Repeat function within itself - lua

Question

Here is a sample code:
local function name()
startingAction()
if trigger() then
endingAction()
return true
else
resetAction()
startingAction()
if trigger() then
endingAction()
return true
else
resetAction()
startingAction()
if trigger() then
endingAction()
return true
else
return false
end
end
end
Basically its a function that does something, but if in between it fails to do it, I would like to repeat this function by prefixing it with another action. The sample is 3 levels deep, but I would like to be able to control number of repeats.
Any suggestions?

Answer 1

You could use a basic while loop for this:
local MAX_RETRIES = 3
local
function name ()
local tries_remaining = MAX_RETRIES
while tries_remaining > 0 do
startingAction()
if trigger() then
endingAction()
return true
end
-- Implies else due to early return above.
resetAction()
tries_remaining = tries_remaining - 1
end
return false
end
If getting rid of the last resetAction call is necessary then you can modify the whole loop a little bit, although it is less readable and not-so-standardized:
local
function name2 ()
local tries_remaining = MAX_RETRIES
while true do
startingAction()
if trigger() then
endingAction()
return true
end
if tries_remaining > 0 then
resetAction()
tries_remaining = tries_remaining - 1
else
return false
end
end
end
Of course you can also do it with e.g. numeric for, labels or nice recursive calls. I'll leave these cases to you.
In general I encourage you to read Lua Reference Manual - 3.3.4 - Control Structures ff.