Weird problem with C compiler under SCO - I can't believe it!

[Henry Spencer]

In article <534 at crdos1.crd.ge.COM> davidsen at crdos1.UUCP (bill davidsen) writes:
>Another thing which was left out of the ANSI standard is some name space
>reserved to the user. That is, some subset of names which they promise
>not to snatch away in the next standard...

Section 4.1.2.1 lists several classes of identifiers that are reserved, and
then flatly states:  "No other identifiers are reserved."  That is, ALL
other identifiers are explicitly promised to be available to the user.
Note also 1.7:  "A conformation implementation may have extensions
(including additional library functions) provided they do not alter the
behavior of any strictly conforming program...", with a footnote:  "This
implies that a conforming implementation reserves no identifiers other
than those explicitly reserved in this Standard."

The classes of reserved identifiers are admittedly annoyingly large, but
the promise to reserve nothing else is of considerable importance.

If by "the next standard" you mean a revised C standard, either the
revision will be upward-compatible or not.  If so, it has to preserve
these promises.  If not, then asking today's standard to make promises
on its behalf is silly.
-- 
"Where is D.D. Harriman now,   |     Henry Spencer at U of Toronto Zoology
when we really *need* him?"    | uunet!attcan!utzoo!henry henry at zoo.toronto.edu