GLibQuark

A GQuark is a non-zero integer which uniquely identifies a particular string.

A GQuark value of zero is associated to NULL.

Given either the string or the GQuark identifier it is possible to retrieve the other.

Quarks are used for both datasets and keyed data lists.

To create a new quark from a string, use g_quark_from_string() or g_quark_from_static_string().

To find the string corresponding to a given GQuark, use g_quark_to_string().

To find the GQuark corresponding to a given string, use g_quark_try_string().

Another use for the string pool maintained for the quark functions is string interning, using g_intern_string() or g_intern_static_string(). An interned string is a canonical representation for a string. One important advantage of interned strings is that they can be compared for equality by a simple pointer comparison, rather than using strcmp().