larry@JPL-VLSI.ARPA (01/21/87)
Jet Propulsion Laboratory (CalTech) is establishing a local repository of
reusable software, starting with a copy of the SIMTEL20 material. Are there
other public domain Ada code repositories? Also can someone send me contact
info for the CAMP (Common Ada Missile Packages)? Thanks.
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Cost info was left off the recent comments on NYU PC Ada. It's $95. Add $5
if outside US & Canada, also add $100 if buying with a purchase order.
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In answer to questions/comments on a recent messages: "folding" & "unfolding"
of programs is sometimes (pompously) called holophrasting. I call it
overview. It shows different views of Ada (or other) code with selected
code hidden or revealed, usually subordinate nested statements. Several of
the editors demo'd at recent Ada conferences have it, including Keyline and
Xinotech products. I have a version of MicroEMACS I have added this to. It
is a tremendous help in getting a quick understanding of programs--your own
as well as others. You can also use various outline processors in this way
(ThinkTank, etc.).
A related feature is the ability to look at (and edit) just the comments
within a program. This allows you to embed program design language in your
code--which I think is where it has to be if it's to be used easily and kept
up to date.
Another feature that involves expanding & collapsing code is what's
sometimes called tagging, where you point to an identifier and get
additional detail (type and internal structure (if any) for data, parameter
names and types for subprograms, and so on). Both GNU EMACS and Unipress
EMACS have simple versions of this. More complex editors might tell where
every other occurance of the identifier is, or let you open a window showing
the code where the data/subprogram/whatever is defined.
Larry @ jpl-vlsi.arpa