zig-skills/references/std-fmt.md

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# std.fmt - String Formatting and Parsing (Zig 0.16.0)
String formatting and parsing utilities: format strings, integer/float parsing, hex encoding/decoding, and custom formatters.
Primary Zig 0.16 release-note source: https://ziglang.org/download/0.16.0/release-notes.html
## Zig 0.16 Formatting Notes
- `std.fmt.format` is replaced by `std.Io.Writer.print`.
- `std.fmt.Formatter` is renamed to `std.fmt.Alt`.
- `std.fmt.FormatOptions` is renamed to `std.fmt.Options`.
- `std.fmt.bufPrintZ` is renamed to `std.fmt.bufPrintSentinel`.
- The `{D}` duration specifier was removed; format `std.Io.Duration` with `{f}`.
```zig
try writer.print("{f}", .{std.Io.Duration.fromMilliseconds(250)});
```
Custom formatter signature remains writer-centered:
```zig
pub fn format(self: @This(), writer: *std.Io.Writer) std.Io.Writer.Error!void {
try writer.print("{s}", .{self.name});
}
```
## Table of Contents
- [Format String Syntax](#format-string-syntax)
- [Format Specifiers](#format-specifiers)
- [Integer Parsing](#integer-parsing)
- [Float Parsing](#float-parsing)
- [Hex Encoding/Decoding](#hex-encodingdecoding)
- [Buffer Printing](#buffer-printing)
- [Allocating Print](#allocating-print)
- [Comptime Print](#comptime-print)
- [Custom Formatters](#custom-formatters)
- [Format String Parser](#format-string-parser)
## Format String Syntax
Full syntax: `{[arg]:[fill][alignment][width][.precision][specifier]}`
### Components
| Component | Description | Example |
|-----------|-------------|---------|
| `arg` | Argument index or name | `{0}`, `{name}` |
| `fill` | Padding character | `{:0>5}` uses `0` |
| `alignment` | `<` left, `^` center, `>` right | `{:<10}` |
| `width` | Minimum field width | `{:10}` |
| `precision` | Decimal places for floats | `{:.2}` |
| `specifier` | Output format | `{d}`, `{x}`, `{s}` |
### Examples
```zig
std.debug.print("{d:0>8}\n", .{42}); // "00000042"
std.debug.print("{s:_^10}\n", .{"hi"}); // "____hi____"
std.debug.print("{d:.2}\n", .{3.14159}); // "3.14"
std.debug.print("{0} {1} {0}\n", .{"a", "b"}); // "a b a"
```
### Named Arguments
```zig
std.debug.print("{name}: {value}\n", .{ .name = "x", .value = 42 });
```
### Runtime Width/Precision
```zig
std.debug.print("{d:[width]}\n", .{ .width = @as(usize, 8), 42 });
std.debug.print("{d:.[prec]}\n", .{ .prec = @as(usize, 2), 3.14159 });
```
### Escape Braces
```zig
std.debug.print("{{literal}}\n", .{}); // "{literal}"
```
## Format Specifiers
### Type Specifiers
| Specifier | Types | Output |
|-----------|-------|--------|
| `{}` | any | Default formatting |
| `{d}` | int, float, enum | Decimal |
| `{b}` | int, enum | Binary |
| `{o}` | int, enum | Octal |
| `{x}` | int, float, `[]u8`, enum | Lowercase hex |
| `{X}` | int, float, `[]u8`, enum | Uppercase hex |
| `{s}` | `[]const u8`, `[*:0]const u8` | String |
| `{c}` | u8 | ASCII character |
| `{u}` | u21 | UTF-8 codepoint |
| `{e}` | float | Scientific notation |
| `{f}` | has `format` method | Custom formatter |
| `{*}` | pointer | Address (`Type@0x...`) |
| `{?}` | optional | Value or `null` |
| `{!}` | error union | Value or `error.Name` |
| `{any}` | any | Debug representation |
### Integer Examples
```zig
std.debug.print("{d}\n", .{255}); // "255"
std.debug.print("{x}\n", .{255}); // "ff"
