Re: Ada syntax questions

["Dmitry A. Kazakov" <mailbox@dmitry-kazakov.de>]

On 2020-12-19 12:50, DrPi wrote:

>  > Why would you care?
> 
> Calling a function can have side effects. Accessing an array or a 
> variable can't have side effects.

Untrue. Both array and variable access have side effects on the 
registers, on the cache, on the process memory paging, in the form of 
exception propagation etc. Even direct effects on the outside world are 
possible when using machine memory load instructions. E.g. on some 
hardware reading memory at the specific address location means physical 
serial input.

All these effects are either desired parts of the implementation or else 
bugs to be fixed. If desired, why do you care?

>> You seem to be implying this is bad; why?
> 
> Reading the code can't tell you the writer's intentions.

What intentions? Unless you are talking about the intention to deploy a 
specific machine instruction, function or array gives you no clue. But 
even then. PDP-11 FORTRAN IV used subprogram calls to implement 
basically everything, elementary arithmetic operations. If the function 
is inlined, where is any call? Functions can be tabulated into lookup 
tables. Arrays can be compressed into functions.

-- 
Regards,
Dmitry A. Kazakov
http://www.dmitry-kazakov.de