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From: steve@nuchat.UUCP (Steve Nuchia)
Newsgroups: comp.unix.wizards
Subject: Re: multiple-machine executables for Suns?
Message-ID: <288@nuchat.UUCP>
Date: Thu, 6-Aug-87 15:51:50 EDT
Article-I.D.: nuchat.288
Posted: Thu Aug  6 15:51:50 1987
Date-Received: Sat, 15-Aug-87 07:38:06 EDT
References: <1853@megaron.arizona.edu> <12646@sol.hi.UUCP>
Organization: Public Access - Houston, Tx
Lines: 31
Summary: common byte-code interpreter

In article <12646@sol.hi.UUCP>, kurt@hi.UUCP (Kurt Zeilenga) writes:
> But more seriously, if I was going to design an a.out format that could
> "run" everywhere I would have the compilers, loaders, etc output a psuedo
> code and then have the kernal interpet the code.  This will keep the
> a.out small, but the will take FOREVER to execute. 

This is, of course, a viable idea.  There are a large class of unix
utilities for which a well selected p-code implementation would
be "fast enough".  If there were a primitive for each standard library
routine plus a few more a large number of the binaries posted could
be portable.  Actually, they could almost all be portable but I'll
grant that you might not like to have to sit through a run of some of
them.

This is roughly a 90% solution to the problem that started this
thread, but it solves a few others in the process.  It results in
smaller, portable "binaries".  It allows the owner of the code to
get the program to the users with a minimum of hassle.

Has anyone done a simple stack machine that runs C programs
reasonably well?  coupled with a good set of file, screen,
string, and math primitives and given a compiler targeted
for it it would be interresting to see how many programs
were tolerable under it.

I've done such things in the past, but I don't own the code
so I'd have to regenerate it.  Is there enough interrest out
ther to justify the experiment?  Anyone want to help?

	Steve Nuchia
	{{soma,academ}!uhnix1,sun!housun}!nuchat!steve