]> git.saurik.com Git - wxWidgets.git/blame - docs/latex/wx/array.tex
escape underscores and don't use abbreviations in text
[wxWidgets.git] / docs / latex / wx / array.tex
CommitLineData
6e6110ee
VZ
1\section{\class{wxArray}}\label{wxarray}
2
247aba10
VZ
3This section describes the so called {\it dynamic arrays}. This is a C
4array-like data structure i.e. the member access time is constant (and not
06ad8636 5linear according to the number of container elements as for linked lists). However, these
247aba10
VZ
6arrays are dynamic in the sense that they will automatically allocate more
7memory if there is not enough of it for adding a new element. They also perform
8range checking on the index values but in debug mode only, so please be sure to
437c49b2
JS
9compile your application in debug mode to use it (see \helpref{debugging overview}{debuggingoverview} for
10details). So, unlike the arrays in some other
247aba10
VZ
11languages, attempt to access an element beyond the arrays bound doesn't
12automatically expand the array but provokes an assertion failure instead in
13debug build and does nothing (except possibly crashing your program) in the
14release build.
15
16The array classes were designed to be reasonably efficient, both in terms of
17run-time speed and memory consumption and the executable size. The speed of
06ad8636 18array item access is, of course, constant (independent of the number of elements)
247aba10
VZ
19making them much more efficient than linked lists (\helpref{wxList}{wxlist}).
20Adding items to the arrays is also implemented in more or less constant time -
437c49b2
JS
21but the price is preallocating the memory in advance. In the \helpref{memory management}{wxarraymemorymanagement} section
22you may find some useful hints about optimizing wxArray memory usage. As for executable size, all
247aba10
VZ
23wxArray functions are inline, so they do not take {\it any space at all}.
24
fc2171bd 25wxWidgets has three different kinds of array. All of them derive from
247aba10
VZ
26wxBaseArray class which works with untyped data and can not be used directly.
27The standard macros WX\_DEFINE\_ARRAY(), WX\_DEFINE\_SORTED\_ARRAY() and
28WX\_DEFINE\_OBJARRAY() are used to define a new class deriving from it. The
29classes declared will be called in this documentation wxArray, wxSortedArray and
30wxObjArray but you should keep in mind that no classes with such names actually
31exist, each time you use one of WX\_DEFINE\_XXXARRAY macro you define a class
32with a new name. In fact, these names are "template" names and each usage of one
33of the macros mentioned above creates a template specialization for the given
34element type.
35
36wxArray is suitable for storing integer types and pointers which it does not
37treat as objects in any way, i.e. the element pointed to by the pointer is not
06ad8636
JS
38deleted when the element is removed from the array. It should be noted that
39all of wxArray's functions are inline, so it costs strictly nothing to define as
247aba10
VZ
40many array types as you want (either in terms of the executable size or the
41speed) as long as at least one of them is defined and this is always the case
fc2171bd 42because wxArrays are used by wxWidgets internally. This class has one serious
b2ff82b9
VZ
43limitation: it can only be used for storing integral types (bool, char, short,
44int, long and their unsigned variants) or pointers (of any kind). An attempt
45to use with objects of sizeof() greater than sizeof(long) will provoke a
46runtime assertion failure, however declaring a wxArray of floats will not (on
47the machines where sizeof(float) <= sizeof(long)), yet it will {\bf not} work,
48please use wxObjArray for storing floats and doubles (NB: a more efficient
fc2171bd 49wxArrayDouble class is scheduled for the next release of wxWidgets).
247aba10
VZ
50
51wxSortedArray is a wxArray variant which should be used when searching in the
52array is a frequently used operation. It requires you to define an additional
53function for comparing two elements of the array element type and always stores
f6bcfd97 54its items in the sorted order (according to this function). Thus, it is
437c49b2 55 \helpref{Index()}{wxarrayindex} function execution time is $O(log(N))$ instead of
247aba10
VZ
56$O(N)$ for the usual arrays but the \helpref{Add()}{wxarrayadd} method is
57slower: it is $O(log(N))$ instead of constant time (neglecting time spent in
58memory allocation routine). However, in a usual situation elements are added to
59an array much less often than searched inside it, so wxSortedArray may lead to
d1b5756b 60huge performance improvements compared to wxArray. Finally, it should be
b2ff82b9
VZ
61noticed that, as wxArray, wxSortedArray can be only used for storing integral
62types or pointers.
