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+.. _syntax:
+
+********************
+Format String Syntax
+********************
+
+Formatting functions such as :ref:`fmt::format() <format>` and
+:ref:`fmt::print() <print>` use the same format string syntax described in this
+section.
+
+Format strings contain "replacement fields" surrounded by curly braces ``{}``.
+Anything that is not contained in braces is considered literal text, which is
+copied unchanged to the output. If you need to include a brace character in the
+literal text, it can be escaped by doubling: ``{{`` and ``}}``.
+
+The grammar for a replacement field is as follows:
+
+.. productionlist:: sf
+ replacement_field: "{" [`arg_id`] [":" (`format_spec` | `chrono_format_spec`)] "}"
+ arg_id: `integer` | `identifier`
+ integer: `digit`+
+ digit: "0"..."9"
+ identifier: `id_start` `id_continue`*
+ id_start: "a"..."z" | "A"..."Z" | "_"
+ id_continue: `id_start` | `digit`
+
+In less formal terms, the replacement field can start with an *arg_id*
+that specifies the argument whose value is to be formatted and inserted into
+the output instead of the replacement field.
+The *arg_id* is optionally followed by a *format_spec*, which is preceded by a
+colon ``':'``. These specify a non-default format for the replacement value.
+
+See also the :ref:`formatspec` section.
+
+If the numerical arg_ids in a format string are 0, 1, 2, ... in sequence,
+they can all be omitted (not just some) and the numbers 0, 1, 2, ... will be
+automatically inserted in that order.
+
+Named arguments can be referred to by their names or indices.
+
+Some simple format string examples::
+
+ "First, thou shalt count to {0}" // References the first argument
+ "Bring me a {}" // Implicitly references the first argument
+ "From {} to {}" // Same as "From {0} to {1}"
+
+The *format_spec* field contains a specification of how the value should be
+presented, including such details as field width, alignment, padding, decimal
+precision and so on. Each value type can define its own "formatting
+mini-language" or interpretation of the *format_spec*.
+
+Most built-in types support a common formatting mini-language, which is
+described in the next section.
+
+A *format_spec* field can also include nested replacement fields in certain
+positions within it. These nested replacement fields can contain only an
+argument id; format specifications are not allowed. This allows the formatting
+of a value to be dynamically specified.
+
+See the :ref:`formatexamples` section for some examples.
+
+.. _formatspec:
+
+Format Specification Mini-Language
+==================================
+
+"Format specifications" are used within replacement fields contained within a
+format string to define how individual values are presented (see
+:ref:`syntax`). Each formattable type may define how the format
+specification is to be interpreted.
+
+Most built-in types implement the following options for format specifications,
+although some of the formatting options are only supported by the numeric types.
+
+The general form of a *standard format specifier* is:
+
+.. productionlist:: sf
+ format_spec: [[`fill`]`align`][`sign`]["#"]["0"][`width`]["." `precision`]["L"][`type`]
+ fill: <a character other than '{' or '}'>
+ align: "<" | ">" | "^"
+ sign: "+" | "-" | " "
+ width: `integer` | "{" [`arg_id`] "}"
+ precision: `integer` | "{" [`arg_id`] "}"
+ type: "a" | "A" | "b" | "B" | "c" | "d" | "e" | "E" | "f" | "F" | "g" | "G" |
+ : "o" | "p" | "s" | "x" | "X"
+
+The *fill* character can be any Unicode code point other than ``'{'`` or
+``'}'``. The presence of a fill character is signaled by the character following
+it, which must be one of the alignment options. If the second character of
+*format_spec* is not a valid alignment option, then it is assumed that both the
+fill character and the alignment option are absent.
+
+The meaning of the various alignment options is as follows:
+
++---------+----------------------------------------------------------+
+| Option | Meaning |
++=========+==========================================================+
+| ``'<'`` | Forces the field to be left-aligned within the available |
+| | space (this is the default for most objects). |
++---------+----------------------------------------------------------+
+| ``'>'`` | Forces the field to be right-aligned within the |
+| | available space (this is the default for numbers). |
++---------+----------------------------------------------------------+
+| ``'^'`` | Forces the field to be centered within the available |
+| | space. |
++---------+----------------------------------------------------------+
+
+Note that unless a minimum field width is defined, the field width will always
+be the same size as the data to fill it, so that the alignment option has no
+meaning in this case.
