🚀 go-pugleaf

The very latest GNU coding standard says:

>    It remains necessary to worry about differences among cpu types, such
>    as the difference in byte ordering and alignment restrictions.  It's
>    unlikely that 16-bit machines will ever be supported by GNU, so there
>    is no point in spending any time to consider the possibility that an
>    `int' will be less than 32 bits.

>    You can assume that all pointers have the same format, regardless of
>    the type they point to, and that this is really an integer.  There are
>    some weird machines where this isn't true, but they aren't important;
>    don't waste time catering to them.  Besides, eventually we will put
>    function prototypes into all GNU programs, and that will probably make
>    your program work even on weird machines.

Please take the time to let "gnu@prep.ai.mit.edu" know how clever and informed
they appear to be in the eyes of the C coding community.

Examples of programs and platforms they haven't worked well on because they
made these assumptions would be great, especially if it's GNU software, and
the porting effort is non-trivial.

Similarly, you might mention to bug-bash@prep.ai.mit.edu that it is
mind-numbingly dumb that libreadline uses varargs, but not stdarg.  What does
it do when there is no varargs either?  It declares 3 arguments and just passes
all three on to v*printf, figuring that this will probably work.

The FSF is an influential source of code, and should be gently nudged away
from the incomprehensibly stupid.

So, any one else got favorite examples of incomprehensible bad ideas
mysteriously cropping up in otherwise sane code?

-s
-- 
Peter Seebach - seebs@solon.com - Copyright 1995 Peter Seebach.
C/Unix wizard -- C/Unix questions? Send mail for help.  No, really!
FUCK the communications decency act.  Goddamned government.  [literally.]
The *other* C FAQ - http://www.solon.com/~seebs/c/c-iaq.txt