247aba10
VZ
63
64wxObjArray class treats its elements like "objects". It may delete them when
65they are removed from the array (invoking the correct destructor) and copies
66them using the objects copy constructor. In order to implement this behaviour
67the definition of the wxObjArray arrays is split in two parts: first, you should
68declare the new wxObjArray class using WX\_DECLARE\_OBJARRAY() macro and then
69you must include the file defining the implementation of template type:
70<wx/arrimpl.cpp> and define the array class with WX\_DEFINE\_OBJARRAY() macro
71from a point where the full (as opposed to `forward') declaration of the array
72elements class is in scope. As it probably sounds very complicated here is an
73example:
74
75\begin{verbatim}
76#include <wx/dynarray.h>
77
f6bcfd97 78// we must forward declare the array because it is used inside the class
247aba10
VZ
79// declaration
80class MyDirectory;
81class MyFile;
82
83// this defines two new types: ArrayOfDirectories and ArrayOfFiles which can be
84// now used as shown below
85WX_DECLARE_OBJARRAY(MyDirectory, ArrayOfDirectories);
86WX_DECLARE_OBJARRAY(MyFile, ArrayOfFiles);
87
88class MyDirectory
89{
90...
91 ArrayOfDirectories m_subdirectories; // all subdirectories
92 ArrayOfFiles m_files; // all files in this directory
93};
94
95...
96
97// now that we have MyDirectory declaration in scope we may finish the
43c9c17d
VZ
98// definition of ArrayOfDirectories -- note that this expands into some C++
99// code and so should only be compiled once (i.e., don't put this in the
2edb0bde 100// header, but into a source file or you will get linking errors)
247aba10
VZ
101#include <wx/arrimpl.cpp> // this is a magic incantation which must be done!
102WX_DEFINE_OBJARRAY(ArrayOfDirectories);
103
104// that's all!
247aba10
VZ
105\end{verbatim}
106
107It is not as elegant as writing
108
109\begin{verbatim}
110typedef std::vector<MyDirectory> ArrayOfDirectories;
111\end{verbatim}
437c49b2 112
247aba10
VZ
113but is not that complicated and allows the code to be compiled with any, however
114dumb, C++ compiler in the world.
115
06ad8636 116Things are much simpler for wxArray and wxSortedArray however: it is enough
247aba10
VZ
117just to write
118
119\begin{verbatim}
1cc603c1
VZ
120WX_DEFINE_ARRAY(int, ArrayOfDirectories);
121WX_DEFINE_SORTED_ARRAY(int, ArrayOfFiles);
247aba10
VZ
122\end{verbatim}
123
1cc603c1
VZ
124i.e. there is only one {\tt DEFINE} macro and no need for separate
125{\tt DECLARE} one.
126
127
247aba10
VZ
128\wxheading{See also:}
129
130\helpref{Container classes overview}{wxcontaineroverview}, \helpref{wxList}{wxlist}
131
babc9758 132\wxheading{Include files}
247aba10
VZ
133
134<wx/dynarray.h> for wxArray and wxSortedArray and additionally <wx/arrimpl.cpp>
135for wxObjArray.
136
137\latexignore{\rtfignore{\wxheading{Function groups}}}
138
f510b7b2 139\membersection{Macros for template array definition}\label{arraymacros}
247aba10
VZ
140
141To use an array you must first define the array class. This is done with the
142help of the macros in this section. The class of array elements must be (at
143least) forward declared for WX\_DEFINE\_ARRAY, WX\_DEFINE\_SORTED\_ARRAY and
144WX\_DECLARE\_OBJARRAY macros and must be fully declared before you use
145WX\_DEFINE\_OBJARRAY macro.
