Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!pdn!oz!alan
From: alan@oz.nm.paradyne.com (Alan Lovejoy)
Newsgroups: comp.lang.modula2
Subject: Re: type conversion question
Message-ID: <6197@pdn.paradyne.com>
Date: 17 Jun 89 05:50:10 GMT
References: <14226@watdragon.waterloo.edu< <7465@xenna.Encore.COM> <6187@pdn.paradyne.com> <985@maestro.htsa.aha.nl>
Sender: news@pdn.paradyne.com
Reply-To: alan@oz.paradyne.com (Alan Lovejoy)
Organization: AT&T Paradyne, Largo, Florida
Lines: 31

In article <985@maestro.htsa.aha.nl< fransvo@htsa.UUCP (Frans van Otten) writes:
<Niklaus Wirth writes (in pim3, the report, chapter 6.6):
<=6.6. Set types
<=
<=A set type defined as SET OF T comprises all sets of values of its
<=base type T.  This must be a subrange of the integers between 0 and
<=N-1, or a (subrange of an) enumeration type with at most N values,
<=where N is a small constant determined by the implementation, usually
<=the computer's wordsize or a small multiple thereof.
<=
<=$ SetType = SET OF type
<=
<=The standard type BITSET is defined as follows, where W is a constant
<=defined by the implementation, usually the wordsize of the computer.
<=
<=    BITSET = SET OF [0 .. W-1]

Like I said: "N is a small constant DETERMINED BY THE IMPLEMENTATION, usually
the computer's wordsize OR A SMALL MULTIPLE THEREOF."  So the fact that a 
compiler supports SET OF CHAR does not make it nonstandard, because 256
is a small multiple of 32, namely 8.  And also because the maximum size
is ultimately TO BE DETERMINED BY THE IMPLEMENTATION.  Compilers which
implement small maximum set sizes do so solely at the whim of the implementors.
They are not forced to do this in order to conform to the standard.  And I
am not forced to purchase such compilers--and I will refuse to do so.


Alan Lovejoy; alan@pdn; 813-530-2211; AT&T Paradyne: 8550 Ulmerton, Largo, FL.
Disclaimer: I do not speak for AT&T Paradyne.  They do not speak for me. 
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