Re: C syntax errors

[Clay Carley <cbc@xxxxxxxxx>]

Do you have the K & R book handy?

I happen to have the book in question in front of me now after seeing 
your post.  Exercise 5-20 states: "Expand dcl to handle declarations 
with function argument types, qualifiers like const, and so on."

Oh it's too late and has been too long of a day for me to go any farther 
than that right now.

Clay

On 01/17/2014 02:38 PM, frank kolmann wrote:
> I am new to C.
>
> Given that C compilers throw up Syntax errors at seemingly random places,
> how do experienced programmers cope?
> Any advice will be most welcome.
> -rant on-
> To me C is the antithesis of the KISS principal.  Given the convolutions
> possible in C code I wonder how are any C programs written at all.
> It seems that you need an ability to decompile C code in your head. The
> forwards and backwards nature of deciphering a C definition is so arcane
> that the only reason I can think why anyone would have designed such a
> language is to show 'look at me, arnt I clever'.
> C macro substitution seems to be a disaster waiting to happen. Who is
> clever enough to construct a macro that can accept arbitrary input and yet
> produce reliable results.
> -rant off-
> I fact I am trying to compile a bit of C code I found on the net  that
> attempts to translate C constructs into words but it fails on the iSeries
> with a syntax error.
> Presumable it has compiled elsewhere.
> http://www.c-program-example.com/2012/02/k-r-c-programs-exercise-5-20.html
>
> I though I was a programmer, I know Basic Fortran Cobol RPG(all variants)
> but I realise now that I am just a mere dabbler and there exist super
> beings with mystical abilities akin to sorcerers who program in C.
>
> Frank Kolmann