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From: barmar@mit-eddie.UUCP (Barry Margolin)
Newsgroups: net.lang
Subject: Self-modifying code
Message-ID: <1096@mit-eddie.UUCP>
Date: Thu, 29-Dec-83 01:14:43 EST
Article-I.D.: mit-eddi.1096
Posted: Thu Dec 29 01:14:43 1983
Date-Received: Fri, 30-Dec-83 00:42:57 EST
References: sdccsu3.1420 <2656@yale-com.UUCP>
Organization: MIT, Cambridge, MA
Lines: 17

Most decent programming languages provide no way to create
self-modifying code.  The only high-level language that I know of that
even has this concept is COBOL, and I think that it was removed in the
infamous COBOL-80 standard; also, any particular implementation might
choose not to implement this as self-modifying code.  Only in assembler
can you use self-modifying code and KNOW that you are actually gaining
in performance by it, but who programs in assembler these days?

Hmm, I just thought of a way to do self-modifying code in a very
high-level language: interpreted Lisp.  You can easily find the list
structure that is the definition of the current function and splice into
it.  However, if efficiency is what you are after then you will have to
compile your program, and then it stops working.
-- 
			Barry Margolin
			ARPA: barmar@MIT-Multics
			UUCP: ..!genrad!mit-eddie!barmar