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From: mwm@eris.BERKELEY.EDU (Mike (My watch has windows) Meyer)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga,comp.lang.misc
Subject: Re: Compilers?
Message-ID: <5098@jade.BERKELEY.EDU>
Date: Tue, 15-Sep-87 02:49:44 EDT
Article-I.D.: jade.5098
Posted: Tue Sep 15 02:49:44 1987
Date-Received: Thu, 17-Sep-87 01:01:19 EDT
References: <1708@amiga.amiga.UUCP> <581@sugar.UUCP>
Sender: usenet@jade.BERKELEY.EDU
Reply-To: mwm@eris.BERKELEY.EDU (Mike (My watch has windows) Meyer)
Organization: Missionaria Phonibalonica
Lines: 38
Keywords: compiler languages balls BCPL
Xref: mnetor comp.sys.amiga:8369 comp.lang.misc:662

In article <72@oresoft.UUCP> rick@oresoft.UUCP (Rick Lahrson) writes:
<In article <5073@jade.BERKELEY.EDU> mwm@eris.BERKELEY.EDU (Mike (My watch has windows) Meyer) writes:
<Hmmm.  Maybe I need to learn a little bit about a language before I
<bitch about its implementation. ...  Nawwww. 8-)
<Apparently then, BCPL doesn't distinguish between numeric objects and
<pointers?

Right. BCPL is a language with *balls*. None of this silliness with
types :-). For instance, you can do:

	let func(arg) be		// declaring a function
	$(
		let x, y, z = 1, ? -1	// local variables
		...			// initialization code
		func = func + xx	// arrange to skip over initialization
					// next time; xx is size of the code
		...			// in questoin.
	$)

All variables are a *word*, and they hold a bit pattern. The compiler
doesn't make any distinction above that - pointer to code, pointer to
data, ints, it don't matter. And yes, to add a float to a float, you
have to use #+ instead of +.

Note that someone wrote a program which "implied" the type of
variables, then did type checking on that basis throughout the rest
of the program. All in BCPL, of course.

This is starting to get esoteric. I'll point out that I've only seen a
few languages that do types "right" (BCPL is one, C isn't), and
request that further discussion move to email.

	<mike
--
Come all you rolling minstrels,				Mike Meyer
And together we will try,				mwm@berkeley.edu
To rouse the spirit of the air,				ucbvax!mwm
And move the rolling sky.				mwm@ucbjade.BITNET