1/14    Why is NULL defined to be "0" in C++ instead of "((void *) 0)" like in
        C?  I have some overloaded functtions where one takes an integer
        parameter and the other a pointer parameter.  When I call it with
        "NULL", the compiler matches it with the integer version instead of
        the pointer version which is a problem.  Other funny effect is that
        sizeof(NULL) is different from sizeof(myPtr).  Thanks.
	...

4/04    Is there a good way to diff 2 files that consist of columns of
        floating point numbers, such that it only tells me if there's a
        difference if the numbers on a given line differ by at least a given
        ratio?  Say, 1%?
        \_ Use Excel.
           1. Open foo.txt in Excel.  It should convert all numbers to cells in
	...

4/29    Why were C and Java designed to require "break;" statements for a
        "case" section to terminate rather than falling-through to the next
        section?  99% of the time poeple want a "case" section to terminate.
        In fact some compilers issue warning if there is no "break;" statement
        in a "case" section.  Why not just design the languages to have
        termination as the default behavior, and provide a "fallthru;"
	...

7/19    In C or C++, how do I write the code of a function with variable
        number of parameters in order to pass the variable parameters to
        another function that also has variable number of parameters?  Thanks.
        \_ The usual way (works on gcc 3.0+, Visual Studio 2005+):
               #define foo(fmt, ...) printf(fmt, ##__VA_ARGS__)
           The cool new way (works on gcc 4.3+):
	...

3/7     I have a C question.  I have the following source code in two identical
        files t.c and t.cpp:
                #include <stdlib.h>
                int main(int argc, char *argv[]) {
                  const char * const * p1;
                  const char * * p2;
	...

2/4     random C programming/linker fu question.  If I have
        int main() { printf("%s is at this adddr %p\n", "strlen", strlen); }
        and soda's /proc/sys/kernel/randomize_va_space is 2 (eg; on)
        why is strlen (or any other libc fn) at the same address every time?
        \_ I don't pretend to actually know the right answer to this, but
           could it have something to do with shared libraries?
	...

2/12    I need a way to make a really big C++ executable (~200MBs) that does
        nothing.  No static initialization either.  Any ideas?
        \_ static link in lots of libraries?
        \_ #define a   i=0; i=0; i=0; i=0; i=0; i=0; i=0; i=0; i=0; i=0;
           #define b   a a a a a a a a a a
           #define c   b b b b b b b b b b
	...

9/28    http://www.tiobe.com/index.php/content/paperinfo/tpci/index.html
        Java is #1!!! Followed by C, PHP, C++, Visual Basic, Perl,
        C#, Python, Javascript, then finally Ruby. The good news is
        Pascal is going waaaay back up!
        \_ C is still more popular than C++?  I feel much better about myself
           now.
	...

8/6     In C one can do "typedef int my_index_t;".  What's the equivalent in
        C#?  Thanks.
        \_ C#? Are you serious? Is this what the class of 2009 learn?
           \_ No.  I have to learn .NET code at work.  I am Class of '93.
           \_ python is what 2009 learns, see the motd thread about recent
              cal courses and languages
	...

7/20    For those who care btw, it looks like eclipse is now A Standard Tool
        at UCB ugrad cs, probably replaced emacs.  Furthermore, people get
        angry at seeing Makefiles, (since eclispe takes care of that).  I
        guess it's just a sign of the times.
        \_ The more people at my work use eclipse the less the code is
           managable in emacs.  I'm not sure which application's fault
	...

5/18    On my Win7 machine, I've been using a PuTTY ssh session to soda as a
        proxy for my FireFox to bypass my company's OpenDNS when I visit
        http://tv.yahoo.com and so on.  It has been working fine for a long while.
        However, in the past couple weeks or so, my FireFox would either take
        several minutes to load the page, or failes to load it after several
        minutes.  I haven't changed any settings on my Win7 machine.  Rebooting
	...

4/19    My Firefox 3.6.28 pops up a Software Update box that reads "Your
        version of Firefox will soon be vulnerable to online attacks."  Are
        they planning to turn off some security feature in my version of
        Firefox?
        \_ Not as such, no, but they're no longer developing this version,
           so if a 3.6.x-targeted hack shows up, you're not going to get
	...

2/5     How is Firefox on version 10, while I still have 3.6 installed.
        I wait for the X.1 versions and they never come out.
        \_ I'm also on 3.6.26.  It claims that versions 4 - 10 are all faster
           than 3.6.x, but do they use more memory?  Thx.
           \_ Newer Firefox versions use less memory too:
              http://www.maximumpc.com/article/news/mozillas_memshrink_program_brings_big_memory_savings_firefox_7
	...

2/18    Why is there now Firefox 3.5.8 when there was already 3.6 a month ago?
        \_ Why is there Windows XP SP3 when there was already Vista?
           Generally companies manage patches for at least two levels of
           product.  -tom
           \_ I see.  So Fx 3.6 is more like a new version than an update to
              3.5.x.  --- OP
	...

2/5     I like Adobe Flash. When written correctly, it scales along
        with your browser size. It looks consistent on every single
        browser. It is predictable. On the other hand, I'm not a big
        fan of CSS/HTML, which for the most part, look wildly different
        between browsers, and don't even work consistently or
        correctly at times. So why do so many people (like Steve Jobs)
	...

12/9    Does anyone know when Firefox will support Win7?  I can't find a
        roadmap page on http://mozilla.org.  Thx.
	...

12/12   http://www.axiis.org/examples/BrowserMarketShare.html#
        An unusual visualization of browser market share from 2002-now
        \_ 1. Is it coincidence that it looks so much like the Firefox logo?
           2. Is Chrome eating away Firefox's share?
           \_ Chrome's user base is pretty much the same user base
              as Firefox user base, and to some extent, Safari. The
	...

12/2    IE usage down but still kicking the majority ass. Chrome is also
        rising up high, almost at the Safari level. Firefox isn't
        doing badly either. Sorry Opera, you had your chance.
        http://arstechnica.com/microsoft/news/2009/12/november-2009-browser-stats-ie8-passes-ie7.ars
        \_ As long  as Opera is the only browser you can use on your Wii,
           I see a fine long life ahead of it.
	...

11/27   What did you guys buy on Black Friday?
        \_ cold medicine
           \_ me too!
        \_ Nothing.
        \_ I bought a Mac Air for my wife when Mac Mall announced their
           "Black Friday sale" on Wednesday. But that was technically not
	...

10/1    I am thinking of installing firefox on soda under my home directory.
        Will this make me a hozer?
        \_ Possibly. I wonder if we should have another VM for that...btw,
           I remember someone saying they're glad we're not on FreeBSD
           anymore, but last I checked, a bunch of our stuff is on FreeBSD,
           but our login server is not.
	...