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Path: utzoo!henry
From: henry@utzoo.UUCP (Henry Spencer)
Newsgroups: comp.lang.c
Subject: Re: newlines in string constants
Message-ID: <8791@utzoo.UUCP>
Date: Mon, 19-Oct-87 16:05:30 EDT
Article-I.D.: utzoo.8791
Posted: Mon Oct 19 16:05:30 1987
Date-Received: Mon, 19-Oct-87 16:05:30 EDT
References: <2669@xanth.UUCP> <15262@clyde.ATT.COM>, <2810@xanth.UUCP>
Organization: U of Toronto Zoology
Lines: 22

> ... the responses I received indicated that literal newlines
> in strings are disallowed so the compiler can discover unterminated
> strings early and not see the rest of the program "inside-out".  There
> has GOT to be a better explanation than that.  Yes, the compiler would
> lose its mind if you forgot a " but not any more so than when you forget
> a brace or put a semicolon after a function definition.

No, the string problem is worse, because it's at the lexical level where
intelligent error recovery is harder.  Your program may even look more or
less legal inside-out!

> I can write a pre-processer that allows me to have my multi-line
> strings, but I would like to believe there's a better reason than the
> one above for not allowing them in the language.

How about "it's not C"?  Or, more specifically, to use the sort of wording
that X3J11 would use when rejecting such a pointless triviality:  "new
feature; no operational experience with it; need not convincingly shown;
same effect possible with existing features".
-- 
"Mir" means "peace", as in           |  Henry Spencer @ U of Toronto Zoology
"the war is over; we've won".        | {allegra,ihnp4,decvax,utai}!utzoo!henry