K&R is not the bible

[G. Bogatko]

	There is an awful lot of refering to K&R as if it were a bible of C
syntax.  Now I will admit that It contains an awful lot about what C is, and
that it was authored by the guy that invented the language, but listen
folks, it was written in 1978, and we just can't keep thinking that C begins
and ends with K&R.

	For example, if I call a compiler company and ask them
 if their compiler supports enums and structure passing, I will most likely
 get the answer,

	"Well, that sort of stuff is not K&R, so we don't do it."

Well, it might not be K&R, but it IS legal C. Not only that but it's been
around since 1978.  Listen to the Seventh Edition UNIX Manual (if UNIX C
isn't a benchmark, then what is?)

	Page 277:

			Recent Changes to C

			 November 15, 1978

A few extensions have been made to the C language beyond what is described
in the reference document("The C Programming Language," Kernighan and
Ritchie, Prentice-Hall, 1978)

1. Structure assignment

	Structures may be assigned, passed to functions, and returned by
functions.

2. Enumeration type

	There is a new data type analogous to the scalar types of Pascal.
[continues with a description of enums]

***********************

I've been told, but I haven't personally seen it, that Ritchie brought out a
new version of the reference manual in 1980 that included struct passing and
enums.

You can't tell me that 8 years is not enough time for this kind of change to
get out. (I know, Microsoft 3.0 C does it, and I think also CI, but this
is only recently).

Enough then.  K&R is OLD.  It is NOT the alpha and omega of C. When I want
to see what C is doing NOW, I refer to books that are more contemporary.

***********************

K&R:	"In evalulating a[i], C converts it to *(a+i) immediately"

Therefore, is a[x] the same as x[a]?  It is on UNIX C and AZTEC C. It isn't on
MICROSOFT C.  Try this on your compiler:

#include <stdio.h>
main()
{
static char a[] = "abcdefg";

	putchar(a[3]);
	putchar(3[a]);

	putchar("xyzq1234"[4]);		/* does this work on your compiler? */
	putchar(4["xyzq1234"]);		/* does this? */
					/* they work on UNIX */
}

What is the standard here?

If K&R doesn't mention this kind of thing specifically, does it mean that the
implementations that allow it are wrong?  How about the ones don't allow it.
Are they wrong too?

G. Bogatko