146
147\helpref{WX\_DEFINE\_ARRAY}{wxdefinearray}\\
fbd27854 148\helpref{WX\_DEFINE\_EXPORTED\_ARRAY}{wxdefinearray}\\
a9241e60 149\helpref{WX\_DEFINE\_USER\_EXPORTED\_ARRAY}{wxdefinearray}\\
247aba10 150\helpref{WX\_DEFINE\_SORTED\_ARRAY}{wxdefinesortedarray}\\
fbd27854 151\helpref{WX\_DEFINE\_SORTED\_EXPORTED\_ARRAY}{wxdefinesortedarray}\\
a9241e60 152\helpref{WX\_DEFINE\_SORTED\_USER\_EXPORTED\_ARRAY}{wxdefinesortedarray}\\
fbd27854 153\helpref{WX\_DECLARE\_EXPORTED\_OBJARRAY}{wxdeclareobjarray}\\
a9241e60
RL
154\helpref{WX\_DECLARE\_USER\_EXPORTED\_OBJARRAY}{wxdeclareobjarray}\\
155\helpref{WX\_DEFINE\_OBJARRAY}{wxdefineobjarray}\\
156\helpref{WX\_DEFINE\_EXPORTED\_OBJARRAY}{wxdefineobjarray}\\
157\helpref{WX\_DEFINE\_USER\_EXPORTED\_OBJARRAY}{wxdefineobjarray}
247aba10 158
1cc603c1
VZ
159To slightly complicate the matters even further, the operator $->$ defined by
160default for the array iterators by these macros only makes sense if the array
161element type is not a pointer itself and, although it still works, this
162provokes warnings from some compilers and to avoid them you should use the
163{\tt \_PTR} versions of the macros above. For example, to define an array of
dcb68102
RN
164pointers to {\tt double} you should use.
165
cabf7af2 166Note that the above macros are generally only useful for
3103e8a9 167wxObject types. There are separate macros for declaring an array of a simple type,
dcb68102
RN
168such as an int.
169
cabf7af2 170The following simple types are supported:\\
dcb68102
RN
171int\\
172long\\
0ea62c21 173size\_t\\
dcb68102
RN
174double
175
176To create an array of a simple type, simply append the type you want in CAPS to
177the array definition.
178
179For example, for an integer array, you'd use one of the following variants:
180
181\helpref{WX\_DEFINE\_ARRAY\_INT}{wxdefinearray}\\
182\helpref{WX\_DEFINE\_EXPORTED\_ARRAY\_INT}{wxdefinearray}\\
183\helpref{WX\_DEFINE\_USER\_EXPORTED\_ARRAY\_INT}{wxdefinearray}\\
184\helpref{WX\_DEFINE\_SORTED\_ARRAY\_INT}{wxdefinesortedarray}\\
185\helpref{WX\_DEFINE\_SORTED\_EXPORTED\_ARRAY\_INT}{wxdefinesortedarray}\\
186\helpref{WX\_DEFINE\_SORTED\_USER\_EXPORTED\_ARRAY\_INT}{wxdefinesortedarray}\\
1cc603c1
VZ
187
188\begin{verbatim}
189WX_DEFINE_ARRAY_PTR(double *, MyArrayOfDoublePointers);
190\end{verbatim}
191
f510b7b2 192\membersection{Constructors and destructors}\label{arrayconstructorsdestructors}
247aba10
VZ
193
194Array classes are 100\% C++ objects and as such they have the appropriate copy
195constructors and assignment operators. Copying wxArray just copies the elements
196but copying wxObjArray copies the arrays items. However, for memory-efficiency
197sake, neither of these classes has virtual destructor. It is not very important
198for wxArray which has trivial destructor anyhow, but it does mean that you
199should avoid deleting wxObjArray through a wxBaseArray pointer (as you would
200never use wxBaseArray anyhow it shouldn't be a problem) and that you should not
201derive your own classes from the array classes.
202
437c49b2
JS
203\helpref{wxArray default constructor}{wxarrayctordef}\\
204\helpref{wxArray copy constructors and assignment operators}{wxarrayctorcopy}\\
247aba10
VZ
205\helpref{\destruct{wxArray}}{wxarraydtor}
206
207\membersection{Memory management}\label{wxarraymemorymanagement}
208
209Automatic array memory management is quite trivial: the array starts by
210preallocating some minimal amount of memory (defined by
211WX\_ARRAY\_DEFAULT\_INITIAL\_SIZE) and when further new items exhaust already
212allocated memory it reallocates it adding 50\% of the currently allocated
213amount, but no more than some maximal number which is defined by
214ARRAY\_MAXSIZE\_INCREMENT constant. Of course, this may lead to some memory
215being wasted (ARRAY\_MAXSIZE\_INCREMENT in the worst case, i.e. 4Kb in the
437c49b2 216current implementation), so the \helpref{Shrink()}{wxarrayshrink} function is
2edb0bde 217provided to deallocate the extra memory. The \helpref{Alloc()}{wxarrayalloc}
247aba10
VZ
218function can also be quite useful if you know in advance how many items you are
219going to put in the array and will prevent the array code from reallocating the
220memory more times than needed.
