diff --git a/src/interfaces/perl5/test.pl b/src/interfaces/perl5/test.pl
index 2ae9e5359d45a9652332556daeefd131ae0424b9..8f0a572c2428e13a27c26ab123187cfd75515ac1 100644
--- a/src/interfaces/perl5/test.pl
+++ b/src/interfaces/perl5/test.pl
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 #!/usr/local/bin/perl -w
 
-# $Id: test.pl,v 1.10 1999/10/08 05:03:14 momjian Exp $
+# $Id: test.pl,v 1.11 1999/10/08 17:14:45 momjian Exp $
 
 # Before `make install' is performed this script should be runnable with
 # `make test'. After `make install' it should work as `perl test.pl'
@@ -147,7 +147,8 @@ my $port = $conn->port;
 
 ######################### create and insert into table
 
-$result = $conn->exec("CREATE TABLE person (id int4, name char(16)) -- test");
+# we test comments inside string and with no trailing newline here
+$result = $conn->exec("CREATE TABLE person (id int4, -- test\n name char(16)) -- test");
 die $conn->errorMessage unless PGRES_COMMAND_OK eq $result->resultStatus;
 my $cmd = $result->cmdStatus;
 ( "CREATE" eq $cmd )
diff --git a/src/makefiles/Makefile.alpha b/src/makefiles/Makefile.alpha
index a9e8e948ec66e20b70f72c939da329311329bb83..6fb505e32eb88d010a0765670b1a6d70b771f1eb 100644
--- a/src/makefiles/Makefile.alpha
+++ b/src/makefiles/Makefile.alpha
@@ -1,2 +1,7 @@
+/* some platforms define __alpha, but not __alpha__ */
+#if defined(__alpha) && !defined(__alpha__)
+#define __alpha__
+#endif
+
 %.so:  %.o
 	$(LD) -shared -expect_unresolved '*' -o $@ $<