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From: Michael S <already5chosen@yahoo.com>
Newsgroups: comp.arch
Subject: Re: is Vax addressing sane today
Date: Wed, 25 Sep 2024 20:07:45 +0300
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On Wed, 25 Sep 2024 09:54:17 -0700
Stephen Fuld <sfuld@alumni.cmu.edu.invalid> wrote:

> On 9/10/2024 1:13 AM, Niklas Holsti wrote:
> 
> > In the Ada case, the ability to declare array types with
> > programmer- chosen index types with bounded range, such as
> > range-bounded integers or enumerations, means that the compiler can
> > avoid indexing checks when the (sub)type of the index is known at
> > compile time to fit within the index range of the array.  
> 
> I have always liked the idea of variable ranges able to be specified
> in the language.  Besides the advantages you mentioned, it provides
> more human "comprehensibility" (if the ranges are reasonably named)
> i.e. better internal documentation, and it makes responding to
> specification changes required later in the program life cycle easier
> and less error prone, i.e. if the range has to change, you change it
> in one place and don't risk missing making the change in some obscure
> part of the program you forgot about.
> 
> 

The problem here is that arrays with fixed bounds were common when
Ada was conceived back in the mid 1970s. On general-purpose (as opposed
to embedded) computers they were already much rarer when Ada was shipped
in 1983. By late 1990s arrays with fixed bounds were rare exception
rather than rule.
Except, of course, for many types of embedded computers. But even that
is gradually changing. Very gradually.