221
222\helpref{Alloc}{wxarrayalloc}\\
223\helpref{Shrink}{wxarrayshrink}
224
f510b7b2 225\membersection{Number of elements and simple item access}\label{arrayelementsaccess}
247aba10
VZ
226
227Functions in this section return the total number of array elements and allow to
228retrieve them - possibly using just the C array indexing $[]$ operator which
229does exactly the same as \helpref{Item()}{wxarrayitem} method.
230
231\helpref{Count}{wxarraycount}\\
232\helpref{GetCount}{wxarraygetcount}\\
233\helpref{IsEmpty}{wxarrayisempty}\\
234\helpref{Item}{wxarrayitem}\\
235\helpref{Last}{wxarraylast}
236
f510b7b2 237\membersection{Adding items}\label{arrayadding}
437c49b2 238
247aba10 239\helpref{Add}{wxarrayadd}\\
4f6aed9c 240\helpref{Insert}{wxarrayinsert}\\
2abb9d2f 241\helpref{SetCount}{wxarraysetcount}\\
4f6aed9c 242\helpref{WX\_APPEND\_ARRAY}{wxappendarray}
247aba10 243
f510b7b2 244\membersection{Removing items}\label{arrayremoving}
437c49b2 245
247aba10
VZ
246\helpref{WX\_CLEAR\_ARRAY}{wxcleararray}\\
247\helpref{Empty}{wxarrayempty}\\
248\helpref{Clear}{wxarrayclear}\\
8a729bb8 249\helpref{RemoveAt}{wxarrayremoveat}\\
247aba10
VZ
250\helpref{Remove}{wxarrayremove}
251
f510b7b2 252\membersection{Searching and sorting}\label{arraysearchingandsorting}
437c49b2 253
247aba10
VZ
254\helpref{Index}{wxarrayindex}\\
255\helpref{Sort}{wxarraysort}
256
257%%%%% MEMBERS HERE %%%%%
258\helponly{\insertatlevel{2}{
259
260\wxheading{Members}
261
262}}
263
264\membersection{WX\_DEFINE\_ARRAY}\label{wxdefinearray}
437c49b2 265
06ad8636 266\func{}{WX\_DEFINE\_ARRAY}{\param{}{T}, \param{}{name}}
247aba10 267
fbd27854
VS
268\func{}{WX\_DEFINE\_EXPORTED\_ARRAY}{\param{}{T}, \param{}{name}}
269
a9241e60
RL
270\func{}{WX\_DEFINE\_USER\_EXPORTED\_ARRAY}{\param{}{T}, \param{}{name}, \param{}{exportspec}}
271
247aba10 272This macro defines a new array class named {\it name} and containing the
fc2171bd 273elements of type {\it T}. The second form is used when compiling wxWidgets as
a9241e60
RL
274a DLL under Windows and array needs to be visible outside the DLL. The third is
275needed for exporting an array from a user DLL.
276
fbd27854 277Example:
437c49b2 278
247aba10 279\begin{verbatim}
dcb68102 280WX_DEFINE_ARRAY_INT(wxArrayInt);
247aba10
VZ
281
282class MyClass;
283WX_DEFINE_ARRAY(MyClass *, wxArrayOfMyClass);
284\end{verbatim}
285
fc2171bd 286Note that wxWidgets predefines the following standard array classes: wxArrayInt,
247aba10
VZ
287wxArrayLong and wxArrayPtrVoid.
288
289\membersection{WX\_DEFINE\_SORTED\_ARRAY}\label{wxdefinesortedarray}
437c49b2
JS
290
291\func{}{WX\_DEFINE\_SORTED\_ARRAY}{\param{}{T}, \param{}{name}}
247aba10 292
fbd27854
VS
293\func{}{WX\_DEFINE\_SORTED\_EXPORTED\_ARRAY}{\param{}{T}, \param{}{name}}
294
a9241e60
RL
295\func{}{WX\_DEFINE\_SORTED\_USER\_EXPORTED\_ARRAY}{\param{}{T}, \param{}{name}}
296
247aba10 297This macro defines a new sorted array class named {\it name} and containing
fc2171bd 298the elements of type {\it T}. The second form is used when compiling wxWidgets as
a9241e60
RL
299a DLL under Windows and array needs to be visible outside the DLL. The third is
300needed for exporting an array from a user DLL.
