What is int8_t if a machine has > 8 bits per byte?

Question

I was reading the C++ FAQ and it says

The C++ language guarantees a byte must always have at least 8 bits

So what does that mean for

Answer 1

To add to what Cat Plus Plus has already said (that the type is optional), you can test whether it is present by using something like:

#ifdef INT8_MAX
//  type int8_t exists.
#endif

or more likely:

#ifndef INT8_MAX
#error Machines with bytes that don't have 8 bits aren't supported
#endif