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ZBasic Language Reference
77
ZX Microcontroller Family
Function Factorial(ByVal val as Integer) As Integer
If (val > 1) Then
Factorial = Factorial(val - 1) * val
Else
Factorial = 1
End If
End Function
Although it may look confusing at first, the logic is fairly simple. The idea is based on the fact that the
value of N factorial is equal to N times the factorial of (N-1). That logic is directly expressed in the second
line of code. Note that the identifier Factorial is used in two distinctly different ways in the second line
of the function. On the left side of the equal sign, the identifier Factorial refers to the return value
variable while that on the right side of the equal sign is a recursive invocation of the Factorial function
itself. The compiler is able to distinguish the two uses by the presence of parentheses following the
name. Since the return value variable can never be an array, the two types of references are easily
distinguishable.
The negative aspect of recursion is that it can consume a large amount of stack space. Each time a
function or subroutine invocation is performed, the processor allocates additional stack space. The extra
space is used to hold some tracking information to allow the processor to return to executing the code
that immediately follows the invocation. Also, stack space is required for any parameters that are passed
to the subroutine/function and for any variables that are defined inside the subroutine/function. Lastly, in
the case of a function only, stack space is required to hold the return value from the function. Clearly,
Factorial(10000) would require more stack space than is available even if all the RAM were
dedicated to the stack.
BasicX Compatibility Note
The BasicX compiler does not allow direct recursive invocation of
a function but the BasicX mode of the ZBasic compiler does.
3.20 Using Default Parameter Values in Subroutines and Functions
ZBasic supports the designation of default values for parameters to subroutines and functions. This
saves time when typing statements and makes the code easier to read when a particular routine is
usually invoked with one or more parameters having the same constant value. Specification of the
default value is done by adding an equal sign and a constant expression following the type specification
of the formal parameter in the routine definition as illustrated in the example below. In the first call to the
subroutine foo, the second parameter is omitted so the compiler automatically adds the specified default
value for the second parameter.
Sub Main()
Call foo(3)
Call foo(3, 5)
End Sub
Sub foo(ByVal size as Byte, ByVal cnt as Byte = 1)
End Sub
If any parameter has a default value specified, all parameters following that parameter must also have a
default value. Also, only parameters that are passed ByVal may have a default value. Some parameter
types, like arrays and structures for example, are always passed ByRef even if they are defined as ByVal
and therefore cannot have a default value specification.
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