Re: gm2 rejecting a constant statement as variable

[Alice Osako]

If I am understanding this correctly, what you are saying is that a 
boolean expression operating on two named/computed scalar constants is 
not considered a constant expression?

Since the operands are constants (named or otherwise), I would have 
expected that normal constant folding would reduce the expression to a 
constant value up front, just as it would with an arithmetical operator 
expression. Am I misunderstanding something?

I had thought that GCC applied constant folding in a pre-optimization 
stage performed on the AST, before intermediate code generation, but 
perhaps I was wrong. I don't really know the internals of GCC, so I 
assume that I misunderstood that.

Now, curiously enough, with the latest build for the compiler, the lines

CONST
  BitsInUse =
    ORD(AddressableBits > MaxBits) * MaxBits +
    ORD(AddressableBits <= MaxBits) * AddressableBits;

Still give the error:

src/imp/Hash.mod:35:13: error: In implementation module ‘Hash’: in 
assignment, cannot assign a variable to a constant ‘BitsInUse’
   35 |   BitsInUse =
      |             ^
src/imp/Hash.mod:35:3: error: designator ‘BitsInUse’ is declared as a CONST
   35 |   BitsInUse =

However, it works exactly as expected if written as:

CONST
  BitsInUse = ORD(AddressableBits > MaxBits) * MaxBits +
              ORD(AddressableBits <= MaxBits) * AddressableBits;

Aside from the question of why this contradicts your earlier 
explanation, the problem of treating a constant assignment with a 
newline immediately after the equals sign as if there were a variable in 
the expression still persists, and seems to be independent of the 
constants issue.