fbd27854 301
fbd27854 302Example:
437c49b2 303
247aba10 304\begin{verbatim}
dcb68102 305WX_DEFINE_SORTED_ARRAY_INT(wxSortedArrayInt);
247aba10
VZ
306
307class MyClass;
308WX_DEFINE_SORTED_ARRAY(MyClass *, wxArrayOfMyClass);
309\end{verbatim}
310
f6bcfd97 311You will have to initialize the objects of this class by passing a comparison
247aba10 312function to the array object constructor like this:
fa482912 313
247aba10
VZ
314\begin{verbatim}
315int CompareInts(int n1, int n2)
316{
317 return n1 - n2;
318}
319
43c9c17d 320wxSortedArrayInt sorted(CompareInts);
247aba10
VZ
321
322int CompareMyClassObjects(MyClass *item1, MyClass *item2)
323{
324 // sort the items by their address...
325 return Stricmp(item1->GetAddress(), item2->GetAddress());
326}
327
328wxArrayOfMyClass another(CompareMyClassObjects);
329\end{verbatim}
330
331\membersection{WX\_DECLARE\_OBJARRAY}\label{wxdeclareobjarray}
437c49b2
JS
332
333\func{}{WX\_DECLARE\_OBJARRAY}{\param{}{T}, \param{}{name}}
247aba10 334
fbd27854
VS
335\func{}{WX\_DECLARE\_EXPORTED\_OBJARRAY}{\param{}{T}, \param{}{name}}
336
a9241e60
RL
337\func{}{WX\_DECLARE\_USER\_EXPORTED\_OBJARRAY}{\param{}{T}, \param{}{name}}
338
247aba10 339This macro declares a new object array class named {\it name} and containing
fc2171bd 340the elements of type {\it T}. The second form is used when compiling wxWidgets as
a9241e60
RL
341a DLL under Windows and array needs to be visible outside the DLL. The third is
342needed for exporting an array from a user DLL.
fbd27854
VS
343
344Example:
6be663cf 345
247aba10
VZ
346\begin{verbatim}
347class MyClass;
4756503a 348WX_DECLARE_OBJARRAY(MyClass, wxArrayOfMyClass); // note: not "MyClass *"!
247aba10 349\end{verbatim}
6be663cf 350
247aba10
VZ
351You must use \helpref{WX\_DEFINE\_OBJARRAY()}{wxdefineobjarray} macro to define
352the array class - otherwise you would get link errors.
353
354\membersection{WX\_DEFINE\_OBJARRAY}\label{wxdefineobjarray}
437c49b2
JS
355
356\func{}{WX\_DEFINE\_OBJARRAY}{\param{}{name}}
247aba10 357
a9241e60
RL
358\func{}{WX\_DEFINE\_EXPORTED\_OBJARRAY}{\param{}{name}}
359
360\func{}{WX\_DEFINE\_USER\_EXPORTED\_OBJARRAY}{\param{}{name}}
361
247aba10
VZ
362This macro defines the methods of the array class {\it name} not defined by the
363\helpref{WX\_DECLARE\_OBJARRAY()}{wxdeclareobjarray} macro. You must include the
364file <wx/arrimpl.cpp> before using this macro and you must have the full
365declaration of the class of array elements in scope! If you forget to do the
366first, the error will be caught by the compiler, but, unfortunately, many
367compilers will not give any warnings if you forget to do the second - but the
368objects of the class will not be copied correctly and their real destructor will
a9241e60
RL
369not be called. The latter two forms are merely aliases of the first to satisfy
370some people's sense of symmetry when using the exported declarations.
247aba10
VZ
371
372Example of usage:
437c49b2 373
247aba10
VZ
374\begin{verbatim}
375// first declare the class!
376class MyClass
377{
378public:
379 MyClass(const MyClass&);
380
381 ...
382
383 virtual ~MyClass();
384};
385
386#include <wx/arrimpl.cpp>
387WX_DEFINE_OBJARRAY(wxArrayOfMyClass);
388\end{verbatim}
389
4f6aed9c
VZ
390\membersection{WX\_APPEND\_ARRAY}\label{wxappendarray}
391
392\func{void}{WX\_APPEND\_ARRAY}{\param{wxArray\& }{array}, \param{wxArray\& }{other}}
393
394This macro may be used to append all elements of the {\it other} array to the
395{\it array}. The two arrays must be of the same type.
