[ltratt]

As an example, I like to point people at https://doc.rust-lang.org/std/cell/struct.UnsafeCell.html which for many years now has contained this line:

> The precise Rust aliasing rules are somewhat in flux, but the main points are not contentious

I've sometimes found myself in situations where the only way I've been able to deal with this is to check the compiler's output and trawl forums for hints by Rust's developers about what they think/hope the semantics are/will be.

Historically speaking, this situation isn't uncommon: working out exactly what a language's semantics should be is hard, particularly when it has many novel aspects. Most major languages go through this sort of sequence. Some sooner or later than others --- and some end up addressing it more thoroughly than others). Eventually I expect Rust to develop something similar to the modern C spec, but we're not there yet.

[asa400]

Excellent - thank you for the example and the clarification. This is exactly what I was looking for.