Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!lll-winken!lll-lcc!ames!mailrus!cornell!uw-beaver!microsoft!w-colinp
From: w-colinp@microsoft.UUCP (Colin Plumb)
Newsgroups: comp.std.c
Subject: Re: External Linkage in dpANS C
Message-ID: <172@microsoft.UUCP>
Date: 4 Jan 89 09:31:23 GMT
References: <1339@vsi1.COM>
Reply-To: w-colinp@microsoft.UUCP (Colin Plumb)
Distribution: comp.std.c, comp.lang.c
Organization: Microsoft Corp., Redmond WA
Lines: 26

In article <1339@vsi1.COM> bitbug@vicom.COM (James Buster) writes:
>I saw mentioned in passing in one of these newsgroups (comp.std.c, comp.lang.c)
>that a variable with external linkage in dpANS C is resolved with 6 significant
>characters and no case sensitivity. I have some questions regarding this:
>
>1. Is this true?

Yes.  Unfortunately, in many systems, the object file format is frozen
and writing a more flexible linker is not an option available to compiler
writers.

>2. Is six significant monocase characters the *minimal implementation*,
>   or *required*?

It is minimal.  It is clearly marked as obsolescent, and 31 mixed-case is
both strongly recommended and expected to be required in the next C
standard.  Anyone who writes a *new* linker with this sort of restriction
should be put to death.  Slowly.

>8. In general, aaaarrrrggghhh!

This was a bitter pill to swallow, but Fortran linkers are with us for a
few more years.  I, however, don't plan on paying much attention to this
limitation in code I write (sorry, Henry).
-- 
	-Colin (uunet!microsof!w-colinp)