Newsgroups: comp.lang.c
Path: utzoo!henry
From: henry@utzoo.uucp (Henry Spencer)
Subject: Re: Re: Referencing through a null pointer
Message-ID: <1988May6.165741.633@utzoo.uucp>
Organization: U of Toronto Zoology
References: <4729@cup.portal.com>, <11199@mimsy.UUCP> <1988Apr25.230435.3434@utzoo.uucp>, <3803@diku.dk>
Date: Fri, 6 May 88 16:57:41 GMT

> >Actually, no.  The a.out header was not part of the actual core image, so
> >the first instruction of the program was first;
> 
> Was this always so?

Perhaps not.  It can't be a coincidence that the magic number is a branch
around the rest of the header.  This may have been aimed at things like
standalone diagnostics rather than normal Unix programs, though.  I know
that it wasn't in the core image in V7 or V6, and I'm fairly sure that it
wasn't in V5, but that's as far back as my experience goes.  Dennis?
-- 
NASA is to spaceflight as            |  Henry Spencer @ U of Toronto Zoology
the Post Office is to mail.          | {ihnp4,decvax,uunet!mnetor}!utzoo!henry