Format
#include "Filename"#include <Filename>
Args
"Filename": The path to the filename to include, from the current directory.<Filename>: The path inside the BYOND lib directory.
The #include statement causes the compiler to process another file before continuing in the current source file.
If a file is included multiple times, only the first occurrence will be processed. That is a convenient addition to the standard C preprocessor, which DM otherwise emulates quite closely. If you want the file to be included more than once, put the line #pragma multiple somewhere in the file.
The file <stddef.dm> is automatically included before all other source code. You can view the contents of that file by creating a file with that name in Dream Maker.
#include "test.dm" // checks ./test.dm
#include <test.dm> // checks lib-path/test.dmThe BYOND lib directory is called "lib" and is located in the BYOND system directory (typically "Program FilesByondlib"). If the file is not found there, it also looks in the user lib directory, which would typically be "...Byonduser*login-name*lib".
Note that the compiler interface allows you to include files graphically by simply clicking the checkbox next to the file. This creates an include statement for you in the .dme project environment file. The only time you would still want to manually include files is when you need to ensure a certain order of processing. For example, if file "MyCode.dm" overrides procedure definitions of an object defined in "LibCode.dm", you should include "LibCode.dm" at the top of "MyCode.dm". Most other DM code is independent of order, but overriding procedure definitions is not. The compiler will warn you in such cases if you forget.
Another case in which you should manually include files is if you are writing a library to be used by other programmers. Since the .dme file is not distributed with a library, all necessary inclusions must be made in the .dm files.