Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.2 9/18/84; site islenet.UUCP Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!allegra!mit-eddie!genrad!decvax!ittvax!dcdwest!sdcsvax!noscvax!uhpgvax!islenet!jayf From: jayf@islenet.UUCP (Jay Fields) Newsgroups: net.micro.mac,net.micro.apple,net.lang.c,net.lang.apl Subject: Re: Ramblings 6/7 - APL & C for Mac Message-ID: <1220@islenet.UUCP> Date: Wed, 12-Jun-85 17:55:33 EDT Article-I.D.: islenet.1220 Posted: Wed Jun 12 17:55:33 1985 Date-Received: Sun, 16-Jun-85 01:33:06 EDT References: <1190@islenet.UUCP> Distribution: net Organization: Islenet Inc., Honolulu Lines: 165 Xref: watmath net.micro.mac:1724 net.micro.apple:1977 net.lang.c:5382 net.lang.apl:155 > Mac C & APL > By J Fields > > While Macintosh seems to be the computer for the rest of us, what about all > of the people who are use to the run-of-the-mill type of old standard > computers? What about people who like the usefulness of business > languages like COBOL for coding business programs, or the speed and > compactness of machine language for requirements that are speed or space > critical? Fortunately, new tools are coming along. In recent months we've > seen the arrival of both high-level languages like Basic, Forth, and Pascal > (perhaps we'll even see COBOL soon); as well as machine level tools like > MacASM for getting down to the nitty-gritty bits. (MacASM, by the way, is > pronounced MAC-A-S-M with 'asm' spelled out so it doesn't sound like > something out of Master's & Johnson's....) > > My own observation is that the MAC is turning out to be a very good > platform to implement both high-level and low-level tools on. Not only is > the Mac user interface appropriate for writers of executive memos and high- > tech scribblers, but it also lends itself well to programming -- I no longer > have to write the same code twice. The first language to show me this was > HIPPO-C. > > Level one of Hippo-C comes with a well written and easy to use tutorial. > How many languages have you learned by trudging through the books > entering sample programs one at a time by hand? With Hippo you can cut > and paste the samples right out of the tutorial on your screen. Want to > experiment? Well, you can use many of the same editing techniques you've > been using in popular word processing programs to modify the sample > programs. So, instead of the program printing out Chris Somebody's name on > your screen it can print out yours, or perhaps some favorite salutation, > "Damn the torpedoes...." > > Today something new and exciting came along. Dr. Jerry Brenan, who works > in the University of Hawaii's Psychology department, introduced me to APL > on the Macintosh. This was particularly exciting because I've not even seen > APL advertised for the Mac, and did not know it was available. Don't all > software producers start advertising months in advance of product > availability? > > Now, if you're like I was before I knew about APL then you're probably > sitting there asking yourself to reconsider your initial decision to read this > particular article. Such would have been my reaction at the very mention of > a 'new language.' The minds and bodies of programmers seem to develop > some sort of defense mechanism with time. > > "We are not going to suffer these long hours while you learn every new thing > that comes along." they seem to say. > > They may have a point. After all, you've hardly touched that 'good ole' > MDL-2+ after the time you spent learning it (never mind what it cost -- the > investment you made, the backup disks, and the surprise upgrade to super- > duper version 1.2XXX-rev. A to mod. II). Still, APL is worth checking out. It > might just knock your socks off. > > APL stands for "A Programming Language." It's a language that seems > particularly well suited to working with numbers. Jerry showed me how, > with five or six characters, he could almost instantly fill an array with > 10,000 randomly generated numbers. "Hm, seems kind of fast," he > murmured. Four keystrokes later the sum of all 10,000 numbers was > displayed just as quickly. It was my turn to be impressed. "Try doing that > in Applesoft," I thought to myself. > > Psychologists, like Dr. Brenan, can use APL to perform statistical analysis. In > fact, Dr. Brenan has programmed, in APL, a statistics package called STAT 1 > that runs on PC-DOS machines. He will very likely be producing it for the > Mac soon judging from his reaction to the Mac. Rather than try to interpret > what he presented to me, here are a few paragraphs from his brochure on > STAT 1: > > "STAT 1 brings powerful research tools to the office desk. It is ideal > (a) as a statistics learning tool; (b) as an introduction to computer-based > research; (c) as a set of statistical analysis tools. STAT 1 takes data from > initial