[Dwarf-Discuss] _dwarf_p_error(): Does it correctly handle negative error values?

[Ron Louzon]

Sorry, somehow the original question became garbled.? Here is the same post in 
ungarbled form:
=======================================================================

_dwarf_p_error() is defined in pro_error.c as
void
_dwarf_p_error(Dwarf_P_Debug dbg,
?????????????? Dwarf_Error * error, Dwarf_Word errval)
{
??? Dwarf_Error errptr;
??? /* Allow NULL dbg on entry, since sometimes that can happen and we
?????? want to report the upper-level error, not this one. */
??? if ((Dwarf_Sword) errval < 0)
??????? printf("ERROR VALUE: %ld - %s\n",
??????????????? (long) errval, _dwarf_errmsgs[-errval - 1]);
??? if (error != NULL) {
??????? errptr = (Dwarf_Error)
??????????? _dwarf_p_get_alloc(dbg, sizeof(struct Dwarf_Error_s));
??????? if (errptr == NULL) {
??????????? fprintf(stderr,
??????????????????? "Could not allocate Dwarf_Error structure\n");
??????????? abort();
??????? }
??????? errptr->er_errval = (Dwarf_Sword) errval;
??????? *error = errptr;
??????? return;
??? }
?
If the supplied "errval" is negative, the conversion code "-errval-1" is used to 

convert "errval" to a positive index. 
?
Assume that "errval" had a value of -5.? This conversion generates an index of 4 

which is then used to retrieve a string from the _dwarf_errmsgs table.? Was it 
intended to have an index which is off by 1 or should the conversion be using 
the positive equivalent of "errval" as an index into the _dwarf_errmsgs table?? 
?
It appears to me that the conversion of errval to a positive number should 
really be 
(signed)( -( (signed)errval ) )
?
I also could not find any usage in libdwarf of this function where a negative 
value was passed in through errval.
?
Thanks,
Ron