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From: boyne@hplvli.HP.COM (Art Boyne)
Newsgroups: comp.lang.c
Subject: Re: C linkage query
Message-ID: <340012@hplvli.HP.COM>
Date: 12 Jun 89 14:49:29 GMT
References: <9449@alice.UUCP>
Organization: Loveland Inst. Div
Lines: 21

ark@alice.UUCP (Andrew Koenig) asks:
>Does anyone have a C compiler + linker incapable of handling this:
>
>	extern int foo;
>	main() { }
>
>That is: are there any C implementations that turn an
>`extern' declaration for a variable that is never actually
>referenced into a genuine external reference that inhibits
>linking?

Unfortunately, yes.  The old 68000 C cross compiler (64819) for the
original HP 64000 uP development system had this problem.  Fortunately,
the newer Unix-based cross compiler (64902) has this fixed.  Of course,
most people aren't concerned with portability *to* this environment.

(However, both the old and new *assemblers* exhibit this problem - so
I can't just translate my C header files for use in assembler and then
link a partial system.)

Art Boyne, boyne@hplvla.hp.com