Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Path: utzoo!utcsri!utegc!utai!garfield!john13 From: john13@garfield.UUCP Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga Subject: Re: C compilers; request for info Message-ID: <3068@garfield.UUCP> Date: Thu, 4-Dec-86 07:44:06 EST Article-I.D.: garfield.3068 Posted: Thu Dec 4 07:44:06 1986 Date-Received: Fri, 5-Dec-86 09:43:49 EST References: <795@ulowell.UUCP> <9776@sun.uucp> Sender: perry@garfield.UUCP Reply-To: john13@garfield.UUCP (John Russell) Organization: Memorial U. of Nfld. C.S. Dept., St. John's Lines: 47 Summary: In article <9776@sun.uucp> cmcmanis@sun.uucp (Chuck McManis) writes: >In article <795@ulowell.UUCP>, 4526P@NAVPGS.BITNET (Lt. Scott A. Norton, USN) writes: >> d. Compatability with public domain C programs. ( It looks like most >> of these are Lattice dialect...) > >Since Lattice comes with the developers package this is not unusual, it >is also easier to port your programs back to to a PC this way (should you >ever want to) Generally most stuff will compile on either compiler again >the biggest problem is the libraries and the fact that the Amiga system >calls really want 32 bit ints not 16 bit ones. On this point I must beg to differ, as I have *never* gotten any of the PD programs, from Amicus or Fish disks, or here off the net. All that I have tried have worked fine with Manx (I still try Lattice on a source every now and then just to make sure). Most older sources seem to have been broken by fixes made to bugs in the compiler; I can't say for sure, but you would think it would at least get past the include files without streams of errors! Of Lattice's recent improvements I can't comment; a Lattice C ordered from the mainland that arrived here yesterday was still v3.03, so I'd check the version number before buying (although this might not be such a problem in the States). One of the biggest advanages that Manx has, in my opinion, I very rarely see mentioned: this is Manx's use of pre-compiled symbol tables. For example, say you are compiling the VT100 source, composed of several modules. Each one would begin with several #includes, such as #include For each module to churn through these takes an eternity, and you can't put all of your include files in ram unless you have a meg or two. However, Manx only needs to read these in once, at which time it can save all the #defines, structure definitions, etc. When compiling subsequent modules that reference the symbols, you can have the symbol table loaded in almost instantaneously! The real beauty of this scheme is that it requires no change in the source code; any #includes that your program tries to perform will be disabled if the symbols are already present in memory. Needless to say this results in a dramatic increase in speed. What is the fastest Lattice could compile and link a file that uses the intuition include files, without packing absolutely everything into ram? Manx, with only "cc" and the c.lib library, can do it in 35 seconds. Hardly gives you time to put on the coffee, quite a change after Lattice :-) John