396
247aba10 397\membersection{WX\_CLEAR\_ARRAY}\label{wxcleararray}
437c49b2 398
e2a6f233 399\func{void}{WX\_CLEAR\_ARRAY}{\param{wxArray\& }{array}}
247aba10
VZ
400
401This macro may be used to delete all elements of the array before emptying it.
402It can not be used with wxObjArrays - but they will delete their elements anyhow
403when you call Empty().
404
6be663cf 405\membersection{Default constructors}\label{wxarrayctordef}
437c49b2 406
e2a6f233 407\func{}{wxArray}{\void}
437c49b2 408
e2a6f233 409\func{}{wxObjArray}{\void}
247aba10
VZ
410
411Default constructor initializes an empty array object.
412
413\func{}{wxSortedArray}{\param{int (*)(T first, T second)}{compareFunction}}
414
415There is no default constructor for wxSortedArray classes - you must initialize it
f6bcfd97 416with a function to use for item comparison. It is a function which is passed
247aba10
VZ
417two arguments of type {\it T} where {\it T} is the array element type and which
418should return a negative, zero or positive value according to whether the first
419element passed to it is less than, equal to or greater than the second one.
420
6be663cf 421\membersection{wxArray copy constructor and assignment operator}\label{wxarrayctorcopy}
437c49b2 422
247aba10 423\func{}{wxArray}{\param{const wxArray\& }{array}}
437c49b2 424
247aba10 425\func{}{wxSortedArray}{\param{const wxSortedArray\& }{array}}
437c49b2 426
247aba10
VZ
427\func{}{wxObjArray}{\param{const wxObjArray\& }{array}}
428
06ad8636 429\func{wxArray\&}{operator$=$}{\param{const wxArray\& }{array}}
437c49b2 430
06ad8636 431\func{wxSortedArray\&}{operator$=$}{\param{const wxSortedArray\& }{array}}
437c49b2 432
06ad8636 433\func{wxObjArray\&}{operator$=$}{\param{const wxObjArray\& }{array}}
247aba10
VZ
434
435The copy constructors and assignment operators perform a shallow array copy
436(i.e. they don't copy the objects pointed to even if the source array contains
437the items of pointer type) for wxArray and wxSortedArray and a deep copy (i.e.
438the array element are copied too) for wxObjArray.
439
440\membersection{wxArray::\destruct{wxArray}}\label{wxarraydtor}
437c49b2 441
06ad8636 442\func{}{\destruct{wxArray}}{\void}
437c49b2 443
06ad8636 444\func{}{\destruct{wxSortedArray}}{\void}
437c49b2 445
06ad8636 446\func{}{\destruct{wxObjArray}}{\void}
247aba10
VZ
447
448The wxObjArray destructor deletes all the items owned by the array. This is not
449done by wxArray and wxSortedArray versions - you may use
450\helpref{WX\_CLEAR\_ARRAY}{wxcleararray} macro for this.
451
452\membersection{wxArray::Add}\label{wxarrayadd}
437c49b2 453
2863d6b0 454\func{void}{Add}{\param{T }{item}, \param{size\_t}{ copies = $1$}}
437c49b2 455
e2a6f233 456\func{void}{Add}{\param{T *}{item}}
437c49b2 457
2863d6b0 458\func{void}{Add}{\param{T \&}{item}, \param{size\_t}{ copies = $1$}}
247aba10 459
2863d6b0
VZ
460Appends the given number of {\it copies} of the {\it item} to the array
461consisting of the elements of type {\it T}.
247aba10
VZ
462
463The first version is used with wxArray and wxSortedArray. The second and the
e2a6f233 464third are used with wxObjArray. There is an important difference between
247aba10
VZ
465them: if you give a pointer to the array, it will take ownership of it, i.e.
466will delete it when the item is deleted from the array. If you give a reference
467to the array, however, the array will make a copy of the item and will not take
468ownership of the original item. Once again, it only makes sense for wxObjArrays
2863d6b0
VZ
469because the other array types never take ownership of their elements. Also note
470that you cannot append more than one pointer as reusing it would lead to
471deleting it twice (or more) and hence to a crash.
247aba10 472
4f6aed9c 473You may also use \helpref{WX\_APPEND\_ARRAY}{wxappendarray} macro to append all
2863d6b0
VZ
474elements of one array to another one but it is more efficient to use
475{\it copies} parameter and modify the elements in place later if you plan to
476append a lot of items.
