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From: dewar@merv.cs.nyu.edu (Robert Dewar)
Subject: Re: Ada95 to ANSI_C converter
Date: 1997/04/03
Date: 1997-04-03T00:00:00+00:00	[thread overview]
Message-ID: <dewar.860115225@merv> (raw)
In-Reply-To: E831sB.M4s@world.std.com


Bob said

<<Anyway, I think Robert is correct in that machine code (for most
machines) can catch overflows efficiently, whereas ANSI C cannot.
Particular implementations of C might be able to.  So there's something
"fundamental" about this inefficiency, if we're talking about standard,
portable C.
>>

The implementation tricks that Bob refers to can alleviate some of the
cost of overflow checking, but by no means all, on any architecture
that I can imagine. One can always of course build a C compiler that
specifically recognizes "overflow patterns", and reliably generate
optimal code with the check -- I know of no such C compiler.

I will make the statement once more, unconditionally and clearly: The
decision to generate C, rather than object code directly, involves
a number of fundamental inefficiencies, one of which is overflow checking!

I have not seen anything that contests this position!






  reply	other threads:[~1997-04-03  0:00 UTC|newest]

Thread overview: 63+ messages / expand[flat|nested]  mbox.gz  Atom feed  top
     [not found] <5hbrah$ctt$1@gail.ripco.com>
1997-03-26  0:00 ` Ada95 to ANSI_C converter Nick Roberts
1997-03-26  0:00   ` Robert Dewar
1997-03-27  0:00     ` Jennifer E. Lee
1997-03-28  0:00       ` Craig Franck
1997-03-28  0:00         ` Robert Dewar
1997-03-28  0:00     ` Steve Doiel
1997-03-28  0:00       ` Robert Dewar
1997-04-02  0:00         ` Richard Kenner
1997-04-02  0:00           ` Robert Dewar
1997-04-02  0:00             ` Richard Kenner
1997-04-02  0:00               ` Robert Dewar
1997-04-02  0:00             ` Robert A Duff
1997-04-04  0:00               ` Keith Thompson
1997-04-04  0:00                 ` Robert Dewar
1997-04-07  0:00                   ` Arthur Schwarz
1997-04-07  0:00                     ` Peter Seebach
1997-04-07  0:00                       ` Kaz Kylheku
1997-04-07  0:00                     ` Robert Dewar
1997-04-08  0:00                       ` Robert A Duff
1997-04-08  0:00                   ` Keith Thompson
1997-04-02  0:00       ` Richard Kenner
1997-04-03  0:00         ` Fergus Henderson
1997-03-27  0:00   ` Craig Franck
1997-03-27  0:00     ` Jennifer E. Lee
1997-03-27  0:00   ` Jennifer E. Lee
1997-03-27  0:00     ` Philip Johnson
1997-04-01  0:00       ` Jennifer E. Lee
1997-04-02  0:00         ` Philip E. Johnson
1997-04-03  0:00       ` Jon S Anthony
1997-03-28  0:00     ` Robert Dewar
1997-03-28  0:00       ` Craig Franck
1997-03-28  0:00         ` Robert Dewar
1997-04-01  0:00     ` David Kristola
1997-04-01  0:00       ` Jennifer E. Lee
1997-04-01  0:00     ` Tom Wheeley
1997-04-01  0:00   ` Robert I. Eachus
1997-03-27  0:00 ` Jeff Carter
1997-03-28  0:00 ` Jon S Anthony
1997-03-28  0:00 ` Jon S Anthony
1997-03-28  0:00   ` Robert Dewar
1997-04-02  0:00   ` Jon S Anthony
1997-04-03  0:00     ` Robert Dewar
1997-04-04  0:00     ` Jon S Anthony
1997-04-03  0:00   ` Jon S Anthony
1997-04-03  0:00     ` Robert A Duff
1997-04-03  0:00       ` Robert Dewar [this message]
1997-04-03  0:00     ` Robert Dewar
1997-04-04  0:00   ` Jon S Anthony
1997-04-04  0:00     ` Robert Dewar
1997-04-04  0:00     ` Robert Dewar
1997-04-07  0:00   ` Jon S Anthony
1997-04-07  0:00   ` Jon S Anthony
1997-03-31  0:00 ` Jon S Anthony
1997-03-31  0:00   ` Robert Dewar
1997-04-01  0:00   ` Robert A Duff
1997-03-31  0:00 ` David Emery
1997-04-03  0:00 ` Jon S Anthony
1997-04-03  0:00   ` Jennifer E. Lee
1997-04-04  0:00 ` Howard W. LUDWIG
1997-04-16  0:00 Dan Lehman
1997-04-17  0:00 ` Robert Dewar
1997-04-20  0:00   ` Nick Roberts
1997-04-20  0:00     ` Robert Dewar
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