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From: steve@pnet51.cts.com (Steve Yelvington)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.atari.st
Subject: Re: Comment on PD/Shareware C compiler
Message-ID: <1048@orbit.UUCP>
Date: 30 Apr 89 23:45:20 GMT
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Organization: People-Net [pnet51], Minneapolis, MN.
Lines: 56

jtang@orion.cf.uci.edu (James Tang) writes:
>I am looking for a C compiler.  So far I have come across MJC 2.0, GCC-134, 
>and Sozoban compiler. (MJC - Mark Johnson C)  Anyone care to comment on each
>of the C compiler?  It's overall performence, versatility, and compatibility.
>Any recommendation?
>
>Any comment would be appreciated.  Thanks in advance!
>
>james
>
>Usenet:	jtang@orion.cf.uci.edu
>Bitnet: JWTang@UCIVMSA.BITNET

 
I've used two out of three, so...
  
Mark Johnson C is limited in comparison with the other two, although it is a
fine compiler in comparison with anything you'll find for free in the IBM-PC
world. The generic (Unix-like) library covers only the bare necessities. The
GEM bindings appear to implement most of the AES and VDI functions. MJC uses
two passes to create an executable file. The first is a combined preprocessor,
parser and code generator that emits a very terse assembly language of Mark's
own design. The second is a combined assembler-linker that creates a .TTP,
.TOS or .PRG file. The libraries are maintained as assembly source code, so
throughput suffers somewhat. I found MJC to be more than adequate for learning
C and the only compiler that I would recommend to someone with a 520 and a
single-sided disk drive. (It was developed on such a machine.)
 
Sozobon C is a far better compiler, definitely of professional quality. It
appears to generate code that is superior (smaller/faster) than that created
by Laser C and generally similar in size/performance to that created by Mark
Williams C. It includes dLibs, the C library that Dale Schumacher developed to
circumvent the shortcomings of the Atari/DRI/Alcyon compiler's library. The
whole package is highly compatible with Alcyon -- you can use Alcyon
libraries, and vice versa -- and complete, with a full complement of
utilities. The compiler comes complete with source code to itself, the
libraries, and all the utilities, so you can modify *anything* in the package.
The current distribution does not include GEM bindings, but two sets of GEM
bindings (GEMFAST and GEMQ) are available (also free). Sozobon is being ported
to Minix, and a whole raft of improvements is in the works.
 
GCC is the GNU C Compiler from the Free Software Foundation. I have not used
it, but by reputation it is an excellent compiler whose primary sin is the
requirement of a lot of RAM -- you probably need a Mega 2 or better to be
happy with it.
 
Incidentally, all three of these compilers require that you use a command-line
processor (not supplied). I'm working on a GEM front-end for the Sozobon CC
program, and if I ever get the TEDINFO structure untangled in my own head,
I'll release it.
 
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