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From: ech@spuxll.UUCP
Newsgroups: net.micro.apple
Subject: MacFORTH
Message-ID: <476@spuxll.UUCP>
Date: Tue, 22-May-84 02:48:14 EDT
Article-I.D.: spuxll.476
Posted: Tue May 22 02:48:14 1984
Date-Received: Wed, 23-May-84 19:16:02 EDT
Organization: AT&T Information Systems, South Plainfield NJ
Lines: 44

You say you want a development system for the Macintosh, but assembler ain't
your style, you don't want to wait 'til 1Q85 for standalone C or Pascal,
and MS Basic is such a pig you can't stand it?

Your problems may be behind you: I recently picked up MacFORTH from
Creative Solutions, 4801 Randolph Rd., Rockville MD 20852;  or get out your
VISA or MasterCard and call them at (301) 984-0262.

FORTH is a postfix-polish language; the compiler doesn't do a WHOLE lot beyond
lexical analysis; the result is then interpreted by a lightning-fast stack
machine emulator.  Look for "Starting FORTH" for more language info.

What I got for $150 was MacFORTH level 1; level 2 is due out this month,
level 3 next month.  Withing a week of ordering I upgraded my license to level
2 -- this is a NICE package.  Many of the toolbox goodies are directly
accessible in level 1 (including full window and menu control).

Package includes a ~250 page manual, including tutorials that walk you
through window and menu creation and management; a batch of demos reminiscent
of the early jerq/blit demos (at comparable speed!); an online "getting
started" tutorial; and an editor which harnesses the toolbox editor for
writing FORTH code.  No in-line assembler, but that is due in level 2.
(Price $250, or upgrade your level 1 license for the $100 difference).
Dealers will have the package soon; in the meantime, they will take VISA or
MasterCard orders over the phone and ship UPS the same day (I and a friend
each received our orders within 48 hours).

The disk is not copy-protected, but the license says "single CPU."  Keep your
larceny at bay on this one: these folks have done a NICE job and deserve the
bread!

Incidentally, the editor is written in FORTH and can be dumped off to your
printer.  The source bears a caveat that they use the toolbox "text edit
buffer" and scrollbar facilities, but that you use at your own risk;
these facilities are not well-documented, but you can dope out a lot by reading
the editor code, and they seem to work just fine.

I'd still prefer to have a high-level language, preferably C, but once you get
adjusted (or readjusted) to thinking in postfix, FORTH is a convenient medium.

MacFORTH is fast, cheap, versatile, lets you get at the toolbox, and available
now.  DO IT!

=Ned=