+
+The *sign* option is only valid for number types, and can be one of the
+following:
+
++---------+------------------------------------------------------------+
+| Option | Meaning |
++=========+============================================================+
+| ``'+'`` | indicates that a sign should be used for both |
+| | nonnegative as well as negative numbers. |
++---------+------------------------------------------------------------+
+| ``'-'`` | indicates that a sign should be used only for negative |
+| | numbers (this is the default behavior). |
++---------+------------------------------------------------------------+
+| space | indicates that a leading space should be used on |
+| | nonnegative numbers, and a minus sign on negative numbers. |
++---------+------------------------------------------------------------+
+
+The ``'#'`` option causes the "alternate form" to be used for the
+conversion. The alternate form is defined differently for different
+types. This option is only valid for integer and floating-point types.
+For integers, when binary, octal, or hexadecimal output is used, this
+option adds the prefix respective ``"0b"`` (``"0B"``), ``"0"``, or
+``"0x"`` (``"0X"``) to the output value. Whether the prefix is
+lower-case or upper-case is determined by the case of the type
+specifier, for example, the prefix ``"0x"`` is used for the type ``'x'``
+and ``"0X"`` is used for ``'X'``. For floating-point numbers the
+alternate form causes the result of the conversion to always contain a
+decimal-point character, even if no digits follow it. Normally, a
+decimal-point character appears in the result of these conversions
+only if a digit follows it. In addition, for ``'g'`` and ``'G'``
+conversions, trailing zeros are not removed from the result.
+
+.. ifconfig:: False
+
+ The ``','`` option signals the use of a comma for a thousands separator.
+ For a locale aware separator, use the ``'L'`` integer presentation type
+ instead.
+
+*width* is a decimal integer defining the minimum field width. If not
+specified, then the field width will be determined by the content.
+
+Preceding the *width* field by a zero (``'0'``) character enables sign-aware
+zero-padding for numeric types. It forces the padding to be placed after the
+sign or base (if any) but before the digits. This is used for printing fields in
+the form '+000000120'. This option is only valid for numeric types and it has no
+effect on formatting of infinity and NaN.
+
+The *precision* is a decimal number indicating how many digits should be
+displayed after the decimal point for a floating-point value formatted with
+``'f'`` and ``'F'``, or before and after the decimal point for a floating-point
+value formatted with ``'g'`` or ``'G'``. For non-number types the field
+indicates the maximum field size - in other words, how many characters will be
+used from the field content. The *precision* is not allowed for integer,
+character, Boolean, and pointer values. Note that a C string must be
+null-terminated even if precision is specified.
+
+The ``'L'`` option uses the current locale setting to insert the appropriate
+number separator characters. This option is only valid for numeric types.
+
+Finally, the *type* determines how the data should be presented.
+
+The available string presentation types are:
+
++---------+----------------------------------------------------------+
+| Type | Meaning |
++=========+==========================================================+
+| ``'s'`` | String format. This is the default type for strings and |
+| | may be omitted. |
++---------+----------------------------------------------------------+
+| none | The same as ``'s'``. |
++---------+----------------------------------------------------------+
+
+The available character presentation types are:
+
++---------+----------------------------------------------------------+
+| Type | Meaning |
++=========+==========================================================+
+| ``'c'`` | Character format. This is the default type for |
+| | characters and may be omitted. |
++---------+----------------------------------------------------------+
+| none | The same as ``'c'``. |
++---------+----------------------------------------------------------+
+
+The available integer presentation types are:
+
++---------+----------------------------------------------------------+
+| Type | Meaning |
++=========+==========================================================+
+| ``'b'`` | Binary format. Outputs the number in base 2. Using the |
+| | ``'#'`` option with this type adds the prefix ``"0b"`` |
+| | to the output value. |
++---------+----------------------------------------------------------+
+| ``'B'`` | Binary format. Outputs the number in base 2. Using the |
+| | ``'#'`` option with this type adds the prefix ``"0B"`` |
+| | to the output value. |
++---------+----------------------------------------------------------+
+| ``'c'`` | Character format. Outputs the number as a character. |
++---------+----------------------------------------------------------+
+| ``'d'`` | Decimal integer. Outputs the number in base 10. |
++---------+----------------------------------------------------------+
+| ``'o'`` | Octal format. Outputs the number in base 8. |
++---------+----------------------------------------------------------+
+| ``'x'`` | Hex format. Outputs the number in base 16, using |
+| | lower-case letters for the digits above 9. Using the |
+| | ``'#'`` option with this type adds the prefix ``"0x"`` |
+| | to the output value. |
++---------+----------------------------------------------------------+
+| ``'X'`` | Hex format. Outputs the number in base 16, using |
+| | upper-case letters for the digits above 9. Using the |
+| | ``'#'`` option with this type adds the prefix ``"0X"`` |
+| | to the output value. |
++---------+----------------------------------------------------------+
+| none | The same as ``'d'``. |
++---------+----------------------------------------------------------+
+
+Integer presentation types can also be used with character and Boolean values.
