Posted by Don Pearce on 12/03/07 22:40

On Mon, 3 Dec 2007 12:33:12 -0800, "Richard Crowley"
<rcrowley@xp7rt.net> wrote:

>"Don Pearce" wrote ...
>> No it isn't. A file on a disc could be described as imformation that
>> must be taken in sequence, but it is still a file. A data stream is an
>> inexorable flow of data which must be dealt with as it comes.
>
>If you want to use the adjective "real-time" data stream, then I
>would agree with you. Else, there is no temporal requirement
>or implication for a "data stream".
>
>Most modern programming languages ("C" for example)
>only treat input/output data as a stream, there is no "block"
>notion of data. It doesn't matter whether the data is coming
>from a 10-year old disk file or from a real-time ADC. It is
>just a data stream to most software. And that is the way all
>data is processed, even on 64-bit wide CPUs.
>

Rubbish a := getchar() extracts one single byte from a file, not the
slightest hint of a stream. If I want to see a data stream I will look
at the digital outputs of my DAB radio or DVD player.

d

--
Pearce Consulting
http://www.pearce.uk.com

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