4f6aed9c 477
247aba10 478\membersection{wxArray::Alloc}\label{wxarrayalloc}
437c49b2 479
e2a6f233 480\func{void}{Alloc}{\param{size\_t }{count}}
247aba10
VZ
481
482Preallocates memory for a given number of array elements. It is worth calling
483when the number of items which are going to be added to the array is known in
484advance because it will save unneeded memory reallocation. If the array already
485has enough memory for the given number of items, nothing happens.
486
487\membersection{wxArray::Clear}\label{wxarrayclear}
437c49b2 488
e2a6f233 489\func{void}{Clear}{\void}
247aba10
VZ
490
491This function does the same as \helpref{Empty()}{wxarrayempty} and additionally
492frees the memory allocated to the array.
493
494\membersection{wxArray::Count}\label{wxarraycount}
437c49b2 495
247aba10
VZ
496\constfunc{size\_t}{Count}{\void}
497
498Same as \helpref{GetCount()}{wxarraygetcount}. This function is deprecated -
499it exists only for compatibility.
500
501\membersection{wxObjArray::Detach}\label{wxobjarraydetach}
437c49b2 502
247aba10
VZ
503\func{T *}{Detach}{\param{size\_t }{index}}
504
505Removes the element from the array, but, unlike,
506\helpref{Remove()}{wxarrayremove} doesn't delete it. The function returns the
507pointer to the removed element.
508
509\membersection{wxArray::Empty}\label{wxarrayempty}
437c49b2 510
e2a6f233 511\func{void}{Empty}{\void}
247aba10
VZ
512
513Empties the array. For wxObjArray classes, this destroys all of the array
514elements. For wxArray and wxSortedArray this does nothing except marking the
e2a6f233 515array of being empty - this function does not free the allocated memory, use
247aba10
VZ
516\helpref{Clear()}{wxarrayclear} for this.
517
518\membersection{wxArray::GetCount}\label{wxarraygetcount}
437c49b2 519
247aba10
VZ
520\constfunc{size\_t}{GetCount}{\void}
521
522Return the number of items in the array.
523
524\membersection{wxArray::Index}\label{wxarrayindex}
437c49b2 525
cc81d32f 526\func{int}{Index}{\param{T\& }{item}, \param{bool }{searchFromEnd = false}}
437c49b2 527
247aba10
VZ
528\func{int}{Index}{\param{T\& }{item}}
529
530The first version of the function is for wxArray and wxObjArray, the second is
531for wxSortedArray only.
532
533Searches the element in the array, starting from either beginning or the end
a8d08dbd 534depending on the value of {\it searchFromEnd} parameter. {\tt wxNOT\_FOUND} is
247aba10
VZ
535returned if the element is not found, otherwise the index of the element is
536returned.
537
538Linear search is used for the wxArray and wxObjArray classes but binary search
539in the sorted array is used for wxSortedArray (this is why searchFromEnd
540parameter doesn't make sense for it).
541
2cd31b57
VZ
542{\bf NB:} even for wxObjArray classes, the operator==() of the elements in the
543array is {\bf not} used by this function. It searches exactly the given
544element in the array and so will only succeed if this element had been
545previously added to the array, but fail even if another, identical, element is
546in the array.
547
247aba10 548\membersection{wxArray::Insert}\label{wxarrayinsert}
437c49b2 549
2863d6b0 550\func{void}{Insert}{\param{T }{item}, \param{size\_t }{n}, \param{size\_t }{copies = $1$}}
437c49b2 551
e2a6f233 552\func{void}{Insert}{\param{T *}{item}, \param{size\_t }{n}}
437c49b2 553
2863d6b0 554\func{void}{Insert}{\param{T \&}{item}, \param{size\_t }{n}, \param{size\_t }{copies = $1$}}
247aba10 555
2863d6b0
VZ
556Insert the given number of {\it copies} of the {\it item} into the array before
557the existing item {\it n} - thus, {\it Insert(something, 0u)} will insert an
558item in such way that it will become the first array element.
247aba10
VZ
559
560Please see \helpref{Add()}{wxarrayadd} for explanation of the differences
561between the overloaded versions of this function.
562
563\membersection{wxArray::IsEmpty}\label{wxarrayisempty}
437c49b2 564
e2a6f233 565\constfunc{bool}{IsEmpty}{\void}
247aba10 566
cc81d32f 567Returns true if the array is empty, false otherwise.
