Comment after line continuation

[fzabkar]

When I insert a comment after a line continuation, the compiler throws an error. It would appear that the continuation character takes precedence over the comment character. Is this the intended behaviour?

Code: Select all

Print   "text string #1"; Space(5); _
        "text string #2"; Space(5); _
        "text string #3"

Print   "text string #4"; Space(5); _
'        "text string #5"; Space(5); _
        "next text string"

Print   "text string #7"; Space(5); _
'        "text string #8"; Space(5);
        "last text string"

Sleep

Code: Select all

Command executed:
"C:\FreeBASIC\fbc.exe" "C:\FreeBASIC\FBIDE\FBIDETEMP.bas"

Compiler output:
C:\FreeBASIC\FBIDE\FBIDETEMP.bas(7) error 119: Cannot modify a constant in '"next text string"'
C:\FreeBASIC\FBIDE\FBIDETEMP.bas(11) error 119: Cannot modify a constant in '"last text string"'

Results:
Compilation failed

System:
FBIde: 0.4.6
fbc:   FreeBASIC Compiler - Version 1.07.1 (2019-09-27), built for win32 (32bit)
OS:    Windows NT 6.2 (build 9200)

[MrSwiss]

There is no problem, if it's done correctly. The ordering is important for correct working:

Code: Select all

Print   "text string #1"; Space(5); _
        "text string #2"; Space(5); _
        "text string #3"

Print   "text string #4"; Space(5); _ ' "text string #5"; Space(5); _
        "next text string"

Print   "text string #7"; Space(5); _ 
        /' "text string #8"; Space(5); '/ _	' <-- line-continue (code) outside comment block!
        "last text string"

Sleep

You cannot line-continue with the following line being a comment alone (aka: no code first).
Except, you are using block comment followed by code: /' comment '/ _

[counting_pine]

It may be worth just saying, a line with just a comment (or an entirely blank line) appearing after a continued line, is processed the same way as actual code would be: it's as if the preceding underscore (and anything on the line after it) is stripped away and the contents of the following line is appended. In the case of a blank line or just a comment, then of course nothing interesting is appended.

You can put comments directly after an underscore, so just by putting an underscore before the comment on a blank line, you can keep the line continuing over it.

Code: Select all

Print   "text string #4"; Space(5); _
_'        "text string #5"; Space(5); _
        "next text string"

[fzabkar]

Thanks for the workarounds. I had already used MrSwiss's first suggestion, but the other two suggestions are more palatable because they preserve the flow of the code.

That said, I still see the compiler's counterintuitive behaviour as more of a bug.

BTW, I don't normally intersperse comments and line continuations. I only did this because I was debugging a particular line of code and wanted to give myself the option of two versions of the code.

[MrSwiss]

I only did this because I was debugging a particular line of code and wanted to give myself the option of two versions of the code.

Well, from my point of view for stated purpose, I'd use preprocessor instead of "commenting".