[boost] A library for interfacing with legacy non-reentrant C and Fortran code

From: Alcides Viamontes Esquivel (alve_at_[hidden])
Date: 2008-02-14 21:29:21

Hello all. 

I would like to know if there's a boost library for solving this
problem, or if not, if it would be of general interest one. 

Suppose you have a function in an external library that you want to use,
and it have this prototype:

         ...
         /* mad_library.h 
          */ 

         /* external library function prototype  */
         double qk15( double(*f)(double), double a, double b);

(this example mimics QUADPACK, a great and wonderful library for
numerical integration)

If you want to have a (good) chance of using qk15 with a reentrant
function, then the correct prototype would be, at least

         ...
         double qk15( double(*f)(double, void*), double a, double b,
void* params);
         ...

which is something that for example gsl
(http://www.gnu.org/software/gsl/ ) does. But that's not the case and
modifying qk15 is out of the question. 

So, the "solution" library I'm asking for should be a C++ header library
that would, for example, bring this interface to the user:

         ...
         #include <mad_library.h>	 
         
         // Hypothetical library
         #include <boost/enable_reentrant.hpp>

         
         // client functor supplied by the user, to be used in some 
         // way with 'qk15'
         struct any_functor{ 
             ...
             double operator()(double x)
             ...
         };

         ...
         // an instance of the functor
         any_functor cpp_f;
         ...
         // first parameter is the legacy function, following parameter
         // types are deduced from the prototype of qk15 (if
         // possible), being each one of the same original type that
         // qk15 requires but changing raw function pointers by generic
         // functors (automatic type replacement or user-guided).

         boost::enable_reentrant(qk15, cpp_f, a, b);
     
         // As a postcondition to this call, function qk15 should
         // be called once with a function pointer to something that
         // ensures that operator() on 'any_functor' instance get's 
         // called with the corresponding 'this'.

If I'm missing something terrible obvious please signal it to me. I
think enable_reentrant can be implemented in at least one (almost)
portable way, using a stack in thread local storage. Boost.Thread
already give access to such feature in a satisfactory way.

                  

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