Re: type recv/send functions

Greg Stark <gsstark@mit.edu> writes:
> Is it just me or are the send/recv strangely asymmetric?

Not all that much: they both return a meaningful result.  We cheated a
little bit by allowing the recv functions to modify the state of their
input argument, but they still deliver a valid result object.

> Wouldn't the natural thing to do be to provide the StringInfo buffer with a
> cursor for the type's send function to stuff the bytea into?

Then the send function would return void, which is surely not more
natural.  Also, there would be a much larger disparity between the
behaviors of the text and binary output paths.

Anyway it's about three years too late to be debating this ;-)
        regards, tom lane