Using dlsym in c++ without extern “C”

Question

I have a system in which I give the user a function prototype and the user has to implement it. Now, I compile this file using g++ and load it dynamically using dlopen and d

Answer 1

Another alternative to extern "C" before each declaration is to use the block-style syntax:

extern "C" {

void my_callback();
int other_functionality( foo * );

}

Often the extern "C" { and closing brace } are wrapped in macros, which are conditional on the __cplusplus built-in macro, so the header can also be used from pure C. This also encapsulates the part you find objectionable.

In any case, I don't see what the big deal is. If the user can write in C++, they should be competent to enclose their C interface function prototypes in extern "C" when the library documentation tells them to.