+Boolean values are formatted using textual representation, either ``true`` or
+``false``, if the presentation type is not specified.
+
+The available presentation types for floating-point values are:
+
++---------+----------------------------------------------------------+
+| Type | Meaning |
++=========+==========================================================+
+| ``'a'`` | Hexadecimal floating point format. Prints the number in |
+| | base 16 with prefix ``"0x"`` and lower-case letters for |
+| | digits above 9. Uses ``'p'`` to indicate the exponent. |
++---------+----------------------------------------------------------+
+| ``'A'`` | Same as ``'a'`` except it uses upper-case letters for |
+| | the prefix, digits above 9 and to indicate the exponent. |
++---------+----------------------------------------------------------+
+| ``'e'`` | Exponent notation. Prints the number in scientific |
+| | notation using the letter 'e' to indicate the exponent. |
++---------+----------------------------------------------------------+
+| ``'E'`` | Exponent notation. Same as ``'e'`` except it uses an |
+| | upper-case ``'E'`` as the separator character. |
++---------+----------------------------------------------------------+
+| ``'f'`` | Fixed point. Displays the number as a fixed-point |
+| | number. |
++---------+----------------------------------------------------------+
+| ``'F'`` | Fixed point. Same as ``'f'``, but converts ``nan`` to |
+| | ``NAN`` and ``inf`` to ``INF``. |
++---------+----------------------------------------------------------+
+| ``'g'`` | General format. For a given precision ``p >= 1``, |
+| | this rounds the number to ``p`` significant digits and |
+| | then formats the result in either fixed-point format |
+| | or in scientific notation, depending on its magnitude. |
+| | |
+| | A precision of ``0`` is treated as equivalent to a |
+| | precision of ``1``. |
++---------+----------------------------------------------------------+
+| ``'G'`` | General format. Same as ``'g'`` except switches to |
+| | ``'E'`` if the number gets too large. The |
+| | representations of infinity and NaN are uppercased, too. |
++---------+----------------------------------------------------------+
+| none | Similar to ``'g'``, except that the default precision is |
+| | as high as needed to represent the particular value. |
++---------+----------------------------------------------------------+
+
+.. ifconfig:: False
+
+ +---------+----------------------------------------------------------+
+ | | The precise rules are as follows: suppose that the |
+ | | result formatted with presentation type ``'e'`` and |
+ | | precision ``p-1`` would have exponent ``exp``. Then |
+ | | if ``-4 <= exp < p``, the number is formatted |
+ | | with presentation type ``'f'`` and precision |
+ | | ``p-1-exp``. Otherwise, the number is formatted |
+ | | with presentation type ``'e'`` and precision ``p-1``. |
+ | | In both cases insignificant trailing zeros are removed |
+ | | from the significand, and the decimal point is also |
+ | | removed if there are no remaining digits following it. |
+ | | |
+ | | Positive and negative infinity, positive and negative |
+ | | zero, and nans, are formatted as ``inf``, ``-inf``, |
+ | | ``0``, ``-0`` and ``nan`` respectively, regardless of |
+ | | the precision. |
+ | | |
+ +---------+----------------------------------------------------------+
+
+The available presentation types for pointers are:
+
++---------+----------------------------------------------------------+
+| Type | Meaning |
++=========+==========================================================+
+| ``'p'`` | Pointer format. This is the default type for |
+| | pointers and may be omitted. |
++---------+----------------------------------------------------------+
+| none | The same as ``'p'``. |
++---------+----------------------------------------------------------+
+
+.. _chrono-specs:
+
+Chrono Format Specifications
+============================
+
+Format specifications for chrono types and ``std::tm`` have the following
+syntax:
+
+.. productionlist:: sf
+ chrono_format_spec: [[`fill`]`align`][`width`]["." `precision`][`chrono_specs`]
+ chrono_specs: [`chrono_specs`] `conversion_spec` | `chrono_specs` `literal_char`
+ conversion_spec: "%" [`modifier`] `chrono_type`
+ literal_char: <a character other than '{', '}' or '%'>
+ modifier: "E" | "O"
+ chrono_type: "a" | "A" | "b" | "B" | "c" | "C" | "d" | "D" | "e" | "F" |
+ : "g" | "G" | "h" | "H" | "I" | "j" | "m" | "M" | "n" | "p" |
+ : "q" | "Q" | "r" | "R" | "S" | "t" | "T" | "u" | "U" | "V" |
+ : "w" | "W" | "x" | "X" | "y" | "Y" | "z" | "Z" | "%"
+
+Literal chars are copied unchanged to the output. Precision is valid only for
+``std::chrono::duration`` types with a floating-point representation type.
