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Some seem to say that one should avoid C99 features in C code as compilers don't really support those features. C99 is a standard from 1999, shouldn't these features be quite widespread now?
Should one avoid using C99 features in new code? In legacy code? I happen to use some C99 features quite often, should I stop doing that or be more careful with the use of those features?
Depends on how portable your code needs to be. C compilers support C99 features to a very different degree, and that can be a problem. See here for details: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/C99#Implementations
Personally, I would stick with C89/C90 unless I was certain I would always compile the code with the same compiler.
Not at all. I would highly recommend using C99 code as, with anything really, it's standardized. The compatibility between compilers is always going to vary and frustrate but it's important to embrace standardization and simply embrace what developers SHOULD, theoretically, be using. I use C99 day-in-day-out and, apart from some hoo-ha with variadic macros, everything works well, especially on VS and Xcode (obviously).
Despite C99's age, support remains spotty in several compilers (such as Microsoft Visual C++). Some C99 features, such as variadic macros, are supported by many compilers; other features, not so much. So you'll need to evaluate your cross-platform needs and decide if the compilers you'll need to use will support the features you want.
A second consideration is that C99 diverges more from C++. If you don't plan on ever incorporating C++, this is not an issue.
