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From: Phil Carmody <pc+usenet@asdf.org>
Newsgroups: comp.lang.c
Subject: Re: Whaddaya think?
Date: Sun, 23 Jun 2024 11:20:16 +0300
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Kaz Kylheku <643-408-1753@kylheku.com> writes:
> On 2024-06-17, Richard Harnden <richard.nospam@gmail.invalid> wrote:
>> If a function is defined to return an int, then you should return one.
>>
>> Anything else is just lazy/sloppy.  Just because main allows it as a 
>> special case doesn't mean it's a good idea.
>>
>> I mean: it's really not much extra to type.
>
> The misfeature of missing return being success was, I believe, not
> intended to make programs shorter. It was intendeda to correct the
> random termination statuses of countless numbers of programs in a single
> stroke.
>
> Deliberately relying on this in a new program is like relying ona a
> diaper. If you're of intermediate age, you don't do this.

Astronauts do this quite frequently. Some pilots too. And divers. And
crane operators. It's a well-established solution to a known problem.

However, I'd still put the explicit return in for a reason of
literal portability: were I to want to lift that code out into
a separate function called by main(), I'd want it to behave the
same.

Phil
-- 
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