GapBuffer is my version of the gap buffer data structure, also known as a text buffer.
This was created for the speedy handling of input and editing in a text buffer. In my opinion it is smarter than using a vector of strings in a text editor, as it automatically wraps text as all of the data is contained within a single structure and not across multiple. Without a doubt this could use additional improvements, and I will likely make them in time. For now, here is a working version.
I created this as the first project in a series of portfolio pieces, which are intended to build on one another to create a cohesive product. But more on that in the future.
Gap Buffers were developed to minimize the number of copy and/or move operations a computer must perform, as they were slow and thus costly (this is not the case with modern computers). Their design takes into account how humans interact with a text editor, as they are often inserting and/or removing text at a certain point for a while, before jumping elsewhere in the text do more insert and/or remove operations. Humans usually don't jump around the buffer doing many small operations quickly.
The core version has been extended to include a utf-8 compatible version of the gap buffer. As a result the ASCII-version has been updated to be in line in terms of functions and variable naming so it matches utf8GapBuffer.
The growth of both the gap and buffer is currently fixed. These could be smarter in terms of the size they grow to and how often they have to be resized. All in order to mimimize the number of times bytes are moved around as that's the most costly operation with a gap buffer.
This version is compatiable with c++20 and was tested and compiled with g++.
Download the repository and use the following in your project:
#include <GapBuffer.hpp>
or
#include <utf8GapBuffer.hpp>Don't forget to use GapBuffer.cpp or utf8GapBuffer.cpp in your sources.
The main file included in this repository is there so you can see the gap buffer in operation. To run:
make
./gap_bufferI'm [Gregory Pellechi] (https://www.gregorypellechi.com/). I created this gap buffer because I like writing and coding is just another form of writing. But with a lot more metaphors and usually fewer adjectives. At the time of writing this I've been programming in C for a year and C++ for 3 months.
Suggestions are welcome, but as this is a personal project there is no guarantee they will be taken.