Select identifier names that do not begin with the dot operator (.).As you can see, MASM 6.0 provides many new features that can make MASM 6.0 code simpler to write. If you are familiar with MASM 5.1 programming, you may find it helpful to adopt this list of new programming practices for programming with the new assembler. This list summarizes many of the changes discussed in the next section, “Compatibility between MASM 5.1 and 6.0.”
Select identifier names that do not begin with the dot operator (.).
Use the dot operator (.) only to reference structure fields, and the plus operator (+) when not referencing structures.
Different structures can have the same field names if you like, but the names of structure fields must always be qualified with the structure's type.
Separate macro arguments with commas, not spaces.
Avoid adding extra ampersands in macros. (Section A.2.2.3, “OPTION OLDMACROS,” and Section 9.3.3, “Substitution Operator,” give the new rules for using ampersands in macros.)
By default, code labels defined with a colon are local. Place two colons after code labels if you want to reference the label outside of the procedure.