USAGE
  printf(fmt, ...);
    string fmt;

  string s;
  s = sprintf(fmt, ...);
    string fmt;

Most of the characters in the format string (FMT) get passed straight
through to the output (ie: printed or put in the return string), to
format the arguments into the string it's nessasary to include an
argument format string (AFS) in the FMT.  An AFS is a series of
characters starting with a percent sign "%" and terminated with a
argument type specifier.  To include a "%" sign in the output, it is
nessasary to include a double percent sign "%%".

Valid argument type specifiers are:
  "s" : the argument is a string.
  "d" : the argument is an integer to be included in decimal
        representation.
  "i" : same as "d".
  "o" : the argument is an integer to be included in octal
        representation.
  "x" : the argument is an integer to be included in hexidecimal
        representation.
  "X" : as "x" except letters are capitalised.
   e,E,f,F,g,G like in c.
  "O" : the argument is an LPC datatype to be printed in an arbituary
        format, this is for debugging purposes.  If the argument is an
        object then the function object_name() on the master object
        is called with the object as a parameter, the string returned
        is included in brackets at the end of object file name.  If 
        0 is returned then nothing is appended after the file name.

Between the percent sign and the argument type specifier in the AFS, the
following modifiers can be included to specify the formatting
information.  Order is not important unless otherwise specified.  "n" is
used to specify a integer, which can be a "*" in which case the next argument
is used as the number.

Modifiers:
   n    specifys the field size, if prepended with a zero then the pad
        string is set to "0".
  "."n  specifies the presision, for simple (not columns or tables)
        strings specifies the truncation length.
  ":"n  n specifies the fs _and_ the presision, if n is prepended by a zero
        then the pad string is set to "0".
  "'X'" the pad string is set to the char(s) between the single quotes,
        if the field size is also prepended with a zero then which ever
        is specified last will overrule.
        NOTE:  to include "'" in the pad string, you must use "\\'"
        (as the backslash has to be escaped past the interpreter),
        similarly, to include "\" requires "\\\\".
  " "   pad positive integers with a space.
  "+"   pad positive integers with a plus sign.
  "-"   left adjusted within field size.
        NB: std (s)printf() defaults to right justification, which is
            unnatural in the context of a mainly string based language
            but has been retained for "compatability" ;)
  "|"   centered within field size.
  "="   column mode.  Ignored unless the argument type specifier is s.
        Field size must be specified, if presision is specified then it
        specifies the width for the string to be wordwrapped in, if not
        then the field size is.  The field size specifies the width of
        the column.
  "#"   table mode.  Ignored unless the argument type specifier is s.
        Field size must be specified, if presision is specified then it
        specifys the number of columns in the table, otherwise the
        number is "optimally" generated.  Table mode is passed a list
        of slash-n separated 'words' which are put in a format similar
        to that of ls.
  "@"   the argument is an array.  the corresponding AFS (minus all
        "@") is applyed to each element of the array.