Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP
Path: utzoo!mnetor!uunet!husc6!hao!ames!ucbcad!ucbvax!ernie.Berkeley.EDU!mjs
From: mjs@ernie.Berkeley.EDU (Marc J. Sabatella)
Newsgroups: comp.lang.c
Subject: Re: Draft ANSI C standard (again)
Message-ID: <21424@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU>
Date: Sat, 24-Oct-87 15:05:15 EST
Article-I.D.: ucbvax.21424
Posted: Sat Oct 24 15:05:15 1987
Date-Received: Mon, 26-Oct-87 03:14:53 EST
References: <9922@brl-adm.ARPA>
Sender: usenet@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU
Reply-To: mjs@ernie.Berkeley.EDU.UUCP (Marc J. Sabatella)
Organization: University of California, Berkeley
Lines: 34
Keywords: Dr. Dobb, ANSI
Summary: here's how, but...

I tired to send mail, but it kept bouncing, so I decided to post directly.
Anyhow, before I tell you how to get the ANSI document, you should be aware of
two things:

1.  much of the basic information USERS of ANSI compilers (not designers) need
to know can be found in the August issue of Dr. Dobb's Journal, which should be
available at your local library.  Not very detailed, but gives you the basics,
and you can get at it immediately.  An older issue of BYTE (Vol. 11, No. 3) has
another semi-detailed account (but it IS older, some things may possibly have
changed since then).
2.  the "official" document has not yet been "ratified", so unless you have
an overwhelming need to see the whole thing NOW, you might prefer to wait until
January, when it is supposed to be accepted.  It should also become readily
available then - it will become a part of the ANSI standards list, and most
library reference sections will have the documents, at least on microfilm.
There may also be minor changes between now and then, so that is another
incentive to wait.

If you still want the real thing ASAP, this is how to do it (in America, anyhow;
you might need to do some fiddling to get it in the U.K. - I don't know if you
can reach our 800 numbers)

To get the document, call 1-800-854-7179 and ask for Global Engineering
Documents (they will transfer your call).  When G.E.D. answers, ask for dpANS
for C.  The standard committee number is X3J11, if they need that.  Then be
prepared to shell out $65, because that's how much it costs (yet another reason
to wait until it shows up in the library - I payed less than that for a largely
conformant ANSI C compiler!). These things usually take 2 - 3 weeks, although
that can vary, of course, especially going abroad.

Good luck...

Marc Sabatella
mjs@ernie.Berkeley.EDU