Re: Experiences/history of Aetech Ada compiler?

[bobduff@dsd.camb.inmet.com (Bob Duff)]

In article <19940919111103.RLOKER01@rlokerson9.ess.harris.com>,
Robert C. Lokerson <RLOKER01@HARRIS.COM> wrote:
>My personal style of programming has evolved into one which uses a lot of
>arrays of pointers to constant strings of varying lengths.  I have not been
>able to get this compiler to properly construct them unless they are created
>at run time with the "access" type scheme.  This might be ok (and in the ADA
>spirit) but I wish I could have "all" the initializations happen at
>elaboration-time.  (If thay makes any sense... I don't really consider myself
>an ADA expert... Much as I would like to be)

In Ada 9X, you can do things like this:

    type String_Ptr is access constant String;
    type String_Table is array(Positive range <>) of String_Ptr;

    X: String_Table :=
        ( new String'("Hello, world."),
          new String'("Goodbye, cruel world."),
          new String'("Another message.") );

Since String_Ptr is an access-to-constant type, the compiler should
allocate the above stuff statically.  This works in part because
Unchecked_Deallocation is not allowed for access-to-constant types.
-- 
Bob Duff                                bobduff@inmet.com
Oak Tree Software, Inc.
Ada 9X Mapping/Revision Team (Intermetrics, Inc.)