FILE2C(1) BSD General Commands Manual FILE2C(1)NAMEfile2c — convert file to c-source
SYNOPSISfile2c [-sx] [-n count] [prefix [suffix]]
DESCRIPTION
The file2c utility reads a file from stdin and writes it to stdout, con‐
verting each byte to its decimal or hexadecimal representation on the
fly. The byte values are separated by a comma. This also means that the
last byte value is not followed by a comma. By default the byte values
are printed in decimal, but when the -x option is given, the values will
be printed in hexadecimal. When -s option is given, each line is printed
with a leading tab and each comma is followed by a space except for the
last one on the line.
If more than 70 characters are printed on the same line, that line is
ended and the output continues on the next line. With the -n option this
can be made to happen after the specified number of byte values have been
printed. The length of the line will not be considered anymore. To have
all the byte values printed on the same line, give the -n option a nega‐
tive number.
A prefix and suffix strings can be printed before and after the byte val‐
ues (resp.) If a suffix is to be printed, a prefix must also be speci‐
fied. The first non-option word is the prefix, which may optionally be
followed by a word that is to be used as the suffix.
This program is typically used to embed binary files into C source files.
The prefix is used to define an array type and the suffix is used to end
the C statement. The -n, -s and -x options are useful when the binary
data represents a bitmap and the output needs to remain readable and/or
editable. Fonts, for example, are a good example of this.
EXAMPLES
The command:
date | file2c 'const char date[] = {' ',0};'
will produce:
const char date[] = {
83,97,116,32,74,97,110,32,50,56,32,49,54,58,50,56,58,48,53,
32,80,83,84,32,49,57,57,53,10
,0};
BSD March 22, 2007 BSD
