I reproduced the problem with the November IA-64 compiler. I can not reproduce the problem with gcc-3. I also can not reproduce the problem with the "2.96" compiler that ships with RHL 7.1 beta-4 (wolverine). Therefore, I believe the problem has already been fixed. http://gcc.gnu.org/cgi-bin/gnatsweb.pl?cmd=view&pr=3002&database=gcc