Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP
Posting-Version: version B 2.10.2 9/18/84; site brl-tgr.ARPA
Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!allegra!mit-eddie!think!harvard!seismo!brl-tgr!tgr!gwyn@BRL.ARPA
From: gwyn@BRL.ARPA (VLD/VMB)
Newsgroups: net.lang.c
Subject: Re:  ANSI C.
Message-ID: <3502@brl-tgr.ARPA>
Date: Fri, 22-Nov-85 14:59:28 EST
Article-I.D.: brl-tgr.3502
Posted: Fri Nov 22 14:59:28 1985
Date-Received: Sun, 24-Nov-85 06:48:24 EST
Sender: news@brl-tgr.ARPA
Lines: 15

difftime() accepts time_t arguments but returns a double.
Its result is expressed in SECONDS, whereas a time_t is not
necessarily expressed in seconds.  There is no portable way
to do simple arithmetic on general time_t values to produce
a time difference in seconds, hence difftime().

gmtime(), like time(), ctime(), and localtime(), takes a
pointer to a time_t because that's what they already do.
These functions have been defined (in UNIX at least) for a
long time (no pun intended).

Really, guys, the X3J11 committee has been doing a very nice
job, much better than "obviously didn't put much thought into
anything related to times".  Seems to me they put more thought
into it than some of their detractors..