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From: ir10@sdcc6.ucsd.EDU (Donald R. Fredkin)
Newsgroups: comp.bugs.4bsd,comp.lang.fortran
Subject: Re: f77 bug: 4.3bsd UNIX f77 improperly handles character constants
Message-ID: <3321@sdcc6.ucsd.EDU>
Date: Fri, 4-Sep-87 11:29:42 EDT
Article-I.D.: sdcc6.3321
Posted: Fri Sep  4 11:29:42 1987
Date-Received: Sat, 5-Sep-87 18:06:10 EDT
References: <2624@dalcs.UUCP>
Reply-To: drf%ra@sdcsvax.ucsd.edu (Donald R. Fredkin)
Organization: University of California, San Diego
Lines: 16
Keywords: variable length character constants f77
Xref: mnetor comp.bugs.4bsd:532 comp.lang.fortran:205

The ANSI standard (X3.9-1978) for FORTRAN states in section 8.4.2
(CHARACTER Type-Statement) that "An entity declared in a CHARACTER
statement must have a length specification that is an integer
constant expression, unless that entity is ... a character constant
that has a symbolic name...  If a character constant that has a
symbolic name has a len of (*) declared, the constant assumes the
length of its corresponding constant expression in a PARAMETER
statement."

So the f77 compiler in 4.3BSD (on VAX's) is non-conforming.  The
bug does not occur, according to my tests, on SUN workstations or
on the Celerity 1260.
-- 

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