There is widespread dissatisfaction with C programs

[Laura Creighton]

Hello gang.

	I got 97 messages the day before yesterday about the book I am
writing.  I got 84 yesterday.  I have 57 so far today.  They are nearly all
from different people.  Boy is there a lot of disatisfaction! The credit page
is going to be full of names!

Replying to this onslought is going to take time.  I am not ignoring all of
you, it is just that it takes me about half an hour to reply to an average
message and I don't have that many hours. Thank you all for yoru time.

For those of you who haven't written me yet but intend to:

	I have all the replies about PROGRAMMING STYLE that I can handle.
I am going to advocate K&R style of braces, adn will follow the Indian Hill
Style Sheet pretty closely. 

	The Elements of Programming Style is a great book.  This is not quite
what I intend to write, however. 

	If you think that a ``slightly unportable'' program that dereferences
null pointers is like a ``slightly inefficeint'' program that should use
registers better, then we are not working in the same arena of ideas. I 
think that giving people such a program is like giving them an automobile
that is unsafe to drive on the freeway, and not telling them of the fact.

	If you have worked on a PR1ME, then you have well and truly suffered 
and my hat is off to you.

-- 
Help beutify the world. I am writing a book called *How To Write Portable C
Programs*.  Send me anything that you would like to find in such a book when
it appears in your bookstores. Get your name mentioned in the credits. 

Laura Creighton		
sun!l5!laura		(that is ell-five, not fifteen)
l5!laura at lll-crg.arpa