info-mac@uw-beaver (02/01/85)
From: sdcsvax!loral!ian@nosc.arpa (Ian Kaplan) The rn news program will not send things directly to fa.info-mac, so I am mailing this to the news group. Please let me know if this is an inappropriate method for posting and suggest an alternate route. Newsgroups: fa.info-mac Subject: Re: Volition Systems Modula-2 compiler Summary: Only the experienced should give advice Expires: References: <607@uw-beaver> Sender: Reply-To: ian@loral.UUCP (Ian Kaplan) Followup-To: Distribution: Organization: Loral Instrumentation, San Diego Keywords: Modula-2, Voltion Systems In article <607@uw-beaver> info-mac@uw-beaver writes: >From: Mark H. Nodine <mnodine@BBNH.ARPA> > >It is my feeling that they [Volition Systems] are quite likely to survive >this [Chapter 11 filing], so >I don't feel that anybody should avoid doing business with them for fear that >they well soon go the way of the hula hoop. Perhaps you are right. But before you start mailing your checks, there are some things to check out. How is Volition's on-line support? In the past it was excellant. When you called up you got someone like Rich Gleaves, who was a highly knowledgable Modula expert (Rich is the author of a Modula book published by Springer-Verlag). Rich is one of the people who left Volition when the new management took over the company. > >Having said that, I have recently received a product announcement and order >form for their Modula-2 compiler/run-time environment (read p-code >interpreter) for the MacIntosh. Is Volition actually shipping this product? Many companies come out with product anouncements far in advance of shipping. >the [Volition Modula ] compiler is quite stable and VERY fast. It is a single- >pass compiler which helps to contribute to its speed. It has a few >extensions to Wirth's Modula-2, like FORWARD references to make sure that the >compiler can be single-pass. I have used the Volition Systems Modula compler for the NCR ALP II (a machine that few have ever heard of) and the IBM PC. It is indeed an excellant product, but it has the limitations of being a p-code compiler. Modula supports multiprocessing and it would be nice if it was possible to do process switch on disk I/O operations. Since the p-code for disk I/O, UNITREAD, is atomic, this is not possible. Because of these limitations, and personal bias, I plan to use the Logitech compiler in the future. Of course this compiler is not released for the MacIntosh. > > It comes with a >p-shell (a la unix) [s]ystem and various utilities (such as file compare), Comparing the p-shell to UN*X is like comparing a tricycle to an F-16 super-sonic fighter. >They are working on a version [of the Voliton Modula compiler] >which will work under the Mac operating system which they expect to be >available in 2-3 months. The people I knew at Volition (Joel McCormack, Rich Gleaves, Mark Allen and at an earlier time Roger Sumner) are very talented people who were working for virtually nothing but a stake in what they hoped would be a successful software company. With the possible exception of Roger Sumner, none of these people are at Volition any more. To make their software releases I assume that they they must have found equally talented people who will work for minimal compensation. I wish I had their source for personnel. I have two open "recs" for my software project. > >I am not in any way associated with Volition Systems. Nor am I. I have worked with Joel extensively in the past however, and Rich gave me a lot of help on a personal project. I hold them and many of the other old Volition people in high regard, so I am not unbiased. The opinions expressed here are entirely my own and do not necessarily reflect those of my employer or anyone else involved in the company. Ian Kaplan