How to format strings using printf() to get equal length in the output?

Question

I have two functions, one which produces messages like Starting initialization... and another which checks return codes and outputs \"Ok\", \

Answer 1

printf allows formatting with width specifiers. e.g.

printf( "%-30s %s\n", "Starting initialization...", "Ok." );

You would use a negative width specifier to indicate left-justification because the default is to use right-justification.