Re: how to know sizeof(int)

["Jean-Pierre Rosen" <rosen@adalog.fr>]

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"Ludovic Brenta" <ludovic.brenta@insalien.org> a �crit dans le message de news:87llguk9k1.fsf@insalien.org...
> Indeed, hidden assumptions are evil, and the Enlightened Ones use
> System.Storage_Unit instead of just "8".  Somehow, "8" is too short to
> type and read :)
Sure, but we are in a C context here. Try to explain to a C programmer that a byte does not necessarily have eight bits :-)

> > Note that sizeof is *not* a regular function (a regular function
> > could not have a type as the parameter). It is handled very
> > specially in the C compiler, therefore there is no way you could get
> > to it from another language.
>
> I suppose 'Size is also handled specially by Ada compilers, right?
All attributes are handled specially of course, but it is explicit. The goal of having a special syntax for attributes is to avoid
*hidden* magic, and by the way, it is why it is a good thing that users are not allowed to define their own attributes.
It saves you from interesting question like "what happens if a user defines a function called sizeof?".

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           J-P. Rosen (rosen@adalog.fr)
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