# All kinds of array-based text representations.
abstract class FlatText
	super Text

	# Underlying CString (`char*`)
	#
	# Warning: Might be void in some subclasses, be sure to check
	# if set before using it.
	var items: CString is noinit

	# Returns a char* starting at position `first_byte`
	#
	# WARNING: If you choose to use this service, be careful of the following.
	#
	# Strings and CString are *ideally* always allocated through a Garbage Collector.
	# Since the GC tracks the use of the pointer for the beginning of the char*, it may be
	# deallocated at any moment, rendering the pointer returned by this function invalid.
	# Any access to freed memory may very likely cause undefined behaviour or a crash.
	# (Failure to do so will most certainly result in long and painful debugging hours)
	#
	# The only safe use of this pointer is if it is ephemeral (e.g. read in a C function
	# then immediately return).
	#
	# As always, do not modify the content of the String in C code, if this is what you want
	# copy locally the char* as Nit Strings are immutable.
	fun fast_cstring: CString is abstract

	redef var length = 0

	redef var byte_length = 0

	redef fun output
	do
		var i = 0
		while i < length do
			items[i].output
			i += 1
		end
	end

	redef fun copy_to_native(dest, n, src_offset, dest_offset) do
		items.copy_to(dest, n, src_offset, dest_offset)
	end
end