Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!ames!hc!lll-winken!uunet!unisoft!bdt!david From: david@bdt.UUCP (David Beckemeyer) Newsgroups: comp.sys.atari.st Subject: Re: argv[0] and Sozobon C Message-ID: <534@bdt.UUCP> Date: 21 Mar 89 22:16:43 GMT References: <748@stag.UUCP> Reply-To: david@bdt.UUCP (David Beckemeyer) Organization: Beckemeyer Development Tools, Oakland, CA Lines: 71 In article <748@stag.UUCP> to_stdnet@stag.UUCP writes: >From: dal@syntel.UUCP (Dale Schumacher) >This is a bit long, but it is an important issue that has lay dormant >for quite some time now. David doesn't tell the WHOLE story... > I still hold to my original article. All the things Dale talks about happended *after* the history I spelled out. I received my first copy of MWC in the Fall of 1986, prior to the 1986 Comdex. The only other compilers available at that time were Alcyon and Megamax. I was working with people from Manx (Aztec C) and I had a Beta release of that compiler *at that time* in the fall of 1986. Dale shows an article by Allan Pratt where Allan points out some problems with the MWC method; here's the header to that message: >| From: apratt@atari.UUCP (Allan Pratt) >| Newsgroups: comp.sys.atari.st >| Subject: Extended Argument Passing Proposal >| Keywords: dlibs, xargs, argument passing >| Message-ID: <891@atari.UUCP> >| Date: 20 Nov 87 21:59:24 GMT >| Reply-To: syntel!dal@stag >| Organization: Atari Corp., Sunnyvale CA This is long *after* version 1.10 of MT C-Shell and Version 2.70 of Micro C-Shell were released, nearly a year after the MWC ARGV format had been chosen. Again I repeat that I chose the MWC ARGV method for the following reasons: 1) Alcyon didn't have any method for argv[0] or > 128 bytes 2) ditto for Megamax 3) Mark Williams C existed and had an extended format. 4) Manx agreed to support the MWC method 5) Atari didn't say anything (yet) Hence the MWC method was adopted in late 1986/early 1987. >As I've already shown, the MT C-Shell adoption of MWC format occured, at >the earliest, in early 1988 and the dLibs/XARGS standard has been around >for at least that long. It's too bad that ATARI has not taken a firm >stand on this issue. I'd like to see them take a stand NOW! Consider >the options carefully and MAKE ONE OF THEM STANDARD! As I stated above, the MWC method was adopted well before 1988 and Atari didn't make a fuss about it until it had been in use for at least one year. I agree with the complaints about it, but it's all there was at the time. I'm still not *changing* it until *everyone* agrees on something becuase what's to say somebody won't change their mind again next week. And I agree that Atari should take a much stronger leadership role on such issues - but it may be a little late for that now. No matter what they decide now, I expect there will still be a lot of programs that "do it their way" and a full conversion could take quite a while, especially since many vendors are no longer supportting their ST products. > >-- > Dale Schumacher 399 Beacon Ave. > (alias: Dalnefre') St. Paul, MN 55104 > ...bungia!cctb!syntel!dal United States of America > "I may be competitive, but I'm never ruthless" > -- David Beckemeyer (david@bdt.UUCP) | "Lester Moore - Four slugs from a .44 Beckemeyer Development Tools | no Les, no more." 478 Santa Clara Ave. Oakland, CA 94610 | - Headstone at Boot Hill UUCP: {uunet,ucbvax}!unisoft!bdt!david | Tombstone, AZ