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.IX Title "Text::Bidi::Array 3pm"
.TH Text::Bidi::Array 3pm 2024-01-10 "perl v5.38.2" "User Contributed Perl Documentation"
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.SH NAME
Text::Bidi::Array \- Base class for dual life arrays
.SH VERSION
.IX Header "VERSION"
version 2.18
.SH SYNOPSIS
.IX Header "SYNOPSIS"
.Vb 5
\&    use Text::Bidi::Array::Byte;
\&    my $a = new Text::Bidi::Array::Byte "abc";
\&    say $a\->[1]; # says 98
\&    say $$a; # says abc
\&    say "$a"; # also says abc
.Ve
.SH DESCRIPTION
.IX Header "DESCRIPTION"
This is an abstract base class for objects that function as ``dual\-life'' 
arrays: When viewed as an array reference, it functions as a usual array of 
numbers. When used as a scalar reference, it returns the same array as a 
packed string. The packing specification depends on the sub-class. These 
classes are used in Text::Bidi to conveniently pass arrays to the 
underlying fribidi library, but could be of independent interest.
.SH "OVERLOADED OPERATORS"
.IX Header "OVERLOADED OPERATORS"
An object of this type can be dereferenced either as a scalar or as an array.  
In the first case, it returns the packed (string) representation of the 
array. In the second, it returns the unpacked array of numbers.
.PP
The packed representation is also returned when the object is used as a 
string.
.SH CONSTRUCTION
.IX Header "CONSTRUCTION"
.Vb 1
\&    $a = new Text::Bidi::Array::<Type> $data
.Ve
.PP
Create a new array of the given \fBType\fR, and initialise it with \fR\f(CI$data\fR\fI\fR.  
\&\fI\fR\f(CI$data\fR\fI\fR can be either a string, which the new object then view as an array 
of the given type, or an array reference (more precisely, anything that can 
be dereferenced as an array), which is then packed according to the rules of 
\&\fBType\fR. If no \fI\fR\f(CI$data\fR\fI\fR is given, it defaults to 0.
.SH "SEE ALSO"
.IX Header "SEE ALSO"
Text::Bidi::Array::Byte, Text::Bidi::Array::Long
.SH "FOR IMPLEMENTORS"
.IX Header "FOR IMPLEMENTORS"
The rest of this documentation is for writing specific derived classes. The 
object is represented internally as a hashref. To implement a particular 
instance, the following methods should be implemented.  Each of these should 
manipulate the field \f(CW\*(C`data\*(C'\fR, which is the string that stores the actual 
value. Unimplemented methods will lead to croaking. See 
Text::Bidi::Array::Byte and Text::Bidi::Array::Long for examples.
.ie n .IP $self\->pack(@data) 4
.el .IP \f(CW$self\fR\->pack(@data) 4
.IX Item "$self->pack(@data)"
Convert (pack) an array of numbers into a string according to the format of 
the current class (this will probably be a class method). Returns the string.
.PP
The following methods should behave as described in Tie::Array.
.ie n .IP "$self\->STORE($index, $value)" 4
.el .IP "\f(CW$self\fR\->STORE($index, \f(CW$value\fR)" 4
.IX Item "$self->STORE($index, $value)"
Store the \fR\f(CI$value\fR\fI\fR in the part of \f(CW\*(C`$self\->{\*(Aqdata\*(Aq}\*(C'\fR corresponding to 
\&\fI\fR\f(CI$index\fR\fI\fR.
.ie n .IP $self\->FETCH($index) 4
.el .IP \f(CW$self\fR\->FETCH($index) 4
.IX Item "$self->FETCH($index)"
Fetch the value at \fR\f(CI$index\fR\fI\fR from the correct part of \f(CW\*(C`$self\->{\*(Aqdata\*(Aq}\*(C'\fR.
.ie n .IP $self\->STORESIZE($count) 4
.el .IP \f(CW$self\fR\->STORESIZE($count) 4
.IX Item "$self->STORESIZE($count)"
Modify \f(CW\*(C`$self\->{\*(Aqdata\*(Aq}\*(C'\fR to represent an array of size \fR\f(CI$count\fR\fI\fR.
.ie n .IP $self\->\fBFETCHSIZE()\fR 4
.el .IP \f(CW$self\fR\->\fBFETCHSIZE()\fR 4
.IX Item "$self->FETCHSIZE()"
Return the size of the array represented by \f(CW\*(C`$self\->{\*(Aqdata\*(Aq}\*(C'\fR.
.SH AUTHOR
.IX Header "AUTHOR"
Moshe Kamensky <kamensky@cpan.org>
.SH "COPYRIGHT AND LICENSE"
.IX Header "COPYRIGHT AND LICENSE"
This software is copyright (c) 2015 by Moshe Kamensky.
.PP
This is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify it under
the same terms as the Perl 5 programming language system itself.