I have just spent months updating and refining Fast Safe C Strings. These routines allow C string handling to run up to 11 times faster while using significantly less CPU/electricity. Additionally, these routines can create files on Windows and Linux that are structured exactly like VB (Variable Blocked) files on z/OS.
The internal Fast Safe String routines use the same design concepts as PL/I and Pascal—storing and utilizing the current length of the strings rather than constantly scanning for binary zeros (X'00') or line feeds. Furthermore, strings are automatically truncated if the receiving buffer is too short, completely preventing the adjacent storage overwrites that often lead to malicious exploits. Early tests on a z16 show these routines are about 3 to 4 times faster than standard C fgets and strlen functions—even when compared to the hardware's native SRST string search or newer SIMD vector instructions. You can find the open-source repository here: https://github.com/clemcl/FastSafeStrings. On a slightly off-topic note, spinning out of the recent discussions here regarding the European heatwave, I wanted to share a website I set up a decade ago dedicated to climate change data: https://www.ecoactivities.org/ (or https://sites.google.com/theecoplatform.com/ecoactivities/home) Since most people in this group are scientifically and logically inclined, you might find these recent New Scientist articles on the statistical impacts of the recent heatwave interesting: https://www.newscientist.com/article/2532825-june-heatwave-may-have-killed-around-20000-people-in-europe/ https://www.newscientist.com/article/2456335-extreme-heat-is-now-making-cities-unlivable-how-can-we-survive-it/ ---------------------------------------------------------------------- For IBM-MAIN subscribe / signoff / archive access instructions, send email to [email protected] with the message: INFO IBM-MAIN
