long names in 'C' programs

[Bruce Karsh]

>It's simply an issue of compatibility.  Unless you want to make your users
>suffer unnecessarily, you should introduce new changes gradually, and wait
>for the old ones to die out gracefully, rather than forcing new features
>on the user.

  I agree with this statement, but I don't know how long I have to wait
for the old compilers to go away.  Does somebody want to make a guide-
line for this?  For example, is it reasonable to use a new feature that
is only 2 years old?  4 years old?  8 years old?  16 years old?

  How long do we have to wait?  I guess I think 2 years old is enough.
Maybe 3 if you want to be super cautious.  But I don't think we should
make people's old software hold back progress any longer than that.


-- 
Bruce Karsh                           |
U. Wisc. Dept. Geology and Geophysics |
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