Table of Contents
C preprocessor helpers
VLFeat provides a few C preprocessor macros of general utility. These include stringification (VL_STRINGIFY, VL_XSTRINGIFY) and concatenation (VL_CAT, VL_XCAT) of symbols.
VLFeat state and configuration parameters
VLFeat has some global configuration parameters that can changed. Changing the configuration is thread unsave (Threading). Use vl_set_simd_enabled to toggle the use of a SIMD unit (Intel SSE code), vl_set_alloc_func to change the memory allocation functions, and vl_set_printf_func to change the logging function.
Error handling
Some VLFeat functions signal errors in a way similar to the standard C library. In case of error, a VLFeat function may return an error code directly, or an invalid result (for instance a negative file descriptor or a null pointer). Then vl_get_last_error and vl_get_last_error_message can be used to retrieve further details about the error (these functions should be used right after an error has occurred, before any other VLFeat call).
Memory allocation
VLFeat uses the vl_malloc, vl_realloc, vl_calloc and vl_free functions to allocate memory. Normally these functions are mapped to the underlying standard C library implementations. However vl_set_alloc_func can be used to map them to other implementations. For instance, in MATALB MEX files these functions are mapped to the MATLAB equivalent which has a garbage collection mechanism to cope with interruptions during execution.
Logging
VLFeat uses the macros VL_PRINT and VL_PRINTF to print progress or debug informations. These functions are normally mapped to the printf function of the underlying standard C library. However vl_set_printf_func can be used to map it to a different implementation. For instance, in MATLAB MEX files this function is mapped to mexPrintf. Setting the function to NULL disables logging.
Measuring time
VLFeat provides vl_tic and vl_toc as an easy way of measuring elapsed time.