Defect Report #159
Submission Date: 16 Oct 95
Submittor: BSI
Source: Clive D.W. Feather
Question
Submitted to BSI by Clive D.W. Feather clive@sco.com.
In this Defect Report, identifiers lexically identical to those
declared in standard headers refer to the identifiers declared in those
standard headers, whether or not the header is explicitly mentioned.
This Defect Report has been prepared with considerable help from
Mark Brader, Jutta Degener, Ronald Guilmette, and a person whose
employment conditions require anonymity. However, except where stated,
opinions expressed or implied should not be assumed to be those of any
person other than myself. Defect Report UK 007: Consistency of the
C Standard Defects exist in the way the Standard refers to itself.
Part 1
The introduction to the C Standard reads in part:
The introduction, the examples, the footnotes, the references,
and the annexes are not part of this International Standard.
While it is not, strictly speaking, an inconsistency for text that
is not part of the C Standard to specify which text is part of the C
Standard, it is confusing for this to be the case when other text that
looks like part of the C Standard isn't - the examples and
footnotes.
In particular, placing this information - necessary for
interpreting the text of the C Standard itself - outside that text
causes a danger that, when some other document is produced that
purports to contain the full text of the C Standard, the Introduction
will be omitted while the footnotes and examples are retained. A reader
of such a document who is not aware of the text of the introduction
will then be misled as to the C Standard's contents. Whilst this is not
the responsibility of ISO, it is another reason for regularizing the
situation.
Note that this has definitely happened in the case of The
Annotated ANSI C Standard by Herbert Schildt, and I have been
informed (but have not confirmed) that it has also happened with the
version of the C Standard distributed by the Australian National Body.
Part 2
The introduction to the C Standard reads in part:
The language clause (clause 7) ... The library clause (clause 8)
...
These references are wrong.
Suggested Technical Corrigendum:
In the Introduction, change:
The introduction, the examples, the footnotes, the references,
and the annexes are not part of this International Standard.
The language clause (clause 7) ...
The library clause (clause 8) ...
to:
As specified in the definitions and conventions clause (clause
3), this introduction, the examples, the footnotes, the references, and
the annexes are not part of this International Standard.
The language clause (clause 6) ...
The library clause (clause 7) ...
Insert at the start of clause 3:
The introduction, the examples, the footnotes, the references,
and the annexes are not part of this International Standard.
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