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Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!rutgers!dayton!joe
From: joe@dayton.UUCP
Newsgroups: comp.os.minix
Subject: Re: Minix and compiler models
Message-ID: <385@dayton.UUCP>
Date: Fri, 6-Feb-87 10:27:08 EST
Article-I.D.: dayton.385
Posted: Fri Feb  6 10:27:08 1987
Date-Received: Sun, 8-Feb-87 01:17:29 EST
References: <966@ulowell.cs.ulowell.edu> <1565@cit-vax.Caltech.Edu> <500@bobkat.UUCP> <3021@gitpyr.gatech.EDU> <383@dayton.UUCP>
Reply-To: joe@dayton.UUCP (Joseph P. Larson)
Organization: Dayton-Hudson Dept. Store Co.
Lines: 34

In article <383@dayton.UUCP> joe@dayton.UUCP (Joseph P. Larson) writes:
>In article <3021@gitpyr.gatech.EDU> thomps@gitpyr.gatech.EDU (Ken Thompson) writes:
>>with data starting at the bottom and growing up and the stack at the top
>>and growing down (I think. I don't have the book handy as I write this)
>
>I always thought stacks grew up.  I think (and hope!) that you've got the
>two reversed!  ("Where, or where have the standards gone?  Where, oh where
>may they be?")


Okay!  I have gotten a fair amount of mail about this.  And so far,
*everyone* has agreed with me but didn't know it.  So I guess it's time
to discuss terminology...

Per my old instructors and several co-workers, stacks grew up.  That is,
they start in high memory and grow towards zero.

Why is this growing up?  Because when you picture a stack, you but the
low-order addresses near the top of the page.  You highest address is
at the bottom of the page of paper.  Thus, although you are moving towards
the low-order addresses, it was discussed as moving up.

Okay.  So it sounds backwards.  But this is the terminology we all used.
If this is different from what y'all used, that's fine.  I intend to
see what my textbooks used when I get home tonight and will post a note
telling people how I got the egg off if it doesn't correspond to this
set of terminology.  But don't everyone send me mail telling me they
think it's backwards.  (If you want to tell me that it's NOT backwards,
I won't mind, of course).  -Joe

-- 
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