Habets Blog

This is the personal blog of a programmer writing about low-level software topics, with a focus on C and C++ and how compilers translate source code into machine instructions. Posts are long-form arguments rather than news items, and the author states plainly that the views are personal. The blog is not a tutorial series; it assumes readers already know the languages and want to examine edge cases in detail.

The central subject is undefined behavior. In the featured post, the author responds to readers who claim UB is harmless in practice and that the worst outcome is a segfault. A short example using a volatile device command and std::unreachable() shows GCC 16.2 at -O1 emitting a call to explode() even though it is never invoked, with assembly output and a Godbolt link provided as evidence.

The writing suits systems programmers, compiler enthusiasts, and students preparing for technical interviews or code reviews where UB questions arise. Readers who want practical rules of thumb will find the material demanding, while those who enjoy dissecting generated assembly will find it directly relevant. Expect opinionated prose and examples that require careful reading.

To get the most from the blog, start with the UB post and follow the linked Godbolt examples, compiling them locally with different optimization levels to see how behavior changes. Treat the posts as arguments to evaluate rather than settled documentation, and check dates and compiler versions before applying con