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The goto-less goto!

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25 Jan 2011CPOL 41.8K   4   33
Alternative 2 can be enhanced by returning a booleen value if we want to code something similar to the original example. A (early) return value of false would indicate a failure which could then be handle by checking the function result.if (!DoAllActions()){ ...
Alternative 2 can be enhanced by returning a booleen value if we want to code something similar to the original example. A (early) return value of false would indicate a failure which could then be handle by checking the function result.

if (!DoAllActions())
{
   DoFailedCleanup();
}

bool DoAllActions()
{
   if (condition1_fails)
      return false;
   if (condition2_fails)
      return false;
   ...
   if(!conditionN_fails)
      retrun false;
   PerformActionOnAllSuccess();
   DoNormalCleanup();
   return true;
}


Alternatively, if each action are independant, a variation like this might be more appropriate:
if (DoAction1() && 
    DoAction2() && 
    ... && 
    DoActionN())
{
   PerformActionOnAllSuccess();
   DoNormalCleanup();
}
else 
{
   DoFailedCleanup();
}

bool DoAction1()
{
   bool condition1_fails = ...;
   return !condition1_fails;
}
...

License

This article, along with any associated source code and files, is licensed under The Code Project Open License (CPOL)


Written By
Software Developer (Senior)
Canada Canada
Programmer at Maid LABS from 2003 (www.maidlabs.com)

Programmer-Analyst at Viasat Geo Technoligies from 1995 to 2002 (www.viasat-geo.com).

I have studied at École Polytechnique de Montréal in computer engineering.

Comments and Discussions

 
GeneralMy vote of 5 Pin
pasztorpisti26-Aug-13 9:34
pasztorpisti26-Aug-13 9:34 
GeneralRe: Surely anyone can program whatever he wants for himself and ... Pin
Wolfgang_Baron7-Apr-11 6:07
professionalWolfgang_Baron7-Apr-11 6:07 
GeneralRe: Clearly we have difference experiences - and debuggers. One ... Pin
EFEaglehouse7-Apr-11 4:05
EFEaglehouse7-Apr-11 4:05 
GeneralRe: The first person wanting to add a debug statement at the end... Pin
Wolfgang_Baron7-Apr-11 1:45
professionalWolfgang_Baron7-Apr-11 1:45 
GeneralSorry, but in C++ at least, not being able to add a debug st... Pin
jefito12-Apr-11 3:02
jefito12-Apr-11 3:02 
GeneralMultiple returns look clear only to those, who have written ... Pin
Wolfgang_Baron9-Feb-11 5:32
professionalWolfgang_Baron9-Feb-11 5:32 
GeneralRe: Never say never. Sometimes the clearest code is the shortest... Pin
EFEaglehouse5-Apr-11 4:32
EFEaglehouse5-Apr-11 4:32 
GeneralIn fact, with this pattern where the complex function is spl... Pin
Philippe Mori9-Feb-11 5:00
Philippe Mori9-Feb-11 5:00 
GeneralReason for my vote of 1 People who put more than one return ... Pin
Wolfgang_Baron9-Feb-11 4:35
professionalWolfgang_Baron9-Feb-11 4:35 
GeneralRe: Reason for my vote of 1People who put more than one return ... Pin
pasztorpisti26-Aug-13 9:27
pasztorpisti26-Aug-13 9:27 
GeneralRe: Reason for my vote of 1People who put more than one return ... Pin
Wolfgang_Baron7-Oct-13 3:08
professionalWolfgang_Baron7-Oct-13 3:08 
GeneralRe: Reason for my vote of 1People who put more than one return ... Pin
pasztorpisti7-Oct-13 3:24
pasztorpisti7-Oct-13 3:24 
GeneralRe: Reason for my vote of 1People who put more than one return ... Pin
Wolfgang_Baron7-Oct-13 5:10
professionalWolfgang_Baron7-Oct-13 5:10 
GeneralRe: Reason for my vote of 1People who put more than one return ... Pin
pasztorpisti7-Oct-13 5:39
pasztorpisti7-Oct-13 5:39 
GeneralRe: Reason for my vote of 1People who put more than one return ... Pin
Wolfgang_Baron7-Oct-13 13:08
professionalWolfgang_Baron7-Oct-13 13:08 
GeneralRe: Reason for my vote of 1People who put more than one return ... Pin
pasztorpisti7-Oct-13 22:37
pasztorpisti7-Oct-13 22:37 
GeneralRe: Reason for my vote of 1People who put more than one return ... Pin
Wolfgang_Baron9-Oct-13 14:59
professionalWolfgang_Baron9-Oct-13 14:59 
GeneralRe: Reason for my vote of 1People who put more than one return ... Pin
Philippe Mori9-Oct-13 17:35
Philippe Mori9-Oct-13 17:35 
GeneralRe: Reason for my vote of 1People who put more than one return ... Pin
pasztorpisti9-Oct-13 22:07
pasztorpisti9-Oct-13 22:07 
GeneralRe: Reason for my vote of 1People who put more than one return ... Pin
Philippe Mori10-Oct-13 2:24
Philippe Mori10-Oct-13 2:24 
Modified code is not equivalent to original code but your sample of Oct. 8th.

I don't think it is necessary to stick to a particular patterns. Someone can use the most appropriate style depending on the complexity of the conditions or the debugging needs.

Like multiple returns, ?: can reduce useless verbosity but it should typically only be used in cases that are simple enough. In my last sample, someone would typically put a breakpoint on the line with the ternary operator and inspect res1, res2 and res3 and should then be able to figure out the problem if there was an error.

One advantage that I can see using distinct lines might be for code coverage tools that may works on a line per line basis.
Philippe Mori

GeneralRe: Reason for my vote of 1People who put more than one return ... Pin
pasztorpisti10-Oct-13 2:46
pasztorpisti10-Oct-13 2:46 
GeneralRe: Reason for my vote of 1People who put more than one return ... Pin
Wolfgang_Baron9-Oct-13 22:29
professionalWolfgang_Baron9-Oct-13 22:29 
GeneralRe: Reason for my vote of 1People who put more than one return ... Pin
Philippe Mori10-Oct-13 2:36
Philippe Mori10-Oct-13 2:36 
GeneralRe: Reason for my vote of 1People who put more than one return ... Pin
pasztorpisti9-Oct-13 22:18
pasztorpisti9-Oct-13 22:18 
GeneralRe: Reason for my vote of 1People who put more than one return ... Pin
Wolfgang_Baron9-Oct-13 22:59
professionalWolfgang_Baron9-Oct-13 22:59 

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