Debug Logger with ANSI Colors and Precise Timing

This project provides a lightweight debug logging library for C applications, featuring:

• Color-coded log levels with ANSI escape sequences.
• High-resolution timing for precise debugging.
• Cross-platform support for Windows (≥ 10), Linux, and macOS.
• Flexible formatting, including multiline and aligned log messages.
• Future-proof design for easy customization and enhancements.

Table of Contents

• Installation
• Compilation
• Usage
• Log Output Format
• Project Structure
• Customization
• Future Improvements

Installation

Clone the repository:

git clone https://github.com/ljgonzalez1/C-debug-prints
cd C-debug-prints

Compilation

Compile the example using the provided Makefile:

This generates a binary named test_debug_binary in the root directory.

Run the example:

./test_debug_binary

Clean the compiled files:

make clean

Usage

Initialization

Initialize debug functionality at the start of your main function:

#include "debug/debug.h"

int main(void) {
    init_debug();
    // ... your code
}

Logging Messages

Use the message function to print logs with specific severity levels:

message(DEBUG_INFO, "This is an informational message", "Optional detail");
message(DEBUG_WARN, "This is a warning", "Additional context");
message(DEBUG_ERROR, "An error occurred", "Detailed description");

Time: Elapsed since program start, shown with exactly 6 decimal places.

Log Level: Types are formatted uniformly:

• DEBUG: (cyan)
• INFO : (green)
• WARN : (yellow)
• ERR : (red)
• FATAL: (magenta)

Messages with details show additional lines aligned precisely under the main message, with details printed in italics.

Code Structure

C-debug-prints
├── LICENSE
├── Makefile
├── README.md
└── src
    ├── debug
    │   ├── colors.h     # ANSI colors and formatting
    │   ├── debug.c      # Core debugging functionality
    │   ├── debug.h      # Debugging interface
    │   ├── printer.c    # Printing logic
    │   ├── printer.h    # Print-related declarations
    │   ├── timer.c      # Cross-platform high-resolution timer
    │   └── timer.h      # Timer interface
    └── main.c           # Example usage

Customization

Changing Colors

Modify ANSI definitions in src/debug/colors.h:

#define ANSI_FG_RED       "\033[31m"
#define ANSI_FG_GREEN     "\033[32m"
#define ANSI_FG_YELLOW    "\033[33m"
#define ANSI_FG_BLUE      "\033[34m"
#define ANSI_FG_MAGENTA  "\033[35m"
#define ANSI_FG_CYAN     "\033[36m"
#define ANSI_FG_WHITE    "\033[37m"

Adjusting Formatting

Customize the alignment, spacing, and formatting in src/debug/printer.c. The function print_debug manages log formatting, including prefixes and alignment.

Future Improvements

• Configurable log levels at runtime.
• Output logs to file or streams.
• Thread-safe implementation for multithreaded programs.
• Optional configuration via environment variables or external config files.

License

This project is licensed under the MIT License. See LICENSE for details.