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From: seifert@hammer.UUCP (Snoopy)
Newsgroups: net.lang.c
Subject: Re: HARRIS FLAME Re: SHORT vs. INT
Message-ID: <1523@hammer.UUCP>
Date: Wed, 25-Sep-85 12:58:04 EDT
Article-I.D.: hammer.1523
Posted: Wed Sep 25 12:58:04 1985
Date-Received: Sat, 28-Sep-85 05:08:16 EDT
References: <1390@brl-tgr.ARPA> <2778@sun.uucp> <519@lasspvax.UUCP> <274@ccivax.UUCP>
Reply-To: seifert@hammer.UUCP (Snoopy)
Organization: The Daisy Hill Puppy Farm
Lines: 25

In article <274@ccivax.UUCP> rb@ccivax.UUCP (rex ballard) writes:

>A very good example of a case where short than "int" is when communicating
>binary information between two dissimilar processors.  If a 68000 compiler
>consideres int to be 16 bits, and a 68020 compiler treats it as 32 bits,
>packed structures had better be very specific.

I've got a very simple solution for this.  The prototype works.  When
I get it polished up to suitable professional standards I'll post it.
It's amasing how simple the solution actually is.  And thus even more
amasing that noone's done it yet.

>Perhaps it is time to considere standardizing the size of char, long, and
>short.  At least we should have some small "guarenteed size" of unit like
>type "byte", which could always be 8 bits unsigned (or signed- vote on it).

Have fun implementing your 8 bit bytes on machines like the CDC 6x00,
which store charactors in 6 bits.  (That's right, no lower case!  Yucko!)
Besides, there are going to be old compilers in use for a long time.

Snoopy
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