247aba10
VZ
568
569\membersection{wxArray::Item}\label{wxarrayitem}
437c49b2 570
247aba10
VZ
571\constfunc{T\&}{Item}{\param{size\_t }{index}}
572
573Returns the item at the given position in the array. If {\it index} is out of
574bounds, an assert failure is raised in the debug builds but nothing special is
575done in the release build.
576
577The returned value is of type "reference to the array element type" for all of
578the array classes.
579
580\membersection{wxArray::Last}\label{wxarraylast}
437c49b2 581
247aba10
VZ
582\constfunc{T\&}{Last}{\void}
583
584Returns the last element in the array, i.e. is the same as Item(GetCount() - 1).
585An assert failure is raised in the debug mode if the array is empty.
586
587The returned value is of type "reference to the array element type" for all of
588the array classes.
589
590\membersection{wxArray::Remove}\label{wxarrayremove}
437c49b2 591
247aba10
VZ
592\func{\void}{Remove}{\param{T }{item}}
593
f6bcfd97 594Removes an element from the array by value: the first item of the
8a729bb8
VZ
595array equal to {\it item} is removed, an assert failure will result from an
596attempt to remove an item which doesn't exist in the array.
597
598When an element is removed from wxObjArray it is deleted by the array - use
247aba10
VZ
599\helpref{Detach()}{wxobjarraydetach} if you don't want this to happen. On the
600other hand, when an object is removed from a wxArray nothing happens - you
f6bcfd97 601should delete it manually if required:
437c49b2 602
247aba10
VZ
603\begin{verbatim}
604T *item = array[n];
605delete item;
606array.Remove(n)
607\end{verbatim}
608
609See also \helpref{WX\_CLEAR\_ARRAY}{wxcleararray} macro which deletes all
610elements of a wxArray (supposed to contain pointers).
611
8a729bb8
VZ
612\membersection{wxArray::RemoveAt}\label{wxarrayremoveat}
613
d1f1e77a 614\func{\void}{RemoveAt}{\param{size\_t }{index}, \param{size\_t }{count = $1$}}
8a729bb8 615
2863d6b0
VZ
616Removes {\it count} elements starting at {\it index} from the array. When an
617element is removed from wxObjArray it is deleted by the array - use
618\helpref{Detach()}{wxobjarraydetach} if you don't want this to happen. On
619the other hand, when an object is removed from a wxArray nothing happens -
620you should delete it manually if required:
8a729bb8
VZ
621
622\begin{verbatim}
623T *item = array[n];
624delete item;
625array.RemoveAt(n)
626\end{verbatim}
627
628See also \helpref{WX\_CLEAR\_ARRAY}{wxcleararray} macro which deletes all
629elements of a wxArray (supposed to contain pointers).
630
2abb9d2f
VZ
631\membersection{wxArray::SetCount}\label{wxarraysetcount}
632
633\func{void}{SetCount}{\param{size\_t }{count}, \param{T }{defval = T($0$)}}
634
635This function ensures that the number of array elements is at least
dbd94b75 636{\it count}. If the array has already {\it count} or more items, nothing is
2abb9d2f
VZ
637done. Otherwise, {\tt count - GetCount()} elements are added and initialized to
638the value {\it defval}.
639
640\wxheading{See also}
641
642\helpref{GetCount}{wxarraygetcount}
643
247aba10 644\membersection{wxArray::Shrink}\label{wxarrayshrink}
437c49b2 645
e2a6f233 646\func{void}{Shrink}{\void}
247aba10
VZ
647
648Frees all memory unused by the array. If the program knows that no new items
649will be added to the array it may call Shrink() to reduce its memory usage.
650However, if a new item is added to the array, some extra memory will be
651allocated again.
652
653\membersection{wxArray::Sort}\label{wxarraysort}
437c49b2 654
e2a6f233 655\func{void}{Sort}{\param{CMPFUNC<T> }{compareFunction}}
247aba10
VZ
656
657The notation CMPFUNC<T> should be read as if we had the following declaration:
437c49b2 658
247aba10
VZ
659\begin{verbatim}
660template int CMPFUNC(T *first, T *second);
661\end{verbatim}
437c49b2 662
e2a6f233 663where {\it T} is the type of the array elements. I.e. it is a function returning
247aba10
VZ
664{\it int} which is passed two arguments of type {\it T *}.
665
666Sorts the array using the specified compare function: this function should
667return a negative, zero or positive value according to whether the first element
668passed to it is less than, equal to or greater than the second one.
669
670wxSortedArray doesn't have this function because it is always sorted.
437c49b2 671