pre#defines for system and machine (was: RMS comments to X3J11)

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Organization : California Institute of Technology
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From: jon at oddhack.Caltech.Edu (Jon Leech)
Path: oddhack!jon

In article <556 at omssw2.UUCP> vrs at omssw2.UUCP (Vincent R. Slyngstad) writes:
>I think there is entirely too much emphasis placed on high level symbols
>(like bsd) where low level symbols (like SIGTSTP) are needed.  I often
>see code that reads
>	#ifdef SYSV
>		ioctl(fd, TCGETA, &term);
>	#endif
>when it ought (in my opinion) to read
>	#ifdef TCGETA
>		ioctl(fd, TCGETA, &term);
>	#endif

	Nothing assures the uniqueness of such symbols across implementations.
TCGETA may exist and mean something entirely different on a non-SYSV machine.
This can lead to really obscure bugs.

    -- Jon Leech (jon at csvax.caltech.edu || ...seismo!cit-vax!jon)
    Caltech Computer Science Graphics Group
    __@/