Re: Help restricting args of an intrinsic function

[Mike Stump <mrs at apple dot com>]

On Monday, February 2, 2004, at 04:35 PM, Daniel Jacobowitz wrote:
> If you read Richard's reply, he says that will already work - in C++.  
> In C,
>
>   const int ci = 5;
>   int a1[ci];
>
> will not compile, because ci is not an integral constant-expression.

I know.  But, one of the main reasons why we are introducing builtins 
is to be able to compile code from another compiler, Code Warrior.  We 
are doing this so that users have an easy code migration.  They allow 
it.  Also, telling users that their code doesn't work in C, but works 
in C++ in this one case, is, uhm, pedantic.

Does anyone know why the above isn't supported in C?  Certainly the 
obviousness of it escapes me.  My inclination is to fix the standard, 
not the compiler.

> If Syd is trying to make that work in C/ObjC, as opposed to C++, some
> serious surgery may be involved.

I'm envisioning 6 lines of code.  I can't fathom what could possible 
require major surgery.