New python PIDL checks cause 2221 new Coverity warnings

[Green, Paul]

Andrew Barttlett wrote:
> > Paul Green wrote:
> > Perhaps you are thinking of systems without any 64-bit integers. I 
> > could see that could be a problem. Maybe C unions or C++ classes 
> > would offer a cleaner solution. If people have GCC, then they should 
> > also have G++.
>
> In this case, what matters is sizeof(long) and therefore LONG_MAX, as
> Python's Int is based on that.

For the record, on Stratus VOS, the C "long" data-type is always 32-bits.

IMHO, we should use software tools in ways that prioritize human understanding, code reliability and code maintainability over code efficiency. I'm not saying we ignore code efficiency, just that it must be subservient to the other goals. If we end up with super-efficient code that is fragile and thus difficult to maintain, we're just creating problems for ourselves, and our successors, down the road. If we truly have to optimize all 3, then we need to invest the time and effort to pull it off. This is something I feel very strongly about after 40+ years as a software developer. Sorry if this sounds like a lecture, but I've been there, done that, and paid the price.

PG