🚀 go-pugleaf

jos@and.nl (Jos Horsmeier) writes:
>In article <2305@sdrc.COM> scjones@thor.sdrc.com (Larry Jones) writes:
>|That was indeed the committee's intent.  If every call for zero space
>|returned the same pointer it wouldn't be very unique, would it?
>No it wouldn't, but if it would return a unique pointer value,it would
>brake code like this:
>char *p= malloc(0);
>char *q= malloc(0);
>if (p == q)
>	printf("malloc returned NULL or non-unique value"\n");
>else
>	printf("malloc returned two unique pointers\n");

I would certainly hope it would brake code like that.  Putting a stop to
code like that is valuable.  :-)

>when ported from a system where malloc(0) returns NULL to a system
>where malloc would return a unique pointer every time it was 
>called with a size of zero ...

Anyone who tests for whether or not malloc(0) returned NULL by testing
whether or not the new malloc(0) returned the same as a previous malloc(0)
deserves to have their programming career braked, too.

[For the non-native English speakers in the audience, in between the valid
technical points here I am having fun with Jos' misspelling of "break" (to
damage or destroy) as "brake" (to slow or stop).]