coding and documentation through printing the final analysis with > titles and footnotes. STAT 1 helps the user pick appropriate statistics with > its 'statistical decision tree,' and provides topical help screens at the touch of > a key. > > "STAT 1 is reasonably priced, easy to learn, requires no special > language, and comes with a comprehensive manual that focuses on > application examples. STAT 1 requires no computer programming, but > presents all choices in easy-to-use menu form. The user simply selects a > procedure from the menu and presses Return. STAT 1 prompts for critical > inputs through each step of the analysis. The program is ideal for offices and > agencies in which a number of people must analyze research, but do not > have time to master complex mainframe statistical packages. > > "STAT 1 provides all basic statistical procedures, beginning with > simple descriptive statistics crosstabulations and data transformation, and > working through to powerful correlation, analysis of variance, and regression > routines. STAT 1's full-screen editor gives the user complete control over > data entry and correction. Robust data transformation procedures help > correct for bias in data, and unique date-arithmetic functions provide a tool > for analyzing administrative data." > > There, I couldn't have said that better myself. I want to stress that Dr. > Brenan also offers a text version of the STAT 1 manual that is suitable for > use as an introductory text for teaching statistics. My feeling is that if > you've never studied statistics, but think you could benefit from applying > statistics in your work environment, then STAT 1 would be a good package > to pick up both for learning stats and for later applying them. > > STAT 1 is offered at $179.95 and requires an IBM-PC or a "99% compatible" > personal computer with 256K bytes of memory and two floppy disk drives > or one floppy disk and one fixed disk drive. It will use an 8087 math > processor chip automatically if one is installed, and uses all available > computer memory. To order contact me via Compuserve 76174,456; USENET > ..islenet/jayf ; SOURCE CL3035; phone, 808/521-4487; or mail, c/o IDSC, 1251 > Heulu St. #107, Honolulu, Hawaii 96822-3085. If you have a bankcard or > can send a check I'll relay the order to a stocking dealer. > > STAT 1 is an example of the usefulness of APL. If you have math intensive > applications APL is probably a good tool to add to your kit bag. Other uses I > can think of are for stock market analysis, financial modeling, engineering, > and business management. APL comes with its own tutorial built in, a > terminal program for hooking up with mainframes -- my bet is that you > could use this to hook with Dow Jones for rapid-fire price analysis -- and a > menu generator. > > Don't overlook this last item. Have you ever wondered how programmers go > about setting up the menus on Mac with all those buttons, text boxes, and > icons? APL is worth getting just to see how it's done. However, you do not > have to buy APL. You can pick up the free demo disk. The demo disk has all > of the same features, but does not allow you to Save. If you want a copy, > send an INITIALIZED blank Macintosh disk labeled with your name & > address along with a SASE and $1.00 to the above address; I'll fire a copy of > the APL sample back to you. The buck is to buy peanuts for the chipmunks > that keep my disk drives spinning -- you gotta feed the chipmunks > occasionally or they go away. > > What has become increasingly clear is that the MAC is not just the machine > for the rest of us, it's THE MACHINE FOR ALL OF US. Being able to learn a > new language like C or APL with out laboring over the manuals is a big > advantage. Being able to pull down the tutorial anytime you need to while > you're in the middle of coding something is also helpful. But the icing on the > cake was seeing Dr. Brenan's reaction to the MAC (I was calling him "Jerry" > until I sat down to write this and discovered with alarm that he's a phd, > someone I may well end up taking classes from someday, and someone who > should certainly be addressed as Dr. so-and-so...). > > "This is fast," he said. "This is much faster than the 8088." > > -Cheers- > J Fields Sorry for leaving out word about the people who make APL for Mac, and thanks to Mark & Dave for calling my attention to this omission. It was one of my primary objectives to give them some well deserved credit in the review...guess I got a bit excited and forgot. Anyway.... Apl for the MAC is called PortAPL, and can be ordered from: Portable Software 60 Aberdeen Ave. Cambridge, Ma. 02138 (607) 547-2918 Price is $275.00 Plus $10.00 for shipping. VISA & M/C are acceptable. Now, if one of you wizards would send me the pill you take to learn this stuff faster :) Aloha, J Fields