[Caml-list] exception or conditional

[Caml-list] exception or conditional

[Chris GauthierDickey]

I'm writing a function that is using an array that can be dynamically 
resized. I'm wondering if it would be better to just catch an exception 
if we attempt to go out of bounds in the array (at which point I resize 
the array), or if I should test the size using an if-then-else before I 
enter the main body of my function and resize then.

How lightweight is the exception mechanism in ocaml? If I test the size, 
then any time I call this function, I have to execute the conditional 
statement. If I use try...with, then I'm entering an exception handling 
block every call to the function. Is one better than the other? Neither 
one makes the code clearer or cleaner, so that's not really a factor.

Thanks in advance for your advice,
Chris G.

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Re: [Caml-list] exception or conditional

[Markus Mottl]

On Tue, 10 Feb 2004, Chris GauthierDickey wrote:
> I'm writing a function that is using an array that can be dynamically 
> resized. I'm wondering if it would be better to just catch an exception 
> if we attempt to go out of bounds in the array (at which point I resize 
> the array), or if I should test the size using an if-then-else before I 
> enter the main body of my function and resize then.

You might be interested in the RES-library, which also implements
resizable arrays while staying compatible to the Array-module:

  http://www.oefai.at/~markus/home/ocaml_sources.html#RES

Bounds checking probably makes less difference to the performance of
your algorithm than you might expect.

Regards,
Markus

-- 
Markus Mottl          http://www.oefai.at/~markus          markus@oefai.at

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