StrikerX,
Letters are for organization, the script engine doesn't care (it will even read files that aren't .c or .h). That said, you'll get a lot more mileage by following general coding standards.
- .h is meant for #defines and macros.
- .c is functions and operating code.
If in doubt, just stick with ".c".
#include and
#import look similar, but they work very differently from each other:
#include basically copies in everything from the
#included file verbatim. It's simple, convenient, and the only way to bring in
#defines directives, which is no problem since those are free. The catch is that for everything else (specifically functions), it's extremely wasteful. See also: Every time you
#include a set of functions, they get another copy put into memory.
#import enables use of functions from the
#imported file by making an internal reference instead of a copy. It's a bit more difficult to understand and you can't use
#import on
#defines, but it is far more resource efficient. Another advantage of
#import is more accurate debugging. When an error occurs in a script with
#included functions, the line count contains all the
#included files. That gets real confusing, real fast. Errors in scripts with
#imported functions are much easier to trace.
Here is the original post about #imports by
Plombo.
One last note: You can
#include a file with other
#includes and
#imports, and this leads to one of my favorite techniques. My libraries have a main.c that
#includes the macros and
#imports the functions. Then to use the library, you just
#include the main.c file. The only things getting copied are
#imports and
#defines, so it's memory frugal and one stop shopping convenient.
HTH,
DC
