[DCC Warning] W1013 Constant 0 converted to NIL

[dummzeuch 1387]

I just for the first time ever came across the warning "[DCC Warning]: W1013 Constant 0 converted to NIL".

I got it for the following piece of code:

var
  SomeList: TList;
//...
  SomeObj := SomeList.Extract(0); // <== here

WTF? I would have expected a compile error, not a warning because TList.Extract is declared as:

    function Extract(Item: Pointer): Pointer; inline;

without any overload.

I overlooked that warning a first, expecting an overload with an integer parameter (the index into the list like with Delete), which would make a lot of sense.

 

(This is with Delphi XE2.)

So apparently the compiler automatically converts the integer 0 to a nil pointer.

Who (tf) considered this a feature? This is Pascal, after all, not C and is supposed to be type safe!

[Lajos Juhász 238]

The exact same is with Delphi 11. Tested with:

 

procedure TForm1.FormCreate(Sender: TObject);
var
  f: pointer;
begin
  f:=0;
end;
 

 

[dcc32 Warning] Unit1.pas(29): W1013 Constant 0 converted to NIL

 

 

Here is what helps says about this warning:

 

 

The Delphi compiler now allows the constant 0 to be used in pointer expressions in place of NIL. This change was made to allow older code to still compile with changes which were made in the low-level RTL.

 

program Produce;

  procedure p0(p : Pointer);
  begin
  end;

begin
  p0(0);
end.

In this example, the procedure p0 is declared to take a Pointer parameter yet the constant 0 is passed. The compiler will perform the necessary conversions internally, changing 0 into NIL, so that the code will function properly.

 

program Solve;

  procedure p0(p : Pointer);
  begin
  end;

begin
  p0(NIL);
end.

There are two approaches to solving this problem. In the case above the constant 0 has been replaced with NIL. Alternatively the procedure definition could be changed so that the parameter type is of Integer type.

Edited June 29, 2022 by Lajos Juhász

[Vandrovnik 202]

It is a feature, not a bug 🙂 (I have never seen it before.)

 

https://docwiki.embarcadero.com/RADStudio/Sydney/en/W1013_Constant_0_converted_to_NIL_(Delphi)

 

[Mike Torrettinni 198]

I noticed this a few days ago, when by mistake assigned 0 to array:

 

var arr: array of integer;
begin
  arr := 0;
end.

It gives the same W1013 warning.

 

 

[Attila Kovacs 617]

29 minutes ago, dummzeuch said:

is supposed to be type safe!

Well, it is. Explicit.

Edited June 29, 2022 by Attila Kovacs