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Posting-Version: version B 2.10.2 9/18/84; site watmath.UUCP
Path: utzoo!watmath!kpmartin
From: kpmartin@watmath.UUCP (Kevin Martin)
Newsgroups: net.lang.c
Subject: Other 'significant' blanks
Message-ID: <10246@watmath.UUCP>
Date: Sun, 9-Dec-84 10:43:16 EST
Article-I.D.: watmath.10246
Posted: Sun Dec  9 10:43:16 1984
Date-Received: Mon, 10-Dec-84 02:31:09 EST
Distribution: net
Organization: U of Waterloo, Ontario
Lines: 14

Should a compiler allow blanks between the 'op' and the '=' in an
'op=' operation? e.g. should
   a | = 4;
be legal?
What about other multi-character operators (like ++)? In this case,
blanks are to be used to prevent ambiguity, i.e.
 a - -- b    and     a -- - b    are both un-ambiguous. But if a blank
is allowed between the two '-'s, these expressions both mean the same
things (plural).

There seems to be no good reason to allow such a blank, and for certain
operators (such as --) allowing a blank would create (more) ambiguity.
Perhaps the compiler which allows such blanks should just be called buggy.
                      Kevin Martin, UofW Software Development Group