Xref: utzoo comp.sources.d:2097 comp.os.vms:6027 comp.lang.c:10104
Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!sdrc!scjones
From: scjones@sdrc.UUCP (Larry Jones)
Newsgroups: comp.sources.d,comp.os.vms,comp.lang.c
Subject: Re: flex
Summary: FILE *stuff=stdin; not valid
Keywords: flex on VMS
Message-ID: <278@sdrc.UUCP>
Date: 12 May 88 00:03:46 GMT
References: <690@naucse.UUCP>
Organization: Structural Dynamics Research Corp., Cincinnati
Lines: 22

In article <690@naucse.UUCP>, jdc@naucse.UUCP (John Campbell) writes:
> The 'C' question:
>   Flex has the following global line:
> 
>      FILE *yyin=stdin, *yyout=stdout;
> 
>   which does not work at compile time on VMS.  In other words, it appears
>   the compiler does not treat stdin as a constant--it's value is known only
>   at run-time.  (VMS stdio.h says "extern noshare FILE *stdin;.) To work 

According to the latest ANSI draft (and many of the previous ones), stdin and
friends are simply expressions and not necessarily constant expressions.  Thus,
they may not be used portably to initialize objects with static storage
duration.  So, the compiler's OK, flex is not maximally portable (as you
found out).

----
Larry Jones                         UUCP: ...!sdrc!scjones
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