Installing extra debugging symbols to use with printers

[Ralf Habacker]

Am 12.07.21 um 16:50 schrieb Da Viper:
> **Using Debugging symbols or not**
> 
> **Current Situation**
> 
> Some types in QT does not have any information when it is printed out,
> take for example `QFile`
> 
> we create a QFile like below
> ```c++
>     QFile file("/a/path/to/some/place");
> ```
> if try to print this is `GDB` it returns
> ```gdb
>     (gdb) p file
>     $1 = <incomplete type>
> ```
> 
> There are two ways which this problem can be solved i either read the
> important variables directly from the memory location or i install
> debugging symbols



> I am not sure which do, so i ask for some input.
> 
> **Why not to use**
> 
> - currently i have not seen any pretty printer that requires you to
> install debugging symbols in order to use it. (Qt creator or Microsoft
> visual studio or existing qt printers do not)
> - some distros do not have debugging symbols for qt in its repositories,
> e.g arch linux, manjaro but requires you to add another repo
> - the debugging process becomes slower than when the symbols are added
> (core-dbgsym for console, gui-dbgsym for gui, charts etc this gets
> slower the more you add)
> 
This looks better, but probably requires more effort to implement -
would there be enough time available for this within this GSOC project ?
> **Why to use**
> 
> - you can be able to access internal variables with ease
> - you can be sure the structure would be the same if there is a new
> version (although qt does not change often but some times do if there is
> a major version)
> - the structure is the same irrespective of the operating system or
> architecture

this would require the pretty printer to notify the user that something
is missing if debug symbols are not present.

Ralf