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Groups > comp.lang.c > #73100

Re: Pointers, constant values

From Keith Thompson <kst-u@mib.org>
Newsgroups comp.lang.c
Subject Re: Pointers, constant values
Date 2015-10-16 15:26 -0700
Organization None to speak of
Message-ID <ln37xa4fi8.fsf@kst-u.example.com> (permalink)
References (5 earlier) <87io66r30y.fsf@bsb.me.uk> <mvrm33$d10$1@dont-email.me> <871tcur0gn.fsf@bsb.me.uk> <mvrpkd$qec$1@dont-email.me> <b3460f50-037e-4c93-87f5-58587d8e8374@googlegroups.com>

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supercat@casperkitty.com writes:
> On Friday, October 16, 2015 at 4:21:23 PM UTC-5, Bart wrote:
>> Arrays are turned into pointers to one element which are then turned 
>> back to arrays by means of applying offsets to them and treating them as 
>> arrays. C allows this, it's convenient, and everyone turns a blind eye.
>
> They aren't turned back into arrays.  In C as originally defined, a pointer
> may be viewed as identifying a "char[]" (since changed to 'unsigned char[]')
> and an offset into it (in many implementations, all of memory behaves as one
> giant char[], but that's hardly required).

You can view a pointer as anything you like, but C has always viewed a
pointer of type FOO* as identifying an object of type FOO.

>                                             The C89 rules which prohibit
> writing data as one type and reading as another interact rather oddly with
> such a view, but there are many kinds of programming where, even abiding
> by the "dubious" rules of C89, no other view of the system would really
> make sense.

The rule you're referring to (which exists in C89/C90, in C99, and in
C11) does not completely prohibit writing data as one type and reading
as another.  It explicitly permits accessing an object via an lvalue of
character type.

An object's representation is described in terms of an array of unsigned
char, but that's not particularly relevant to the current discussion
about pointers and arrays.

-- 
Keith Thompson (The_Other_Keith) kst-u@mib.org  <http://www.ghoti.net/~kst>
Working, but not speaking, for JetHead Development, Inc.
"We must do something.  This is something.  Therefore, we must do this."
    -- Antony Jay and Jonathan Lynn, "Yes Minister"

