Re: Assertions in principle
* Greg Herlihy:
I think that a better compiler would have the asserts turned off. The
point here is that a more thoroughly-tested compiler would see no
benefit from shipping with its asserts enabled. Shipping a program
with asserts enabled can only mean that the software has not been
adequately tested. So in this case, anyone who uses g++ is
effectively participates in the product's QA.
And while such an arrangement may be reasonable for a free product
like g++, it probably won't fly for those who program with a $500 C++
compiler.
As they say, that's not even wrong. $500-compilers do produce Internal
Compiler Errors. And g++'s free support is superior to e.g. Microsoft's
non-existent free support.
Customers who pay money for software do so with the
expectation that the software will be tested before it is shipped and
that it will run reliably after it has shipped. Leaving asserts
enabled in a shipping program has the completely opposite effect - the
asserts make the shipping program less reliable (that is, it is more
prone to fail), and all but eliminates the chances that the developers
will have tested the software before it shipped - and not just rely
on those who use the software to make up the difference.
Have you ever /used/ a commercial program?
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