371: Compiler Complaint
| Compiler Complaint |
 Title text: Checking whether build environment is sane ... build environment is grinning and holding a spatula. Guess not. |
Explanation
A Compiler is a program that converts code into machine instructions that a computer can run. A Pointer is a variable within a computer program that is used to reference a memory location. A Segmentation Fault (segfault) is an error that occurs when a program attempts to access an invalid section of memory. Segfaults usually cause a program to crash in an ungraceful fashion and fixing them can be difficult.
In the comic, the computer starts talking to Cueball and compares a segfault with the unpleasant feeling one gets when they experience a hypnic jerk. The computer then tells the programmer to, "Double-check your damn pointers," as segfaults usually arise from a program attempting to access memory that is referenced by an invalid pointer.
Transcript
- [Cueball sits at a computer, hand over the keyboard]
- Computer: Okay, human.
- Cueball: Huh?
- Computer: Before you hit "compile," listen up.
- Computer: You know when you're falling asleep, and you imagine yourself walking or something, and suddenly you misstep, stumble, and jolt awake?
- Cueball: Yeah!
- Computer: Well, that's what a segfault feels like.
- Computer: Double-check your damn pointers, okay?
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