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From: rgs20@cam.ac.uk (Richard Stamp)
Subject: Re: How big is an int?
Date: 1997/11/04
Message-ID: <63nids$vu$1@lyra.csx.cam.ac.uk>#1/1
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References: <34557f2b.1934172@news.mindspring.com>
 <63anc7$75p$1@darla.visi.com> <345947D2.D20EF8E9@horvath.com>
 <345F49A2.5F5DC5A0@aom.ericsson.se>
Followup-To: comp.lang.c
Organization: University of Cambridge, England
Newsgroups: comp.lang.ada,comp.lang.c,comp.lang.c++,comp.lang.java.advocacy
Date: 1997-11-04T00:00:00+00:00
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In article <345F49A2.5F5DC5A0@aom.ericsson.se>,
Ted Lyngmo  <qhslyng@aom.ericsson.se> wrote:
>
>short = 2      bytes
>long  = 4      bytes

These are the effective _minimum_ lengths (though in fact, the size is
defined in terms of a minimum range of values to be held) but individual
compilers are free to exceed them if they wish.

>int   = 2 or 4 bytes

Right idea, but an int doesn't have to be the same as a short or a long;
it can be anywhere in between.

>If this is true, I see no reason for ever using ints in new C programs.

ints are supposed to have the natural size for the architecture, so
should be fast to work with: this makes them good choices for things
like loop counters.

Cheers,
Richard
-- 
Richard Stamp
Churchill College, Cambridge