Datalight faster than 4.2, why?

[aglew at ccvaxa.UUCP]

>/* Written  3:49 pm  May 28, 1986 by chris at umcp-cs.UUCP */
>In article <2786 at utcsri.UUCP> greg at utcsri.UUCP (Gregory Smith) writes:
>>... having a separate pre-processor will slow the compiler down
>>considerably, but is it an advantage?????? It only gives you a
>>certain amount of convenience in implementing the compiler.
>
>Not so!  There is another advantage.  The preprocessor can be used
>alone, or in combination with programs other than the C compiler.
>This is the `software tools' philosophy: if you can make a clean
>conceptual break in a task, make that break programmatically; you
>then have a set of tools that may be useful in surprising ways.

Unfortunately, there is no longer a clean conceptual break between
the C pre-processor and the compiler: `sizeof' can be used in
pre-processor constant-expressions.

I very much doubt that a cpp that parses enough of C to understand
sizeof will be useful in non-C-related applications.


Andy "Krazy" Glew. Gould CSD-Urbana.    USEnet:  ihnp4!uiucdcs!ccvaxa!aglew
1101 E. University, Urbana, IL 61801    ARPAnet: aglew at gswd-vms