nuremberg, Germany).

Message #8 received at 714 <at> emacsbugs.donarmstrong.com (full text, mbox):

From: Glenn Morris <rgm <at> gnu.org>
To: Alan Mackenzie <acm <at> muc.de>
Cc: 714 <at> debbugs.gnu.org
Subject: Re: bug#714: directory-files: Doc string is irritatingly vague wrt sorting.
Date: Fri, 15 Aug 2008 15:14:51 -0400

Alan Mackenzie wrote:

> More importantly, it doesn't state the predicate used for the sorting.
> "Obviously", this will be some sort of alphabetical sort, but this gets
> complicated for mixed case filenames and (more importantly) for character
> sets which aren't vanilla ASCII.

Will saying it uses `string-lessp' be good enough for you? The details
of said function are in the Elisp manual.

Message #13 received at 714-done <at> emacsbugs.donarmstrong.com (full text, mbox):

From: Chong Yidong <cyd <at> stupidchicken.com>
To: Alan Mackenzie <acm <at> muc.de>
Cc: 714-done <at> debbugs.gnu.org
Subject: Re: directory-files:  Doc string is irritatingly vague wrt sorting.
Date: Fri, 15 Aug 2008 16:19:06 -0400

I've clarified the docstring.  Thanks.

Previous Next

GNU bug tracking system
Copyright (C) 1999 Darren O. Benham, 1997,2003 nCipher Corporation Ltd, 1994-97 Ian Jackson.