🚀 go-pugleaf

Mr. Barnes, you are completely confused about ANSI C.  The standard
specifies the *input* to a compiler, not the *output* from a
preprocessor.  The standard doesn't even have the concept of a
preprocessor that is separate from a compiler.

Applications that depend on the output of an arbitrary C preprocessor
are typically broken.  X11 expands makefiles that way -- that's a bug.
I've seen code in Berkeley Unix that tried to macro-process assembler
language files with a C preprocessor.  Of course, it broke when the
preprocessor was changed to handle ANSI C rules.  Save yourself some
trouble and use something else, such as "m4" or "sed", to handle your
macro or string replacement needs.  C preprocessors can do anything
that results in a valid C program; they are typically written to feed
their output into a particular C compiler, and can pass arbitrary
syntax-extensions to it (such as `# 5 "file.c"'); there is no spec
for their output.  Many compilers don't even have a separate
preprocessor.

1) #foo:  You have it backwards.
>    Since the spec doesn't say you can do that, I would read that as you
>    can't do it, so it would be a fatal error from the preprocessor.

On the contrary, if the spec does not have a specific requirement or
prohibition, the compiler can do anything.  See 2.1.1.3.

> 2) A conforming preprocessor must output line directives (3.8.4)

You have this backwards too.  This section describes the *input* syntax.

> 3) An alternate form of the '#line' directive would not use the keyword

Irrelevant since you were confused about (2).

	John Gilmore