Re: eliminating array bounds checking overhead

"Stefan Monnier" <monnier+comp/compilers/news/@flint.cs.yale.edu> writes:


> Very very very few languages allow arrays where the high bound is
> lower then the low bound. So the only "interesting case is when
> lo==hi, but that is also rare enough to be either disallowed or
> handled specially.


In my opinion, any language that disallows empty arrays or one-element
arrays is broken. Yes, I know some popular languages are broken. ;-)
But many are not.


For example, in Ada:


        X: constant String := "";


X is an array of Character whose bounds are 1..0; ie the upper bound is
less than the lower bound. (There's no nul character in there!)


- Bob

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