gawk: Debugging Summary

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1 14.6 Summary
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1    * Programs rarely work correctly the first time.  Finding bugs is
1      called debugging, and a program that helps you find bugs is a
1      debugger.  'gawk' has a built-in debugger that works very similarly
1      to the GNU Debugger, GDB.
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1    * Debuggers let you step through your program one statement at a
1      time, examine and change variable and array values, and do a number
1      of other things that let you understand what your program is
1      actually doing (as opposed to what it is supposed to do).
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1    * Like most debuggers, the 'gawk' debugger works in terms of stack
1      frames, and lets you set both breakpoints (stop at a point in the
1      code) and watchpoints (stop when a data value changes).
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1    * The debugger command set is fairly complete, providing control over
1      breakpoints, execution, viewing and changing data, working with the
1      stack, getting information, and other tasks.
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1    * If the GNU Readline library is available when 'gawk' is compiled,
1      it is used by the debugger to provide command-line history and
1      editing.
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1    * Usually, the debugger does not not affect the program being
1      debugged, but occasionally it can.
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