2014-04-26 10:52:28 -04:00
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nasal demons
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2014-04-26 11:54:15 -04:00
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n. Recognized shorthand on the Usenet group comp.std.c for any unexpected
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behavior of a C compiler on encountering an undefined construct. During a
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discussion on that group in early 1992, a regular remarked When the compiler
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encounters [a given undefined construct] it is legal for it to make demons
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fly out of your nose (the implication is that the compiler may choose any
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arbitrarily bizarre way to interpret the code without violating the ANSI C
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2018-10-16 10:43:40 -04:00
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standard). Someone else followed up with a reference to nasal demons, which
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quickly became established.
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