libyaml

LibYAML is a C library for parsing and emitting YAML (YAML Ain't Markup Language) data. It provides a fast and efficient way to work with YAML in C applications, offering both a simple high-level interface for parsing and emitting YAML, as well as lower-level event-based parsing and emitting interfaces.

Pros

• Fast and efficient YAML parsing and emitting in C
• Supports both simple high-level and more complex event-based interfaces
• Widely used and well-maintained, with regular updates and bug fixes
• Compliant with the YAML 1.1 specification

Cons

• Limited to C language, requiring wrappers for use in other languages
• Documentation could be more comprehensive, especially for advanced usage
• Lacks some features present in newer YAML specifications (e.g., YAML 1.2)
• May require additional error handling for complex YAML structures

Code Examples

1. Parsing a YAML file:

#include <yaml.h>
#include <stdio.h>

int main(void) {
    FILE *file = fopen("example.yaml", "r");
    yaml_parser_t parser;
    yaml_event_t event;

    yaml_parser_initialize(&parser);
    yaml_parser_set_input_file(&parser, file);

    do {
        if (!yaml_parser_parse(&parser, &event)) {
            // Handle error
            break;
        }

        // Process the event
        // ...

        yaml_event_delete(&event);
    } while (event.type != YAML_STREAM_END_EVENT);

    yaml_parser_delete(&parser);
    fclose(file);
    return 0;
}

2. Emitting YAML:

#include <yaml.h>
#include <stdio.h>

int main(void) {
    yaml_emitter_t emitter;
    yaml_event_t event;

    yaml_emitter_initialize(&emitter);
    yaml_emitter_set_output_file(&emitter, stdout);

    yaml_stream_start_event_initialize(&event, YAML_UTF8_ENCODING);
    yaml_emitter_emit(&emitter, &event);

    yaml_document_start_event_initialize(&event, NULL, NULL, NULL, 0);
    yaml_emitter_emit(&emitter, &event);

    yaml_scalar_event_initialize(&event, NULL, (yaml_char_t *)"tag:yaml.org,2002:str",
        (yaml_char_t *)"Hello, World!", -1, 1, 0, YAML_PLAIN_SCALAR_STYLE);
    yaml_emitter_emit(&emitter, &event);

    yaml_document_end_event_initialize(&event, 0);
    yaml_emitter_emit(&emitter, &event);

    yaml_stream_end_event_initialize(&event);
    yaml_emitter_emit(&emitter, &event);

    yaml_emitter_delete(&emitter);
    return 0;
}

Getting Started

To use LibYAML in your C project:

1. Install LibYAML on your system (e.g., sudo apt-get install libyaml-dev on Ubuntu)
2. Include the header in your C file: #include <yaml.h>
3. Compile your program with the LibYAML library: gcc -o program program.c -lyaml
4. Use the LibYAML functions in your code, such as yaml_parser_initialize() for parsing or yaml_emitter_initialize() for emitting YAML

Remember to check the return values of LibYAML functions for error handling and to properly clean up resources (e.g., calling yaml_parser_delete() or yaml_emitter_delete()).