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From: oster@dewey.soe.berkeley.edu (David Phillip Oster)
Newsgroups: comp.lang.forth
Subject: Re: regular vs. user variables
Message-ID: <19892@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU>
Date: Tue, 28-Jul-87 18:08:57 EDT
Article-I.D.: ucbvax.19892
Posted: Tue Jul 28 18:08:57 1987
Date-Received: Thu, 30-Jul-87 03:00:59 EDT
References: <399@louie.udel.EDU>
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Reply-To: oster@dewey.soe.berkeley.edu.UUCP (David Phillip Oster)
Organization: School of Education, UC-Berkeley
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In article <399@louie.udel.EDU> thomson@udel.EDU (Richard Thomson) writes:
>What's the difference between normal variables and user variables?  Why are user
>variables limited to a certain number? (about 60, I think?)  Does this have
>something to do with the run-time kernel of my FORTH?

User variables are really fields in a record pointed to by a "user pointer".
Since they are fields in a record, the number of them is limited by the
size you ALLOT to hold the records.

They are for multi-tasking. It is common for each forth task to have its
own input port (access to the keyboard) and output port, (window). So, key
and emit are often indirected through the user pointer.

They are not part of the standard, so your mileage may vary.


--- David Phillip Oster            --My Good News: "I'm a perfectionist."
Arpa: oster@dewey.soe.berkeley.edu --My Bad News: "I don't charge by the hour."
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