SETLOCALE(3) BSD Library Functions Manual SETLOCALE(3)

NAME
     sseettllooccaallee - natural language formatting for C

LLIIBBRRAARRYY
     Standard C Library (libc, -lc)

SYNOPSIS
     ##iinncclluuddee <>

     char *
     sseettllooccaallee(int category, const char *locale);

DESCRIPTION
     The sseettllooccaallee() function sets the C library's notion of natural language
     formatting style for particular sets of routines.  Each such style is
     called a `locale' and is invoked using an appropriate name passed as a C
     string.

     The sseettllooccaallee() function recognizes several categories of routines.
     These are the categories and the sets of routines they select:

     LCALL       Set the entire locale generically.

     LCCOLLATE   Set a locale for string collation routines.  This controls
                  alphabetic ordering in ssttrrccoollll() and ssttrrxxffrrmm().

     LCCTYPE     Set a locale for the ctype(3) and multibyte(3) functions.
                  This controls recognition of upper and lower case, alpha-
                  betic or non-alphabetic characters, and so on.

     LCMESSAGES  Set a locale for message catalogs, see catopen(3) function.

     LCMONETARY  Set a locale for formatting monetary values; this affects
                  the llooccaalleeccoonnvv() function.

     LCNUMERIC   Set a locale for formatting numbers.  This controls the for-
                  matting of decimal points in input and output of floating
                  point numbers in functions such as pprriinnttff() and ssccaannff(), as
                  well as values returned by llooccaalleeccoonnvv().

     LCTIME      Set a locale for formatting dates and times using the
                  ssttrrffttiimmee() function.

     Only three locales are defined by default, the empty string "" which
     denotes the native environment, and the "C" and "POSIX" locales, which
     denote the C language environment.  A locale argument of NULL causes
     sseettllooccaallee() to return the current locale.  By default, C programs start
     in the "C" locale.  The only function in the library that sets the locale
     is sseettllooccaallee(); the locale is never changed as a side effect of some
     other routine.

RETURN VALUES
     Upon successful completion, sseettllooccaallee() returns the string associated
     with the specified category for the requested locale.  The sseettllooccaallee()
     function returns NULL and fails to change the locale if the given combi-
     nation of category and locale makes no sense.

EERRRROORRSS
     No errors are defined.

FILES
     $PATHLOCALE/locale/category
     /usr/share/locale/locale/category  locale file for the locale locale and
                                        the category category.

SEE ALSO
     colldef(1), mklocale(1), catopen(3), ctype(3), localeconv(3),
     multibyte(3), strcoll(3), strxfrm(3), euc(5), utf8(5), environ(7)

STANDARDS     The sseettllooccaallee() function conforms to ISO/IEC 9899:1999 (``ISO C99'').

HISTORY     The sseettllooccaallee() function first appeared in 4.4BSD.

BSD                            November 21, 2003                           BSD