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From: PETERSEN@ctrvx1.Vanderbilt.Edu (Chris Petersen - VUCC)
Newsgroups: comp.lang.pascal
Subject: Re: standard pascal
Message-ID: <20139@adm.BRL.MIL>
Date: 28 Jun 89 20:33:42 GMT
Sender: news@adm.BRL.MIL
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>From:	IN%"acm9@apple.ucsb.edu"  "Mike O'Brien" 28-JUN-1989 14:20
>In article <4757@freja.diku.dk> dat0@freja.diku.dk (Dat-0 undervisningsassistent) writes:
>>Since we are about to switch from CP/M-computers to MS-DOS-computers, I was
>>wondering if there exist a truly standard Pascal-compiler running on 
>>MS-DOS-computers on the market. 
>
>I think everyone would agree that Borland International's "Turbo Pascal" is 
>the current standard in MS-DOS.  It compiles faster, and makes faster and 
>tighter EXE files, than any other Pascal on the market.  The vast majority 
>of the people on this news
>
>The current version is 5.5, and it will set you back about $250 for the 
>professional package (with the debugger).
>
>Mike O'Brien
>acm9@cornu.ucsb.edu

Are you mad?  The question was 'a truly standard Pascal'!  TURBO is so far
from the standard that you might as well call it Modula or make it stop
using the name Pascal...  The files don't work quite standardly, they don't
support file buffers like the standard and numerous other small examples.

The fact that Turbo is the DE FACTO standard Pascal compiler for the MS-DOS
world these days (at least it seems so) is no reason to say that it conforms
to the standards for Pascal compilers!

-Chris Petersen
petersen@ctrvax.vanderbilt.edu

P.S.  In case you're wondering, I've worked in 5 different Pascals and 4
versions of Turbo...  I'm not sure there is a standard Pascal compiler for
the PC anymore, but if there is it is NOT Turbo.