Tips And Tricks For The C Pre-processor

October 17, 2013 by Eric Evenchick 54 Comments

The C pre-processor can help you write more concise, easy to follow code. It can also let you create a tangled ball of macros and #defines. [s1axter] wrote up a guide on how to use the pre-processor and keep your sanity.

We’ve seen some neat hacks with the C pre-processor, such as a full adder implementation, but this focuses on more practical usages. First, [s1axter] explains what the pre-processor does with your code by writing simple macros. Next up is arguments, and usage of ‘##’ directive for metaprogramming. Finally, we get a good explanation of why you need to worry about scope when using macros, and how to safe code by using ‘do {} while()’ statements.

If you’re into embedded programming, this guide will help you understand some of the more complex pre-processor techniques out there. It’s helpful for making your code clearer, and abstracting away hardware dependencies in a few lines of code.

Create A Full Adder Using The C Preprocessor

October 9, 2013 by Adam Fabio 26 Comments

Full_Adder

[Phillip] wanted to play with the C preprocessor. He decided to do that by creating a 4 bit full adder. We know this is pretty useless in everyday life, but it was a great learning experience. The beauty of this adder is right at the start. [Phillip] defines truth tables for XOR and AND. He’s able to then create strings that reference these truth tables.
For example: the first line of [Phillip’s] AND table is #define AND_00 0. If the preprocessor concatenates strings that equal “AND_00” they will then be converted to 0. This is the groundwork for the half adder .

The next step is the operational logic, which of course falls upon macros:


/* Full adder macros */
/* Out = (A ^ B) ^ cin */
#define FULL_ADD_OUT( a, b, cin ) \
 XOR( XOR( a, b ), cin )

/* Carry_out = (A &amp; B) ^ (Carry_in &amp; (A ^ B)) */
/* The standard adder uses OR for the last 'gate' - this
 can safely be changed  to XOR, which has been done here
 to avoid defining an OR operator */
#define FULL_ADD_CARRY( a, b, cin ) \
 XOR( AND( XOR( a, b ), cin ), AND( a, b ) )

Continue reading “Create A Full Adder Using The C Preprocessor” →