Possible error in GAWK's join.awk sample script?

[Kenny McCormack]

Here's the script, apparently unchanged for 23 years:


--- Cut Here ---
# join.awk --- join an array into a string
#
# Arnold Robbins, arn...@skeeve.com, Public Domain
# May 1993

function join(array, start, end, sep, result, i)
{
if (sep == "")
sep = " "
else if (sep == SUBSEP) # magic value
sep = ""
result = array[start]
for (i = start + 1; i <= end; i++)
result = result sep array[i]
return result
}
--- Cut Here ---

Observe that if end is less than start, the return value is array[start],
when it probably should be an empty string.

E.g.,

print join(A,3,2,",")

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[Kenny McCormack]

In article <nu2c3e$3ha$1...@news.xmission.com>,
Kenny McCormack <gaz...@shell.xmission.com> wrote:
...

>Observe that if end is less than start, the return value is array[start],
>when it probably should be an empty string.

And while we're on the subject, note also that if end is greater than the
number of elements in the array, you'll get output with trailing sep
characters. Something like:

val1,val2,val3,,,,,

Whether this is desirable or not is something upon which reasoned men may
disagree.

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actually reads it. They just scroll to the bottom and click "I agree."

- author unknown -