std.debug.print("{X}\n", .{255}); // "FF"
std.debug.print("{b}\n", .{5}); // "101"
std.debug.print("{o}\n", .{64}); // "100"
std.debug.print("{c}\n", .{'A'}); // "A"
std.debug.print("{u}\n", .{0x1F310}); // globe emoji
```
### Float Examples
```zig
std.debug.print("{d}\n", .{3.14159}); // "3.14159"
std.debug.print("{d:.2}\n", .{3.14159}); // "3.14"
std.debug.print("{e}\n", .{1234.5}); // "1.2345e3"
std.debug.print("{e:.3}\n", .{1234.5}); // "1.234e3"
std.debug.print("{x}\n", .{@as(f32, 1.0)}); // "0x1p0"
std.debug.print("{x:.5}\n", .{@as(f32, 1.0)}); // "0x1.00000p0"
```
### Special Float Values
```zig
std.debug.print("{}\n", .{std.math.nan(f64)}); // "nan"
std.debug.print("{}\n", .{std.math.inf(f64)}); // "inf"
std.debug.print("{}\n", .{-std.math.inf(f64)}); // "-inf"
```
### Slice/Array Formatting
```zig
const bytes: []const u8 = "hello";
std.debug.print("{s}\n", .{bytes}); // "hello"
std.debug.print("{x}\n", .{bytes}); // "68656c6c6f"
std.debug.print("{any}\n", .{bytes}); // "{ 104, 101, 108, 108, 111 }"
```
### Padding and Alignment
```zig
std.debug.print("{d:5}\n", .{42}); // " 42" (right, default)
std.debug.print("{d:<5}\n", .{42}); // "42 " (left)
std.debug.print("{d:^5}\n", .{42}); // " 42 " (center)
std.debug.print("{d:0>5}\n", .{42}); // "00042" (zero-pad)
std.debug.print("{d:=>5}\n", .{42}); // "===42" (custom fill)
```
## Integer Parsing
### parseInt
Parse signed or unsigned integers with optional base detection.
```zig
const std = @import("std");
// Explicit base
const a = try std.fmt.parseInt(i32, "-123", 10); // -123
const b = try std.fmt.parseInt(u32, "ff", 16); // 255
const c = try std.fmt.parseInt(u8, "101", 2); // 5
// Auto-detect base (base = 0)
const d = try std.fmt.parseInt(i32, "0x1f", 0); // 31 (hex)
const e = try std.fmt.parseInt(i32, "0b101", 0); // 5 (binary)
const f = try std.fmt.parseInt(i32, "0o17", 0); // 15 (octal)
const g = try std.fmt.parseInt(i32, "42", 0); // 42 (decimal)
// Underscores allowed between digits
const h = try std.fmt.parseInt(u32, "1_000_000", 10); // 1000000
const i = try std.fmt.parseInt(u32, "0xff_ff", 0); // 65535
```
**Errors:**
- `error.InvalidCharacter` - Invalid digit for base, leading/trailing underscore, empty string
- `error.Overflow` - Result doesn't fit in type
### parseUnsigned
Parse unsigned integers only (rejects `+` and `-` signs).
```zig
const a = try std.fmt.parseUnsigned(u16, "65535", 10); // 65535
const b = try std.fmt.parseUnsigned(u8, "ff", 16); // 255
// These return error.InvalidCharacter:
// std.fmt.parseUnsigned(u8, "+10", 10)
// std.fmt.parseUnsigned(u8, "-10", 10)
```
### parseIntSizeSuffix
Parse integers with SI size suffixes (K, M, G, T, P, E, Z, Y, R, Q).
```zig
const std = @import("std");
const a = try std.fmt.parseIntSizeSuffix("2", 10); // 2
const b = try std.fmt.parseIntSizeSuffix("2B", 10); // 2
const c = try std.fmt.parseIntSizeSuffix("2k", 10); // 2000
const d = try std.fmt.parseIntSizeSuffix("2kB", 10); // 2000
const e = try std.fmt.parseIntSizeSuffix("2Ki", 10); // 2048 (binary)
const f = try std.fmt.parseIntSizeSuffix("2KiB", 10); // 2048 (binary)
const g = try std.fmt.parseIntSizeSuffix("1M", 10); // 1000000
const h = try std.fmt.parseIntSizeSuffix("1Mi", 10); // 1048576
const i = try std.fmt.parseIntSizeSuffix("aKiB", 16); // 10240 (hex base)
```
### charToDigit / digitToChar
Convert between characters and digit values.
