Re: Better way to code an iterator function?

[Sean Conner <sean@...>]

It was thus said that the Great Lawrence E. Bakst once stated:
> 1. Is there a better, shorter, cuter, or cooler way to code the example below?
> 
> 2. I guess something I didn't try was to "deep copy" paths, use that as the state, and then remove one element at a time from the state.
> 
> 3. This is probably FAQ, but I couldn't find much with a quick search on Google.
> 
> I miss C's pre/post inc/dec operators and I can't be the only one. Is there any way to make inc and dec functions that increment or decrement the number passed in and return the previous value? Seems difficult in a language that only has pass by value for numbers and strings.
> 
> Thanks in advance for all help and suggestions.
> 
> function it_paths(paths)
>     local function next(state, var)
>         if (state.idx > #paths) then return nil end;
>         state.idx = state.idx + 1;
>         return paths[state.idx - 1];
>     end
>     local state = {idx = 1};
>     return next, state, "";
> end;
> 
> function process_random_files(paths)
>     for path in it_paths(paths) do
>         print(path);
>     end
> end
> 
> process_random_files{"foo", "bar", "baz", "quuz"};

  What's wrong with:

	function process_random_files(paths)
	  for i=1,#paths do
	    print(paths[i])
	  end
	end

  Or am I missing something?

  -spc