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Issues with index mutation in a loop
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/* | |
Behaviour below is consistent with inline declaration, | |
index correctly mutates each interation | |
*/ | |
for var index = 0; index < 10; index += 1 { | |
index += 2 //mutable index | |
print(index, terminator: " ") // output = 2 5 8 11 | |
} | |
print("") | |
/* | |
Index appears to be a mutable (i.e. no warning), | |
but the outcome is unexpected. | |
Mutation is only applied at the beginning? | |
*/ | |
for var index in 0 ..< 10 { | |
index += 2 | |
print(index, terminator: " ") // output = 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 | |
} | |
print("") | |
/* | |
This prior declaration of index is adopted by the c-style loop. | |
Again the behaviour is consistent with prior | |
declaration, index correctly mutates each interation | |
*/ | |
var index: Int | |
for index = 0; index < 10; index += 1 { | |
/* mutable index */ | |
index += 2 | |
print(index, terminator: " ") // output = 2 5 8 11 | |
} | |
print("") | |
/* | |
for in loop index variables completely ignores | |
the prior declaration of index 'var index: Int'. | |
*/ | |
for index in 0 ..< 10 { | |
index += 2 //error 'index' is a 'let' constant ?? It was previous declared as: 'var index: Int' | |
print(index, terminator: " ") | |
} | |
/* | |
recreating this standard behavior of a c for loop | |
using a while loop construct is more complex, hence | |
struggling to see the value derived from eliminating | |
c style for loops. | |
*/ | |
var idx = 0 | |
let condition = { | |
() -> Bool in | |
defer { | |
if idx > 0 { | |
idx += 1 | |
} | |
} | |
return idx < 10 | |
} | |
while condition() { | |
idx += 2 | |
print(idx, terminator: " ") // output = 2 5 8 11 | |
} | |
print("") | |
/* | |
Evolution Concern: | |
These two evolution proposals will have a substantive impact on | |
mutability of indexes within of loop: | |
1. 0007-remove-c-style-for-loops | |
2. 0003-remove-var-parameters-patterns | |
Alternatives proposed: | |
The discussions on these evolution topics have typically centered around using a while loop, | |
but whatever the suggestion; index mutation is typically messy, see here for more examples: | |
https://lists.swift.org/pipermail/swift-evolution/Week-of-Mon-20151207/001009.html | |
Closing Concerns: | |
1. I'm concerned that were both of these proposals to be implemented, | |
that we'd be left will an effectual solution for dealing with index | |
mutation in a loop. | |
2. The current behavior of the index declaration of "for in loop" is unexpected, | |
and can easily trip any newcomers (see examples above). It should either | |
respect the mutability of a prior declared variable, or restrict the reuse | |
of any previous declared variables in its index definition. | |
*/ |
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