```zig
const d = try std.fmt.charToDigit('a', 16); // 10
const c = std.fmt.digitToChar(10, .lower); // 'a'
const C = std.fmt.digitToChar(10, .upper); // 'A'
```
## Float Parsing
### parseFloat
Parse floating-point numbers from strings.
```zig
const std = @import("std");
// Decimal notation
const a = try std.fmt.parseFloat(f64, "3.14159"); // 3.14159
const b = try std.fmt.parseFloat(f32, "-123.456"); // -123.456
const c = try std.fmt.parseFloat(f64, "1e10"); // 1e10
const d = try std.fmt.parseFloat(f64, "1.5e-3"); // 0.0015
const e = try std.fmt.parseFloat(f64, "+0"); // 0.0
const f = try std.fmt.parseFloat(f64, "-0"); // -0.0
// Hexadecimal notation
const g = try std.fmt.parseFloat(f64, "0x1p0"); // 1.0
const h = try std.fmt.parseFloat(f64, "0x1.8p1"); // 3.0
const i = try std.fmt.parseFloat(f32, "-0x1p-1"); // -0.5
// Special values
const nan = try std.fmt.parseFloat(f64, "nan"); // NaN
const inf = try std.fmt.parseFloat(f64, "inf"); // +Inf
const ninf = try std.fmt.parseFloat(f64, "-inf"); // -Inf
// Underscores allowed between digits
const j = try std.fmt.parseFloat(f64, "1_234.567_8"); // 1234.5678
```
**Supported types:** `f16`, `f32`, `f64`, `f80`, `f128`
**Errors:**
- `error.InvalidCharacter` - Invalid format, empty string, invalid underscore placement
## Hex Encoding/Decoding
### bytesToHex
Convert bytes to hexadecimal string.
```zig
const input = "hello";
const hex_lower = std.fmt.bytesToHex(input, .lower); // "68656c6c6f"
const hex_upper = std.fmt.bytesToHex(input, .upper); // "68656C6C6F"
```
### hexToBytes
Decode hexadecimal string to bytes.
```zig
var buf: [32]u8 = undefined;
const decoded = try std.fmt.hexToBytes(&buf, "48656c6c6f"); // "Hello"
```
**Errors:**
- `error.InvalidCharacter` - Non-hex character
- `error.InvalidLength` - Odd number of hex digits
- `error.NoSpaceLeft` - Output buffer too small
### hex
Convert unsigned integer to little-endian hex bytes.
```zig
const h = std.fmt.hex(@as(u32, 0xdeadbeef)); // "efbeadde"
```
## Buffer Printing
### bufPrint
Format into a fixed buffer, returns slice of written data.
```zig
var buf: [256]u8 = undefined;
const result = try std.fmt.bufPrint(&buf, "Hello {s}!", .{"world"});
// result = "Hello world!"
```
**Errors:**
- `error.NoSpaceLeft` - Buffer too small
### bufPrintZ
Format into buffer with null terminator.
```zig
var buf: [256]u8 = undefined;
const result = try std.fmt.bufPrintZ(&buf, "Hello {s}!", .{"world"});
// result is [:0]u8 = "Hello world!" (null-terminated)
```
### count
Count characters needed for format (without allocating).
```zig
const len = std.fmt.count("Value: {d}, Name: {s}", .{ 42, "test" });
// len = 21
```
## Allocating Print
### allocPrint
Format with dynamic allocation.
```zig
const allocator = std.heap.page_allocator;
const result = try std.fmt.allocPrint(allocator, "Hello {s}!", .{"world"});
defer allocator.free(result);
// result = "Hello world!"
```
### allocPrintSentinel
Format with allocation and sentinel terminator.
```zig
const result = try std.fmt.allocPrintSentinel(allocator, "Hello {s}", .{"world"}, 0);
defer allocator.free(result);
// result is [:0]u8 = "Hello world" (null-terminated)
```
## Comptime Print
### comptimePrint
Format at compile time, returns pointer to comptime-known string.
