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> the advantage of having a self-hosting compiler is huge! I agree that it's kind of neat to compile your compiler with itself, but it's not clear to me that t
by mac01021 10y ago
> the advantage of having a self-hosting compiler is huge!
I agree that it's kind of neat to compile your compiler with itself, but it's not clear to me that this constitutes a significant productivity boost. There are countless other C programs that have already been written and can be used as test cases.
So I'm left wondering what the huge advantage that self-hosting provides is. I am interested so, if you have more to say on the topic, I will certainly read it.
- userbinator 10y agoIf we're talking about toy compilers and learning, then productivity isn't really in consideration. Having a self-hosting compiler for a non-trivial language means you've achieved the "bootstrap" stage, which is a significant milestone and really gives you a practical understanding of what's involved in developing a programming language. A compiler that is powerful enough to compile itself is on the way to exiting the "toy"/"theoretical" realm that most people who study compilers don't ever go beyond.