Hi I recall that clement told me that returning 1,2 or 3 instead of negative, zero, positive was slow. And I wonder if the primitive got change to the logic clement proposed? Could we not introduce another primitive and use it from the image? compare: string1 with: string2 collated: order "Return 1, 2 or 3, if string1 is <, =, or > string2, with the collating order of characters given by the order array." | len1 len2 c1 c2 | <primitive: 'primitiveCompareString' module: 'MiscPrimitivePlugin'> <var: #string1 declareC: 'unsigned char *string1'> <var: #string2 declareC: 'unsigned char *string2'> <var: #order declareC: 'unsigned char *order'> len1 := string1 size. len2 := string2 size. 1 to: (len1 min: len2) do: [:i | c1 := order at: (string1 basicAt: i) + 1. c2 := order at: (string2 basicAt: i) + 1. c1 = c2 ifFalse: [c1 < c2 ifTrue: [^ 1] ifFalse: [^ 3]]]. len1 = len2 ifTrue: [^ 2]. len1 < len2 ifTrue: [^ 1] ifFalse: [^ 3]. -------------------------------------------- Stéphane Ducasse http://stephane.ducasse.free.fr http://www.synectique.eu / http://www.pharo.org 03 59 35 87 52 Assistant: Julie Jonas FAX 03 59 57 78 50 TEL 03 59 35 86 16 S. Ducasse - Inria 40, avenue Halley, Parc Scientifique de la Haute Borne, Bât.A, Park Plaza Villeneuve d'Ascq 59650 France