Functions
int	TimeStamp_Init ()
	This function initializes the TimeStamp library.
void	TimeStamp_Quit ()
	This function shuts down the TimeStamp library.
void	TimeStamp_GetTimeStamp (char *time_stamp, int buffer_size)
	This function gets the current time and copies the time (in string format) into the provided buffer.
const char *	TimeStamp_GetStaticTimeStamp ()
	This is a version of GetTimeStamp that returns a pointer to the string as the return argument.

Function Documentation

const char* TimeStamp_GetStaticTimeStamp ( )

This is a version of GetTimeStamp that returns a pointer to the string as the return argument.

This version probably shouldn't be used. It is not reentrant because it uses a static member to hold the data. But as a convenience, it remains available. (Sometimes you just want to print stuff without a fuss.)

Returns:: Returns a pointer to the time string holding the current time. The memory is held by a static array provided by this library. Do not delete this memory.

void TimeStamp_GetTimeStamp	(	char *	time_stamp,
		int	buffer_size
	)

This function gets the current time and copies the time (in string format) into the provided buffer.

This is now the preferred method of retrieving a timestamp as there is no static memory involved. You must supply a preallocated string that the time stamp will be copied into. You also must supply the buffer size of the string which will be used to help prevent buffer overflows.

My particular implementation of the library always needs a buffer that is size 24 (including the '\0' character). However, if you substitute my implementation, this buffer size should give you some flexibility without needing to break compatibility.

My particular implementatin returns a time stamp in this format: YYYY-MM-DD_HH:MM:SS.mmm

 char current_time[24];
 TimeStamp_GetTimeStamp(&current_time, 24);
 printf("Current Time is: %s", current_time);

Parameters:

time_stamp	A pointer to a string that you want the time stamp copied into. It must have enough memory or it will be truncated.
buffer_size	The size of the string buffer you pass in. This should include the '\0' character.

int TimeStamp_Init ( )

This function initializes the TimeStamp library.

This is currently only needed by the SDL backend. New implementations might want an initialization phase too. For the SDL backend, SDL_Init(Timer) must have been called before calling this function. The SDL backend was written poorly. The problem is that the ticks and the real time are not in sync, so it is possible for the milliseconds to wrap before the real time is carried. (More notes are in the implementation file about this.) The SDL sync may delay the program for 1 second with this call due to the sync approximation.

Returns:: Returns 1 if using native milliseconds, 0 if faking it.

See also:: TimeStamp_Quit

void TimeStamp_Quit ( )

This function shuts down the TimeStamp library.

This is currently unused, but future or alternative implementations might want this. Note that currently, the SDL backend will not call SDL_Quit on your behalf and you must do this manually.

TimeStamp.h File Reference

Functions

Function Documentation