Path: utzoo!mnetor!uunet!mcrware!jejones
From: jejones@mcrware.UUCP (James Jones)
Newsgroups: comp.lang.c
Subject: Re: Does extern "const" allocate storage?
Message-ID: <613@mcrware.UUCP>
Date: 18 Mar 88 16:26:49 GMT
References: <7712@apple.Apple.Com> <3034@haddock.ISC.COM>
Organization: Microware Systems Corp., Des Moines, Ia.
Lines: 12
Summary: can it *really* do that?

In article <3034@haddock.ISC.COM>, karl@haddock.ISC.COM (Karl Heuer) writes:
> Let's assume we're talking about a header file that is shared among multiple
> modules.  If you use "static int const foo=3;" and never take its address, a
> good compiler ought to be able to inline it wherever it's used.

Is this really true?  As nearly as I can tell, "const" doesn't *really* mean
"constant," it means "readonly" (which makes me wonder why the Committee
chose such a highly misleading name for it).  An example the Draft gives is
of a variable that might represent a memory-mapped input port that cannot
be assigned to (though, to be sure, that is declared "const volatile.")

		James Jones