```zig
const msg = comptime std.fmt.comptimePrint("Value: {d}", .{100});
// msg: *const [10:0]u8 = "Value: 100"
```
## Custom Formatters
### Using `{f}` Specifier
Types with a `format` method use `{f}`:
```zig
const Point = struct {
x: f32,
y: f32,
pub fn format(self: @This(), writer: *std.Io.Writer) std.Io.Writer.Error!void {
try writer.print("({d:.2}, {d:.2})", .{ self.x, self.y });
}
};
const p = Point{ .x = 1.5, .y = 2.5 };
std.debug.print("{f}\n", .{p}); // "(1.50, 2.50)"
```
### Alt (Formatter Wrapper)
Create a type that wraps data with a custom format function.
```zig
const std = @import("std");
fn formatReversed(data: []const u8, writer: *std.Io.Writer) std.Io.Writer.Error!void {
var i = data.len;
while (i > 0) {
i -= 1;
try writer.writeByte(data[i]);
}
}
const Reversed = std.fmt.Alt([]const u8, formatReversed);
pub fn main() !void {
const rev = Reversed{ .data = "hello" };
std.debug.print("{f}\n", .{rev}); // "olleh"
}
```
### alt Helper
Call alternate format methods by name.
```zig
const Example = struct {
number: u8,
pub fn asHex(self: @This(), writer: *std.Io.Writer) std.Io.Writer.Error!void {
try writer.print("0x{x:0>2}", .{self.number});
}
};
const ex = Example{ .number = 42 };
std.debug.print("{f}\n", .{std.fmt.alt(ex, .asHex)}); // "0x2a"
```
## Format String Parser
For implementing custom formatters compatible with std.fmt.
### Parser
Stream-based parser for format strings.
```zig
const std = @import("std");
var parser: std.fmt.Parser = .{ .bytes = "hello:world", .i = 0 };
// Parse until delimiter
const before = parser.until(':'); // "hello"
// Consume delimiter
_ = parser.char(); // ':'
// Check for character
if (parser.maybe('w')) {
// consumed 'w'
}
// Parse number
parser = .{ .bytes = "42abc", .i = 0 };
const num = parser.number(); // 42
// Peek without consuming
const next = parser.peek(0); // 'a'
```
### Placeholder
Parse format placeholder syntax.
```zig
const ph = std.fmt.Placeholder.parse("0d:0>8.2");
// ph.arg = .{ .number = 0 }
// ph.specifier_arg = "d"
// ph.fill = '0'
// ph.alignment = .right
// ph.width = .{ .number = 8 }
// ph.precision = .{ .number = 2 }
```
### Specifier
Argument reference in format string.
```zig
const Specifier = union(enum) {
none, // {} - auto-increment
number: usize, // {0} - positional
named: []const u8, // {name} - named
};
```
## Utility Functions
### digits2
Fast conversion of 0-99 to two-digit string.
```zig
const d = std.fmt.digits2(42); // "42"
const z = std.fmt.digits2(7); // "07"
```
### printInt
Print integer to buffer, returns end index.
```zig
var buf: [32]u8 = undefined;
const end = std.fmt.printInt(&buf, @as(i32, -42), 10, .lower, .{});
const result = buf[0..end]; // "-42"
```
## Types
### Options
Formatting options for numbers.
```zig
const Options = struct {
precision: ?usize = null,
width: ?usize = null,
alignment: Alignment = .right,
fill: u8 = ' ',
};
```
### Number
Extended options for numeric formatting.
```zig
const Number = struct {
mode: Mode = .decimal, // .decimal, .binary, .octal, .hex, .scientific
case: Case = .lower, // .lower, .upper
precision: ?usize = null,
width: ?usize = null,
alignment: Alignment = .right,
fill: u8 = ' ',
};
```
### Alignment
```zig
const Alignment = enum { left, center, right };
```
### Case
```zig
const Case = enum { lower, upper };
```
## Error Types
```zig
const ParseIntError = error{ Overflow, InvalidCharacter };
const ParseFloatError = error{ InvalidCharacter };
const BufPrintError = error{ NoSpaceLeft };
```
## Constants
```zig
const default_max_depth = 3; // Default recursion depth for {any}
const hex_charset = "0123456789abcdef";
```