error: expected unqualified-id before numeric constant

[Lost User]

You have declared font_vga_8x8 as a variable which is a structure of type fbcon_font_desc. You then try to redeclare it as a new struct type, initialised with values rather than declarations. Your code should be:

struct fbcon_font_desc {
int index ; // idx;
char *name;
int width, height;
unsigned char *data; // font data
int pref;
} font_vga_8x8 = // this is the name of the actual structure variable
{
VGA8x8_IDX,
"VGA8x8",
8,
8,
fontdata_8x8,
0
};

[Jochen Arndt]

You are mixing the declaration syntax for structs and typedefs and forgot to specify a variable name for the instance of your structure. See Struct declaration - cppreference.com[^], Typedef declaration - cppreference.com[^] and Struct and union initialization - cppreference.com[^]. Either use

struct fbcon_font_desc {
int index ; // idx;
char *name;
int width, height;
unsigned char *data; // font data
int pref;
};
// Type is struct fbcon_font_desc
struct fbcon_font_desc font_vga_8x8 = { /* init members here */ };

or

typedef struct {
int index ; // idx;
char *name;
int width, height;
unsigned char *data; // font data
int pref;
} fbcon_font_desc;
// Type is fbcon_font_desc
fbcon_font_desc font_vga_8x8 = { /* init members here */ };

or use the solution provided by Richard.

[Vaclav_]

I do not want to sound as smart aleck , but came up with "problem" definition , not particularly solution before I went to sleep last night. You guys are terrific helpers, I really appreciate this forum staff. What a difference from others forum!

[Vaclav_]

I am back. Sorry. The solution worked, but now I am back with "multiple definitions". That is where I started before getting into the mess with "struct". I have the usual #ifndef #define #endif "scaffolding" at the header file and it is #include only once anyway. I did add another #ifndef #define #endif around the "struct" but it did not help. The "worst" part is - the compiler error does not really tell me where is the multiple definition in the "main()". Or maybe I really do not know how to interpret the error in main().

#ifndef DEFINITION_
#define DEFINITION_

struct fbcon_font_desc {
int idx;
char *name;
int width, height;
unsigned char *data; // font data
int pref;
}font_vga_8x8 = // test comment
{
VGA8x8_IDX, // test comment
"VGA8x8",
8,
8,
fontdata_8x8,
0
};
#endif

There is part of the compiler output

Thread model: posix
gcc version 5.4.0 20160609 (Ubuntu/Linaro 5.4.0-6ubuntu1~16.04.9)
COMPILER_PATH=/usr/lib/gcc-cross/arm-linux-gnueabihf/5/:/usr/lib/gcc-cross/arm-linux-gnueabihf/5/:/usr/lib/gcc-cross/arm-linux-gnueabihf/:/usr/lib/gcc-cross/arm-linux-gnueabihf/5/:/usr/lib/gcc-cross/arm-linux-gnueabihf/:/usr/lib/gcc-cross/arm-linux-gnueabihf/5/../../../../arm-linux-gnueabihf/bin/
LIBRARY_PATH=/usr/lib/gcc-cross/arm-linux-gnueabihf/5/:/usr/lib/gcc-cross/arm-linux-gnueabihf/5/../../../../arm-linux-gnueabihf/lib/../lib/:/lib/../lib/:/usr/lib/../lib/:/usr/lib/gcc-cross/arm-linux-gnueabihf/5/../../../../arm-linux-gnueabihf/lib/:/lib/:/usr/lib/
COLLECT_GCC_OPTIONS='-v' '-o' 'VNA_2' '-shared-libgcc' '-march=armv7-a' '-mfloat-abi=hard' '-mfpu=vfpv3-d16' '-mthumb' '-mtls-dialect=gnu'
/usr/lib/gcc-cross/arm-linux-gnueabihf/5/collect2 -plugin /usr/lib/gcc-cross/arm-linux-gnueabihf/5/liblto_plugin.so -plugin-opt=/usr/lib/gcc-cross/arm-linux-gnueabihf/5/lto-wrapper -plugin-opt=-fresolution=/tmp/ccC7xvZK.res -plugin-opt=-pass-through=-lgcc_s -plugin-opt=-pass-through=-lgcc -plugin-opt=-pass-through=-lc -plugin-opt=-pass-through=-lgcc_s -plugin-opt=-pass-through=-lgcc --sysroot=/ --build-id --eh-frame-hdr -dynamic-linker /lib/ld-linux-armhf.so.3 -X --hash-style=gnu --as-needed -m armelf_linux_eabi -z relro -o VNA_2 /usr/lib/gcc-cross/arm-linux-gnueabihf/5/../../../../arm-linux-gnueabihf/lib/../lib/crt1.o /usr/lib/gcc-cross/arm-linux-gnueabihf/5/../../../../arm-linux-gnueabihf/lib/../lib/crti.o /usr/lib/gcc-cross/arm-linux-gnueabi

[Lost User]

This is a linker error, not a compiler error. You have a definition of font_vga_8x8 in more than one source module. So although that looks OK to the compiler, when you link the object modules together the linker gets confused.

[Vaclav_]

Thanks. Good call, I tend to forget to disable unused source files! Back to drawing board.

[Vaclav_]

Well - I did try to cheat and renamed the offending variable. Still same error - multiple definitions. Then I recall something about initializing struct as globals or something to that matter. So I changed the struct to "static " and the error went away. Why? The #include file is global - not part of the class.

[Lost User]

The problem is not specific to struct types, but any variable. If a variable has global scope, i.e. it is declared outside of any method, then it is externally defined by default. That means its name is known to the linker. If it is declared static then it is internal to the compilation unit that contains it, and its name will not be visible to the linker. So if the linker encounters multiple variables with the same name it cannot decide how to link them correctly.

[Vaclav_]

Ok, so if I put the struct declaration / definition as class variable it should work without being declared as static , right? Would that defeat the purpose of #include in general? This "font definitions" came from other application, not my original code.

[Lost User]

Sorry those three statements don't make much sense. The general way of handling situations like yours is to have the definition of the struct in a header file that multiple source modules can then include. Each source module would then declare an instance of the struct in what ever location they required, but not as a global. Having said that, there may be cases where declaring such a variable as global is the right thing to do, as its contents are shared between different modules. Only you (the application designer) can decide which is the right option.