'goto" gone from computer languages or is it!

[Randy McLaughlin]

From: "lee davison" <leeedavison at yahoo.co.uk>
Sent: Wednesday, May 11, 2005 9:46 PM



>> Ya know, I gotta disagree... and this is coming from a programmer
>> who made liberal use of the GOTO statement.
> ...
>> Not that I look down on programmers who use it, not in the least.
>> But for me, I'm fairly happy it's less common nowdays.
>
> Programming mostly in assembler I couldn't avoid GOTO, relative or
> absolute, if I wanted to so it's fortunate that I don't. Computed
> GOTOs are not only 'not a bad thing' they are a very usefull tool at
> this level, condensing long lists of compares to a simple calculation
> and table.
>
> To proscribe the use of any particular construct within a language
> wastes effort when that constuct could provide a solution, it's up
> to the programmer to use all of a language appropriately.
>
> Lee.

I don't know of any compiler that doesn't throw in jumps all over the place.

Goto's can be bad if they make the code hard to follow but I find that most 
people write such sloppy code that it's hard to follow anyway as well as 
making code more complicated trying to avoid goto's.

I rarely use goto's unless I am programming in assembler, I am not sure 
about my motives probably just because of peer pressure.

With most languages goto's can still be clear about what is happening, my 
pet peeve is a call followed by a return, a goto is just as clear and it is 
faster.


Randy
www.s100-manuals.com