VBRANDT@DBNUAMA1.BITNET (11/02/88)
Hello all,
I earlier asked about software support for the new Atari MC68881 floating-
point processor board (remember, this is a Mega-only add-on). Well, here's good
news:
After a long period of silence, Atari Germany now supplies software
libraries for Alcyon C and ST PASCAL/+ (by CCD/OSS) at no extra charge. They
include source code and a demo program for both compilers. While the Alcyon
implementation is complete, the Pascal version lacks the basic arithmetic
operations (+, -, *, /, **). This is due to the internal representation of
real numbers in the compiler.
So, if you buy the FPU add-on, you'll be able to DO something with it!
Special thanks to Atari for including the (assembler) source, this makes it
much easier to change or expand the libraries.
I don't think it's the same software that comes with the 'SFP004 developers
kit' that Roy Good told the net about a few weeks back. At least, Atari Germany
credits a German author for the software.
I also called CCD, the makers of ST PASCAL, and they told me that there
will be an update next year that incorporates MC68881 support. This update will
cost about DM 70.- (approx. US$ 39). The guy on the phone wasn't able to tell
me if basic arithmetic operations would be executed by the FPU in this update.
I don't have Alcyon C, so I can't say anything about that compiler.
Bitnet: VBRANDT@DBNUAMA1 Volker A. Brandt
UUCP: ...!unido!DBNUAMA1.bitnet!vbrandt Angewandte Mathematik
ARPAnet: VBRANDT%DBNUAMA1.BITNET@CUNYVM.CUNY.EDU (Bonn, West Germany)wes@obie.UUCP (Barnacle Wes) (11/08/88)
In article <8811021410.AA11070@ucbvax.Berkeley.EDU>, VBRANDT@DBNUAMA1.BITNET writes: > I earlier asked about software support for the new Atari MC68881 floating- > point processor board (remember, this is a Mega-only add-on). Well, here's > good news: > After a long period of silence, Atari Germany now supplies software > libraries for Alcyon C and ST PASCAL/+ (by CCD/OSS) at no extra charge... I asked Bill Lederer at Mark Williams Co. a couple of weeks ago if they were going to supply a library for the SFP004. He told me they had an '004 in-house and were working on the library at the time we talked. He said he would not give an estimate of when the library would be out, but as soon as the beta testers (like me! :-) were satisfied, they would inform registered owners of the availability of the library. I didn't get any particulars about linkage methods, etc., but I am sure it will be up to MWC's usual (high) standards. Wes Peters -- "The whole problem with the world is that fools and fanatics are always so certain of themselves, but wiser people so full of doubts." - Bertrand Russell "How come he didn't put `I think' at the end of it?" - James P. Hogan