TIP #421: A Command for Iterating Over Arrays
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TIP:	421
Title:	A Command for Iterating Over Arrays
Version:	$Revision: 1.1 $
Authors:	Karl Lehenbauer <karllehenbauer@gmail.com>
	Donal K. Fellows <dkf@users.sf.net>
State:	Draft
Type:	Project
Tcl-Version:	8.7
Vote:	Pending
Created:	Wed Nov 28 00:00:00 UTC 2012
Abstract
This TIP proposes an efficient mechanism for iterating over the contents of a large array.
Rationale
Tcl currently provides three main mechanisms for iterating over the contents of an array, but none are quite perfect when dealing with a large array.
array get is simple to use (especially with a two-variable foreach) but requires the contents of the array to be effectively duplicated; even with the use of the Tcl_Obj system for value reference management, this is an expensive operation.
array names (with a simple foreach) is also relatively simple to use, but requires producing a list whose size is the same as the number of elements of the array. (This is half the size that would be required with array get, but can still be large.)
array startsearch et al. provide a memory-efficient general iteration mechanism, but in a way that is rather difficult to use. It is also subject to significant hazards if the array is modified during iteration (a particular problem for the global env array, as that is regenerated on almost any read).
The authors propose that there be a new subcommand of array which allows for efficient iteration over an array's elements.
Proposed Change
There should be a new command, array foreach, that has this syntax:
array foreach arrayName keyVar valueVar body
This will iterate internally over the elements of the array called arrayName in array-iteration order (i.e., the same as that used by the other array subcommands), setting the variable keyVar to the name of the element and the variable valueVar to the content of the element before evaluating the script body. The result will be the empty string (excepting errors, return, etc.) and any contained break and continue will have their normal interpretation as loop control operations.
Implementation
Not yet...
Copyright
This document has been placed in the public domain.
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