I was taught to use this as a visual indicator back in 1980 when I learned assembler. I find it illustrative, but it certainly is an idiom.
[email protected] wrote: >What's wrong with a comment? Comments should be included. But consider an EX: MVCEX MVC 0(*-*,R2),0(R3) Copy the parameter Now, that statement will appear by itself, not inline (unless you use the "put it inline and jump around it and then do the EX *-10 or whatever it is, which I've always found ugly), so it's pretty clear it will get EXecuted. The comment (which isn't a great example of the species here, admittedly) describes what it does; not sure how you'd comment "and the length is what the EXecute is going to fill in". The *-* idiom makes that VERY clear, at least to me. I'd at least submit that it's clearer than: MVCEX MVC 0(0,R2),0(R3) Copy the parameter Look at all those zeroes! Idioms are like this, though--if you don't know they, they're totally opaque. That's why the word is only one letter different from "idiot", which is what unknown idioms make one feel like... ...phsiii
