Cstrings: a new string abstract data type for Ada83

All programming languages permit the storage of data in a computer's memory and provide mechanisms for that data to be accessed and manipulated. Data types are implemented in a different manner by each individual programming language. Given some degree of abstraction, however, comparisons can be made between the implementations of a data type in different languages. This paper examines the character string data type, which is used to store alphanumeric data. The method by which the Ada language implements character strings is evaluated and a library package to improve Ada character string manipulation is developed. A user trial of this library package showed that approximately 70% of the programmers in the trial considered the new library package to be an improvement over the standard Ada string type. Detailed results of this trial are presented.