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COMPILE_ET(1)               General Commands Manual              COMPILE_ET(1)

NAME
       compile_et - error table compiler
SYNOPSIS
       compile_et file
DESCRIPTION
       Compile_et  converts  a  table  listing error-code names and associated
       messages into a C source file suitable  for  use  with  the  com_err(3)
       library.
       The  source  file name must end with a suffix of ``.et''; the file con-
       sists of a declaration supplying the name (up to four characters  long)
       of the error-code table:
       error_table name
       followed by up to 256 entries of the form:
       error_code name, " string "
       and a final
       end
       to indicate the end of the table.
       The  name  of  the  table is used to construct the name of a subroutine
       initialize_XXXX_error_table which must  be  called  in  order  for  the
       com_err library to recognize the error table.
       The  various  error  codes defined are assigned sequentially increasing
       numbers (starting with a large number computed as a  hash  function  of
       the name of the table); thus for compatibility it is suggested that new
       codes be added only to the end of an existing table, and that no  codes
       be removed from tables.
       The  names  defined  in  the table are placed into a C header file with
       preprocessor directives defining them as integer constants of up to  32
       bits in magnitude.
       A  C  source file is also generated which should be compiled and linked
       with the object files which reference these error  codes;  it  contains
       the  text  of  the  messages and the initialization subroutine.  Both C
       files have names derived from that of the original  source  file,  with
       the ``.et'' suffix replaced by ``.c'' and ``.h''.
       A  ``#''  in the source file is treated as a comment character, and all
       remaining text to the end of the source line will be ignored.

BUGS
       Since the original compile_et  uses  a  very  simple  parser  based  on
       yacc(1),  and this current version of compile_et uses an awk/sed combi-
       nation of scripts, its error recovery leaves much to be desired.

SEE ALSO
       com_err (3).
       Ken Raeburn, "A Common Error Description Library for UNIX".

SIPB                              30 Mar 1998                    COMPILE_ET(1)