Implicit enum conversions are a stupid PITA

Don nospam at nospam.com
Thu Mar 25 18:42:22 PDT 2010


Nick Sabalausky wrote:
> "Walter Bright" <newshound1 at digitalmars.com> wrote in message 
> news:hogsv9$11u7$1 at digitalmars.com...
>> One thing is clear, though. 0177 is never going to be a decimal number in 
>> D, because it will silently and disastrously break code translated from C.
> 
> I'm certainly fine with that, since not breaking ported C code is one of D's 
> philosophies.
> 
>> The only choice is to support 0177 as octal or make it a syntax error. I'd 
>> rather support them.
> 
> Supporting it means it will "silently and disastrously break code" from 
> anyone who tries to use a leading zero and *isn't* a C guru, and very few 
> people these days are (I used C for years without being aware of that octal 
> syntax - it's only by dumb luck I didn't try to use a leading zero). 
> Granted, it may not be common for someone to try to use leading zeroes, but 
> it's a landmine I'd rather not have, even if it is down a less-travelled 
> sidestreet, expecially considering it's all for such a trivial benefit 
> (which amounts to what, one person who just thinks it looks pretty?)
> 
> 
Yes, it's just one more thing for a newbie to learn.



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