The
setlocale ();
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
setlocale ();
function recognizes several categories of routines.
These are the categories and the sets of routines they select:
LC_ALL
Set the entire locale generically.
LC_COLLATE
Set a locale for string collation routines.
This controls alphabetic ordering in
strcoll ();
and
strxfrm (.);
LC_CTYPE
Set a locale for the
ctype(3)
and
multibyte(3)
functions.
This controls recognition of upper and lower case,
alphabetic or non-alphabetic characters,
and so on.
LC_MESSAGES
Set a locale for message catalogs, see
catopen(3)
function.
LC_MONETARY
Set a locale for formatting monetary values;
this affects the
localeconv ();
function.
LC_NUMERIC
Set a locale for formatting numbers.
This controls the formatting of decimal points
in input and output of floating point numbers
in functions such as
printf ();
and
scanf (,);
as well as values returned by
localeconv (.);
LC_TIME
Set a locale for formatting dates and times using the
strftime ();
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
Fa locale
argument of
NULL
causes
setlocale ();
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
setlocale (;);
the locale is never changed as a side effect of some other routine.
RETURN VALUES
Upon successful completion,
setlocale ();
returns the string associated with the specified
Fa category
for the requested
Fa locale .
The
setlocale ();
function returns
NULL
and fails to change the locale
if the given combination of
Fa category
and
Fa locale
makes no sense.
FILES
$PATH_LOCALE/ locale/category
/usr/share/locale/ locale/category
locale file for the locale
locale
and the category
category
