Template function bug - or am i a retard? you decide.

[Neal Alexander]

class A
{
     int x[];
     void read_array(alias var, T = typeof(var))(...){ return; }
     void fail(){ read_array!(x)(); }
}

- test.d:5: template instance cannot use local 'x' as template parameter
- gcc version 4.1.3 20070831 (prerelease gdc 0.25, using dmd 1.021)

Moving [read_array] out of [A] or making [x] static "fixes" it. But i 
don't really want to have to pass a 'this' pointer to it every time i 
use it.

Also:
"""
Changelog:

What's New for D 0.173
Nov 1, 2006
New/Changed Features

     * Template instantiations can now accept alias parameters for local 
variables and nested functions.
...
"""

Is there any other/better way to produce the above in a template 
(without [block] being a specific type)?

	    TypeInfo t  = typeid(T);
	    size_t size = ((t.next) ? t.next.tsize : t.tsize) * n;
	    block = cast(typeof(block)) new byte[size];

so passing a uint32_t[] as [block] with [n = 10] would allocate 40 bytes 
and block.length would be 10. Or passing a uint32_t* to it would simply 
assign the allocated blocks address to it.