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From: jl57+@andrew.cmu.edu (Jay Laefer)
Newsgroups: comp.lang.c
Subject: BSD bzero() & NULL
Message-ID: <AbEJW8e00VQfE4N0I3@andrew.cmu.edu>
Date: 14 Nov 90 14:45:28 GMT
Organization: Computer Science, Carnegie Mellon, Pittsburgh, PA
Lines: 24

[I'm asking the following in the context of ANSI C.]

I'm confused on an issue regargding NULL and the BSD function bzero().

I realize that the following assignments are equal:

char *fred;

fred = 0;
fred = (char *)NULL;

because the compiler is responsible for translating the zero bit pattern
into its internal representation of NULL.

But, given that bzero() directly fills an area with zeros, can I assume
that the following is equivalent to the above?

bzero(fred, sizeof (char *))

My gut reaction is no because this zeros out a block of memory and I'm
not guaranteed that the computer's internal representation of NULL is a
zero bit pattern.

Answers, anyone?