Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!uwm.edu!ogicse!decwrl!shelby!kon@asterix.Stanford.EDU
From: kon@asterix.Stanford.EDU (Ronnie Kon)
Newsgroups: comp.std.c
Subject: Namespace for typedefs
Keywords: namespace, name, space, typedef
Message-ID: <38@asterix.stanford.edu>
Date: 22 Feb 90 22:13:20 GMT
Sender: kon@asterix.STANFORD.EDU (Ronnie Kon)
Organization: Mindcraft, Inc.
Lines: 40


	The namespace for typedefs is (IMHO) wrong.  Currently (according to
the ANSI spec), typedefs are stored in the ordinary identifier namespace,
separate from the label, tags, and struct/union member namespaces.  This has
the effect of making the following code fragment legal:

		typedef int typename;
		struct {
			typename typename;	/* note: same name */
		} x;

(as the occurance of typename as a struct member is in a separate namespace
from the space the typedef is stored in), but

		typedef int typename;
		typename typename;

is illegal (as the occurance of typename is now in ordinary identifier
namespace, and conflicts with the typedef).

	It seems to me to be highly counterintuitive that a declaration that
is legal within a structure becomes illegal when removed from it.  (Yes, I
realize that is the case with bit fields, but they are a special case).

	What I think should happen is that either typedefs get their own
namespace (my preferred solution), or typedefs should automatically appear
within all struct/union member namespaces.

	My questions then, are
		1)  Do people agree that this is the explanation for the fact
		that my compilers (I have tried this on a number of different
		machines) accept the first fragment but reject the second?

		2)  Do other people believe that this should be changed?
-- 
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Ronnie Kon				|     "I don't know about your brain,
ronnie@mindcraft.com			|     but mine is really bossy"
...!{decwrl,hpda}!mindcrf!ronnie	|		-- Laurie Anderson
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