Michael_I_Summers@cup.portal.com (03/25/91)
I'd like to switch to Modula2 for my Mac programming, and would be interested in hearing what others have to say about the various Modulas available. Toolbox support is critical, as is support for INIT's, DA's, ... most of my programming is at that level. Thanks in advance, Mike Summers
ldo@waikato.ac.nz (Lawrence D'Oliveiro, Waikato University) (03/26/91)
Modula-2 compilers... last I heard, there were two serious commercial-level products, namely the p1 compiler and the Metrowerks family. Both are listed in the current APDAlog. In a nutshell, the p1 compiler supports object-oriented Modula-2 (not much use in an INIT or DA, true), and is somewhat more expensive. It runs under MPW. The Metrowerks compiler comes in three versions: one runs under MPW, one (the "Professional Standalone Edition") runs in its own environment, and the third is an entry-level product for beginners. INIT and DA-level programming--would you also be doing HyperCard XCMDs/XFCNs, add-ins to other programs (e g 4D externals, Wingz tools) or your own extensible applications--in other words, things with peculiar linking requirements (or which need more than one linking operation to build), where the only debuggers you can use are MacsBug or TMON? If this is the case, MPW is really the only development environment that is equal to the job. Personally I've been using the Metrowerks MPW compiler (version 3.1). It works well enough for this sort of programming, except that you have to stay way from real and string literals (these go into the "initialized data" segment, which only an application is allowed to have!). When I need these, I create them in an assembly-language module and reference them via external procedures from Modula-2. Anybody else got other comments? Does anybody use the p1 compiler? Lawrence D'Oliveiro fone: +64-71-562-889 Computer Services Dept fax: +64-71-384-066 University of Waikato electric mail: ldo@waikato.ac.nz Hamilton, New Zealand 37^ 47' 26" S, 175^ 19' 7" E, GMT+12:00 Those who make remarks about expanded and extended memory under DOS should remember that the concept of a device driver for accessing memory originated with UNIX.
Lawson.English@p88.f15.n300.z1.fidonet.org (Lawson English) (03/28/91)
Lawrence D'oliveiro, Waikato Univer writes in a message to All
LDW> Modula-2 compilers... last I heard, there were two serious commercial-level
LDW> products, namely the p1 compiler and the Metrowerks family. Both
LDW> are listed in the current APDAlog.
There is also Oberon, Wirth's new semi-object-oriented language, which can be
DLed from all over (its about 480K compressed).
Lawson
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