+
+The available presentation types (*chrono_type*) for chrono durations and time
+points are:
+
++---------+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
+| Type | Meaning |
++=========+====================================================================+
+| ``'H'`` | The hour (24-hour clock) as a decimal number. If the result is a |
+| | single digit, it is prefixed with 0. The modified command ``%OH`` |
+| | produces the locale's alternative representation. |
++---------+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
+| ``'M'`` | The minute as a decimal number. If the result is a single digit, |
+| | it is prefixed with 0. The modified command ``%OM`` produces the |
+| | locale's alternative representation. |
++---------+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
+| ``'S'`` | Seconds as a decimal number. If the number of seconds is less than |
+| | 10, the result is prefixed with 0. If the precision of the input |
+| | cannot be exactly represented with seconds, then the format is a |
+| | decimal floating-point number with a fixed format and a precision |
+| | matching that of the precision of the input (or to a microseconds |
+| | precision if the conversion to floating-point decimal seconds |
+| | cannot be made within 18 fractional digits). The character for the |
+| | decimal point is localized according to the locale. The modified |
+| | command ``%OS`` produces the locale's alternative representation. |
++---------+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
+
+Specifiers that have a calendaric component such as ``'d'`` (the day of month)
+are valid only for ``std::tm`` and not durations or time points.
+
+.. range-specs:
+
+Range Format Specifications
+===========================
+
+Format specifications for range types have the following syntax:
+
+.. productionlist:: sf
+ range_format_spec: [":" [`underlying_spec`]]
+
+The `underlying_spec` is parsed based on the formatter of the range's
+reference type.
+
+By default, a range of characters or strings is printed escaped and quoted. But
+if any `underlying_spec` is provided (even if it is empty), then the characters
+or strings are printed according to the provided specification.
+
+Examples::
+
+ fmt::format("{}", std::vector{10, 20, 30});
+ // Result: [10, 20, 30]
+ fmt::format("{::#x}", std::vector{10, 20, 30});
+ // Result: [0xa, 0x14, 0x13]
+ fmt::format("{}", vector{'h', 'e', 'l', 'l', 'o'});
+ // Result: ['h', 'e', 'l', 'l', 'o']
+ fmt::format("{::}", vector{'h', 'e', 'l', 'l', 'o'});
+ // Result: [h, e, l, l, o]
+ fmt::format("{::d}", vector{'h', 'e', 'l', 'l', 'o'});
+ // Result: [104, 101, 108, 108, 111]
+
+.. _formatexamples:
+
+Format Examples
+===============
+
+This section contains examples of the format syntax and comparison with
+the printf formatting.
+
+In most of the cases the syntax is similar to the printf formatting, with the
+addition of the ``{}`` and with ``:`` used instead of ``%``.
+For example, ``"%03.2f"`` can be translated to ``"{:03.2f}"``.
+
+The new format syntax also supports new and different options, shown in the
+following examples.
