🚀 go-pugleaf

In article <L6eZwB1w164w@jaflrn.UUCP> jaf@jaflrn.UUCP writes:
> 
> C (Turbo to be specific - check your library reference)
> 
>     char user_var[20];     /* whatever length...? */
>     user_var = getenv("USER");
> 
> Hope this helps...
> 
> Jon
> 

Whoa!  Time!  If I may be allowed to change the subject briefly...

THIS IS ABSOLUTELY WRONG!  The Turbo C prototype for getenv() is:

           char *getenv(const char *varname);
           
If you are using the above method of getting the value of an environment 
variable, you should be getting compile errors.  I created a test program
(appropriately enough, called "test.c") containing only the two lines
above.

    #include    <stdlib.h>
    
    void main(void)
    {
        char    user_var[20];
        
        user_var = getenv("USER");
    }

This is what I received when it was compiled:

    Borland C++  Version 2.0 Copyright (c) 1991 Borland International
    test.c:
    Error test.c 7: Lvalue required in function main
    *** 1 errors in Compile ***

getenv() returns a pointer to a character string, not a character string.
To work properly, you need to use one of these two fragments:

        char *user_var;
        user_var = getenv("USER");
        if(user_var == NULL) ...
        
    or
    
        char user_var[20];
        strncpy(user_var,getenv("USER"),19);
        if(*user_var == 0) ...
        
and then "user_var" can be used like a character array.

Thanks for letting me clarify.

Bob