bet@ecsvax.UUCP (03/06/84)
The DeSmet C Development Package costs approx. $110 (I don't know exact
current prices), supports full K&R C with stdio, and includes:
compiler -- 2 passes, the first loads the second as an overlay
assembler -- loaded by pass 2 of compiler to translate intermediate
assembler into object unless you give the compiler the
"-a" switch. Useable as a separate assembler.
linker -- assembler (and therefore compiler) produces linkable
object modules (not Microsoft standard)
library manager
listing program that produces a cross reference
GOOD screen-oriented editor
A lot of bang for the buck. Standard I/O *is* standard, and implements all
the common functions. The compiler is fast, produces efficient code, and
hasn't demonstrated any bugs in a *lot* of C programming. To wit: an alpha-beta
search othello program, approx. 16K of *dense* C before comments (written for
a competition) was able to search to four moves ahead, examining as many as
2000 boards in mid-game, in the 30 second time limit. A natural-language
program, written and developed on a PDP-11/70, approx. 80K of source. The PDP
(node "duke") got unhealthy, and started crashing regularly. Moved the project
to an IBM PC/XT. The code compiled with exactly two kinds of changes required:
1) the DeSmet compiler treats names as significant to 31 characters,
instead of 8, so it caught some typographical errors in the ends of
long names
2) the linker (*not* the compiler) is case-insensitive, so a few
external names that were only distinct by case had to be renamed
The resulting program ran slower than on the 11/70, by a factor of about 2.
Still useable.
For information contact: C Ware Corporation
970 W. El Camino Real
Suite 4
Sunnyvale, CA 94097
(408) 736-6905
Disclaimer: I have no connection with this establishment, except as a satisfied
customer.
Bennett Todd
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