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Thread

Pointers, constant values Alla _ <modelling.data@gmail.com> - 2015-10-16 00:49 -0700
  Re: Pointers, constant values Philip Lantz <prl@canterey.us> - 2015-10-16 01:49 -0700
  Re: Pointers, constant values James Kuyper <jameskuyper@verizon.net> - 2015-10-16 09:41 -0400
    Re: Pointers, constant values supercat@casperkitty.com - 2015-10-16 08:55 -0700
  Re: Pointers, constant values Keith Thompson <kst-u@mib.org> - 2015-10-16 08:25 -0700
    Re: Pointers, constant values supercat@casperkitty.com - 2015-10-16 09:11 -0700
      Re: Pointers, constant values Keith Thompson <kst-u@mib.org> - 2015-10-16 12:06 -0700
        Re: Pointers, constant values supercat@casperkitty.com - 2015-10-16 12:55 -0700
    Re: Pointers, constant values Bartc <bc@freeuk.com> - 2015-10-16 17:49 +0100
      Re: Pointers, constant values Lew Pitcher <lew.pitcher@digitalfreehold.ca> - 2015-10-16 13:23 -0400
        Re: Pointers, constant values Bartc <bc@freeuk.com> - 2015-10-16 19:34 +0100
          Re: Pointers, constant values supercat@casperkitty.com - 2015-10-16 12:05 -0700
        Re: Pointers, constant values Keith Thompson <kst-u@mib.org> - 2015-10-16 12:18 -0700
      Re: Pointers, constant values Keith Thompson <kst-u@mib.org> - 2015-10-16 12:13 -0700
        Re: Pointers, constant values Bartc <bc@freeuk.com> - 2015-10-16 20:33 +0100
          Re: Pointers, constant values Keith Thompson <kst-u@mib.org> - 2015-10-16 13:01 -0700
            Re: Pointers, constant values Bartc <bc@freeuk.com> - 2015-10-16 21:09 +0100
              Re: Pointers, constant values Keith Thompson <kst-u@mib.org> - 2015-10-16 13:41 -0700
          Re: Pointers, constant values Ben Bacarisse <ben.usenet@bsb.me.uk> - 2015-10-16 21:07 +0100
            Re: Pointers, constant values Bartc <bc@freeuk.com> - 2015-10-16 21:20 +0100
              Re: Pointers, constant values Ben Bacarisse <ben.usenet@bsb.me.uk> - 2015-10-16 22:02 +0100
                Re: Pointers, constant values Bartc <bc@freeuk.com> - 2015-10-16 22:21 +0100
                Re: Pointers, constant values supercat@casperkitty.com - 2015-10-16 14:39 -0700
                Re: Pointers, constant values Keith Thompson <kst-u@mib.org> - 2015-10-16 15:26 -0700
                Re: Pointers, constant values supercat@casperkitty.com - 2015-10-16 15:44 -0700
                Re: Pointers, constant values Keith Thompson <kst-u@mib.org> - 2015-10-16 16:58 -0700
                Re: Pointers, constant values supercat@casperkitty.com - 2015-10-16 17:28 -0700
                Re: Pointers, constant values Ben Bacarisse <ben.usenet@bsb.me.uk> - 2015-10-16 22:50 +0100
                Re: Pointers, constant values supercat@casperkitty.com - 2015-10-16 15:14 -0700
                Re: Pointers, constant values Bartc <bc@freeuk.com> - 2015-10-17 01:23 +0100
                Re: Pointers, constant values Ben Bacarisse <ben.usenet@bsb.me.uk> - 2015-10-17 19:39 +0100
                Re: Pointers, constant values Bartc <bc@freeuk.com> - 2015-10-17 22:42 +0100
                Re: Pointers, constant values Ben Bacarisse <ben.usenet@bsb.me.uk> - 2015-10-18 00:31 +0100
                Re: Pointers, constant values Bartc <bc@freeuk.com> - 2015-10-18 02:11 +0100
                Re: Pointers, constant values Ben Bacarisse <ben.usenet@bsb.me.uk> - 2015-10-18 11:59 +0100
                Re: Pointers, constant values Bartc <bc@freeuk.com> - 2015-10-18 12:12 +0100
                Re: Pointers, constant values Bartc <bc@freeuk.com> - 2015-10-18 12:28 +0100
                Re: Pointers, constant values Ben Bacarisse <ben.usenet@bsb.me.uk> - 2015-10-18 23:16 +0100
                Re: Pointers, constant values Bartc <bc@freeuk.com> - 2015-10-18 23:34 +0100
                Re: Pointers, constant values Ben Bacarisse <ben.usenet@bsb.me.uk> - 2015-10-19 01:45 +0100
                Re: Pointers, constant values Bartc <bc@freeuk.com> - 2015-10-19 11:51 +0100
                Re: Pointers, constant values Ben Bacarisse <ben.usenet@bsb.me.uk> - 2015-10-19 12:55 +0100
                Re: Pointers, constant values Bartc <bc@freeuk.com> - 2015-10-19 13:51 +0100
                Re: Pointers, constant values Malcolm McLean <malcolm.mclean5@btinternet.com> - 2015-10-19 06:02 -0700
                Re: Pointers, constant values supercat@casperkitty.com - 2015-10-19 07:02 -0700
                Re: Pointers, constant values Bartc <bc@freeuk.com> - 2015-10-19 15:39 +0100
                Re: Pointers, constant values supercat@casperkitty.com - 2015-10-19 08:54 -0700
                Re: Pointers, constant values Malcolm McLean <malcolm.mclean5@btinternet.com> - 2015-10-19 09:14 -0700
                Re: Pointers, constant values supercat@casperkitty.com - 2015-10-19 10:21 -0700
                Re: Pointers, constant values Malcolm McLean <malcolm.mclean5@btinternet.com> - 2015-10-19 12:57 -0700
                Re: Pointers, constant values glen herrmannsfeldt <gah@ugcs.caltech.edu> - 2015-10-19 21:20 +0000
                Re: Pointers, constant values supercat@casperkitty.com - 2015-10-20 20:50 -0700
                Re: Pointers, constant values glen herrmannsfeldt <gah@ugcs.caltech.edu> - 2015-10-21 04:58 +0000
                Re: Pointers, constant values Keith Thompson <kst-u@mib.org> - 2015-10-19 08:40 -0700
                Re: Pointers, constant values Ben Bacarisse <ben.usenet@bsb.me.uk> - 2015-10-19 20:17 +0100
                Re: Pointers, constant values supercat@casperkitty.com - 2015-10-17 16:44 -0700
                Re: Pointers, constant values Ben Bacarisse <ben.usenet@bsb.me.uk> - 2015-10-18 11:52 +0100
                Re: Pointers, constant values Malcolm McLean <malcolm.mclean5@btinternet.com> - 2015-10-18 05:15 -0700
                Re: Pointers, constant values Ben Bacarisse <ben.usenet@bsb.me.uk> - 2015-10-18 21:54 +0100
                Re: Pointers, constant values Malcolm McLean <malcolm.mclean5@btinternet.com> - 2015-10-18 16:09 -0700
                Re: Pointers, constant values supercat@casperkitty.com - 2015-10-18 07:55 -0700
                Re: Pointers, constant values Ben Bacarisse <ben.usenet@bsb.me.uk> - 2015-10-18 21:47 +0100
                Re: Pointers, constant values supercat@casperkitty.com - 2015-10-18 15:37 -0700
                Re: Pointers, constant values Ben Bacarisse <ben.usenet@bsb.me.uk> - 2015-10-19 00:10 +0100
                Re: Pointers, constant values supercat@casperkitty.com - 2015-10-18 19:04 -0700
        Re: Pointers, constant values Ben Bacarisse <ben.usenet@bsb.me.uk> - 2015-10-16 21:13 +0100
      Re: Pointers, constant values Ian Collins <ian-news@hotmail.com> - 2015-10-17 11:27 +1300
        Re: Pointers, constant values Bartc <bc@freeuk.com> - 2015-10-17 00:56 +0100
  Re: Pointers, constant values Les Cargill <lcargill99@comcast.com> - 2015-10-16 12:37 -0500
    Re: Pointers, constant values James Kuyper <jameskuyper@verizon.net> - 2015-10-16 14:22 -0400
  Re: Pointers, constant values Jorgen Grahn <grahn+nntp@snipabacken.se> - 2015-10-16 18:57 +0000
    Re: Pointers, constant values Ben Bacarisse <ben.usenet@bsb.me.uk> - 2015-10-16 20:40 +0100
      Re: Pointers, constant values Jorgen Grahn <grahn+nntp@snipabacken.se> - 2015-10-16 20:46 +0000
        Re: Pointers, constant values Keith Thompson <kst-u@mib.org> - 2015-10-16 14:24 -0700
          Re: Pointers, constant values Jorgen Grahn <grahn+nntp@snipabacken.se> - 2015-10-19 12:43 +0000
  Re: Pointers, constant values Siri Cruz <chine.bleu@yahoo.com> - 2015-10-16 13:20 -0700
    Re: Pointers, constant values supercat@casperkitty.com - 2015-10-17 13:59 -0700

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