Question 1

How does Binstruct compare to Go's standard encoding/binary package?

Accepted Answer

Binstruct provides a declarative approach with struct tags for easier parsing of complex structures, while encoding/binary requires manual byte-by-byte reading. Binstruct is better for structured formats, but encoding/binary might be simpler for basic, performance-critical tasks.

Question 2

How to handle variable-length fields in Binstruct?

Accepted Answer

Use the `len` tag with field references, like `Data []byte bin:"len:LengthField"`, where LengthField is another struct field holding the size. This allows dynamic parsing based on other parts of the binary data.

Question 3

Does Binstruct support parsing bit fields or packed data?

Accepted Answer

No, Binstruct focuses on byte-aligned data; for bit-level parsing, you need to implement custom methods using the Reader interface or combine it with other libraries for bit manipulation.

Question 4

How to debug parsing errors with Binstruct?

Accepted Answer

Enable debug mode by calling `decoder.SetDebug(true)` to output bytes read, which helps trace where parsing fails, as mentioned in the README's example code.

Question 5

Can I use Binstruct for network packet decoding?

Accepted Answer

Yes, Binstruct is well-suited for network protocols with fixed binary layouts—define structs with tags for packet fields, and use the Reader interface for streaming data from network connections.

Question 6

What's the performance overhead of Binstruct vs hand-written parsers?

Accepted Answer

Binstruct adds some overhead due to reflection and tag processing, so for ultra-high-performance scenarios, hand-written parsing with io.Reader might be faster, but for most use cases, the convenience outweighs the cost.

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