+
+Accessing arguments by position::
+
+ fmt::format("{0}, {1}, {2}", 'a', 'b', 'c');
+ // Result: "a, b, c"
+ fmt::format("{}, {}, {}", 'a', 'b', 'c');
+ // Result: "a, b, c"
+ fmt::format("{2}, {1}, {0}", 'a', 'b', 'c');
+ // Result: "c, b, a"
+ fmt::format("{0}{1}{0}", "abra", "cad"); // arguments' indices can be repeated
+ // Result: "abracadabra"
+
+Aligning the text and specifying a width::
+
+ fmt::format("{:<30}", "left aligned");
+ // Result: "left aligned "
+ fmt::format("{:>30}", "right aligned");
+ // Result: " right aligned"
+ fmt::format("{:^30}", "centered");
+ // Result: " centered "
+ fmt::format("{:*^30}", "centered"); // use '*' as a fill char
+ // Result: "***********centered***********"
+
+Dynamic width::
+
+ fmt::format("{:<{}}", "left aligned", 30);
+ // Result: "left aligned "
+
+Dynamic precision::
+
+ fmt::format("{:.{}f}", 3.14, 1);
+ // Result: "3.1"
+
+Replacing ``%+f``, ``%-f``, and ``% f`` and specifying a sign::
+
+ fmt::format("{:+f}; {:+f}", 3.14, -3.14); // show it always
+ // Result: "+3.140000; -3.140000"
+ fmt::format("{: f}; {: f}", 3.14, -3.14); // show a space for positive numbers
+ // Result: " 3.140000; -3.140000"
+ fmt::format("{:-f}; {:-f}", 3.14, -3.14); // show only the minus -- same as '{:f}; {:f}'
+ // Result: "3.140000; -3.140000"
+
+Replacing ``%x`` and ``%o`` and converting the value to different bases::
+
+ fmt::format("int: {0:d}; hex: {0:x}; oct: {0:o}; bin: {0:b}", 42);
+ // Result: "int: 42; hex: 2a; oct: 52; bin: 101010"
+ // with 0x or 0 or 0b as prefix:
+ fmt::format("int: {0:d}; hex: {0:#x}; oct: {0:#o}; bin: {0:#b}", 42);
+ // Result: "int: 42; hex: 0x2a; oct: 052; bin: 0b101010"
+
+Padded hex byte with prefix and always prints both hex characters::
+
+ fmt::format("{:#04x}", 0);
+ // Result: "0x00"
+
+Box drawing using Unicode fill::
+
+ fmt::print(
+ "┌{0:─^{2}}┐\n"
+ "│{1: ^{2}}│\n"
+ "└{0:─^{2}}┘\n", "", "Hello, world!", 20);
+
+prints::
+
+ ┌────────────────────┐
+ │ Hello, world! │
+ └────────────────────┘
+
+Using type-specific formatting::
+
+ #include <fmt/chrono.h>
+
+ auto t = tm();
+ t.tm_year = 2010 - 1900;
+ t.tm_mon = 7;
+ t.tm_mday = 4;
+ t.tm_hour = 12;
+ t.tm_min = 15;
+ t.tm_sec = 58;
+ fmt::print("{:%Y-%m-%d %H:%M:%S}", t);
+ // Prints: 2010-08-04 12:15:58
+
+Using the comma as a thousands separator::
+
+ #include <fmt/format.h>
+
+ auto s = fmt::format(std::locale("en_US.UTF-8"), "{:L}", 1234567890);
+ // s == "1,234,567,890"
+
+.. ifconfig:: False
+
+ Nesting arguments and more complex examples::
+
+ >>> for align, text in zip('<^>', ['left', 'center', 'right']):
+ ... '{0:{fill}{align}16}") << text, fill=align, align=align)
+ ...
+ 'left<<<<<<<<<<<<'
+ '^^^^^center^^^^^'
+ '>>>>>>>>>>>right'
+ >>>
+ >>> octets = [192, 168, 0, 1]
+ Format("{:02X}{:02X}{:02X}{:02X}") << *octets)
+ 'C0A80001'
+ >>> int(_, 16)
+ 3232235521
+ >>>
+ >>> width = 5
+ >>> for num in range(5,12):
+ ... for base in 'dXob':
+ ... print('{0:{width}{base}}") << num, base=base, width=width), end=' ')
+ ... print()
+ ...
+ 5 5 5 101
+ 6 6 6 110
+ 7 7 7 111
+ 8 8 10 1000
+ 9 9 11 1001
+ 10 A 12 1010
+ 11 B 13 1011