explain_opendir_or_die(3)

💖 explain_opendir_or_die — from the Library Functions Manual ✨

okay bestie, gather round, because this one is literally the "just do it for me and scream if it breaks" of directory-opening. it lives in section 3 of the manual, and it's here to hold your hand. 🫶

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🌸 NAME 🌸

explain_opendir_or_die — open a directory and report errors 💅

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✨ SYNOPSIS ✨

#include <libexplain/opendir.h>
DIR *explain_opendir_or_die(const char *pathname);

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🦋 DESCRIPTION 🦋

so. the explain_opendir_or_die function exists to call the opendir(3) system call for you. that's the vibe. 🎀

and if it fails? not only does it fail, it tells you why. an explanation gets printed to stderr, obtained from explain_opendir(3), and then the process terminates by calling exit(EXIT_FAILURE). like, it does not return, it does not pass go, it's done. 💀

the whole point is that you get to use it in a fashion similar to this little example here:

DIR *dir = explain_opendir_or_die(pathname);

🍓 the argument, explained

• pathname — the pathname, exactly as to be passed to the opendir(3) system call. like, no edits, no seasoning, just hand it over the way opendir(3) wants it. ✨

🎀 Returns:

• on success — a pointer to the directory stream. yay! 🌈
• on failure — it prints an explanation and exits. it does not return. no return value, no second chances, it's gone. 😭

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👑 SEE ALSO 👑

• opendir(3) — open a directory
• explain_opendir(3) — explain opendir(3) errors
• exit(2) — terminate the calling process

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💜 COPYRIGHT 💜

libexplain version 1.4

Copyright (C) 2008 Peter Miller

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and that's the whole page, bestie. libexplain version 1.4, brought to you by Peter Miller with a copyright from way back in 2008 (an iconic year, ngl), and the page itself is filed under the name explain_opendir_or_die(3). slay, go open some directories. 💅✨🦋