Re: [Caml-list] Reporting on sucess/failure of tail recursion

[Erik de Castro Lopo <ocaml-erikd@mega-nerd.com>]

basile@starynkevitch.net wrote:

> Functions are not tail-recursive, but function *calls* are (or not)
> tail-recursive. I mean that a given function may have both tail
> [-recursive]
> and non-tail [-recursive] calls.

Ok, so many recursive functions are actually written like:

    let fact n =
        let rec sub_fact curr acc =
            if curr > n then acc
            else sub_fact (curr + 1) (curr * acc)
        in
        sub_fact 1 1

with a no-recursive outer function and a tail recursive inner function.
It would still be nice to know if the inner function is tail recursive.
	
> Maybe what you are dreaming of is an extension of the -dtypes flag (to
> ocamlc)

Ooo, I didn't know about -dtypes. That might be useful. Thanks.

Yes, something like -dtypes.

Erik
-- 
+-----------------------------------------------------------+
  Erik de Castro Lopo
+-----------------------------------------------------------+
"That being done, all you have to do next is call free() slightly 
less often than malloc(). You may want to examine the Solaris 
system libraries for a particularly ambitious implementation of 
this technique."
-- Eric O'Dell (comp.lang.dylan)