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posted by
LaminatorX
on Sunday March 16 2014, @03:28AM
from the premature-optimization-is-the-root-of-all-evil dept.
from the premature-optimization-is-the-root-of-all-evil dept.
Subsentient writes:
"I've been writing C for quite some time, but I never followed good conventions I'm afraid, and I never payed much attention to the optimization tricks of the higher C programmers. Sure, I use const when I can, I use the pointer methods for manual string copying, I even use register for all the good that does with modern compilers, but now, I'm trying to write a C-string handling library for personal use, but I need speed, and I really don't want to use inline ASM. So, I am wondering, what would other Soylenters do to write efficient, pure, standards-compliant C?"
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(Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday March 16 2014, @03:55PM
> "We should forget about small efficiencies, say about 97% of the time: premature optimization is the root of all evil" - Donald Knuth.
This correlates with some other helpful axioms, though:
* Don't repeat yourself
* The best optimization is a more efficient algorithm
* Don't do more work than necessary, etc.
So don't spend 90% of your time trying to squeeze out that extra 10% performance, but DO think about efficiency from the beginning of your design.
I like to refer people to the parable about Shlemiel the Painter [fogcreek.com] to emphasize why good planning is necessary BEFORE you start to code!