Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!rutgers!bdmrrr!davis
From: davis@bdmrrr.bdm.com (Arthur Davis x4675)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac
Subject: Re: Does a Mac command-line file interface exist?
Summary: MPW CLI
Message-ID: <1101@bdmrrr.bdm.com>
Date: 19 May 89 02:47:46 GMT
References: <8410@phoenix.Princeton.EDU> <13478@dartvax.Dartmouth.EDU> <7954@batcomputer.tn.cornell.edu>
Organization: BDM Corp., McLean, Virginia
Lines: 50

In article <7954@batcomputer.tn.cornell.edu>, mha@batcomputer.tn.cornell.edu (Mark H. Anbinder) writes:
> 
> I was going to mention Aztec C's Shell program if you hadn't beat me to
> it. :-)  This program actually does do a fair job of emulating a UNIX
> shell, providing many of the basic commands, and allowing some use of
> environment modification using SET parameters.
> 
> The main problem that prevents the use of this shell in the manner that
> the original posting described, as an add-on to the visual interface that
> could be called up on the occasions when it'd be more useful, is that
> Aztec C's Shell does not run properly under MultiFinder.
> 
> It's entirely possible that I'm having trouble with it under MultiFinder
> due to some odd combination of the inits and so forth that I'm using, so
> if anyone HAS had success with it under MultiFinder I'd like to hear
> about it.  I don't think so, though; I've done extensive testing trying
> to get it working under MF so I can use it more extensively.


I have Aztec C and it indeed is not at all Multifinder compatible.
I suppose this is balanced off by the fact that Aztec C can run on an
old 512K Mac, and that includes the source level debugger too.

If you are looking for a command line interface and MultiFinder friendliness,
you might consider MPW.  The CLI is not unix;  merely reminiscent of it
on the odd occasion.  But it is very powerful and VERY MF-friendly.  Forget
it on a 1 meg machine though.  If you have 2.5 MBs or better of RAM, you 
might really benefit from MPW.  The MPW packages from APDA are kind of
pricey, but you can get excellent deals from 3rd party sources.  There is
an MPW version of Aztec C for example, which goes for the same $99 at
mail order prices.  TML Pascal comes with the latest MPW (3.0) and is
available mail order for the same price I think.  Neither offer includes
the MPW Assembler; only the compiler in question.  Aztec offers inline
assembler though if that is important to you.

By the way, the "forget it on a 1 MB machine" comment above refers to
using MPW under the MultiFinder.  MPW 3.0 does fine on a 1 MB machine under
the Finder.  The separately-available source-level debugger for MPW (SADE)
requires 2.5 MB of RAM and the MultiFinder.

P.S.  The not-a-sales-pitch department:

I don't work for, nor am I related to anyone in

   Apple
   Manx
   TML

I just happen to own MPW and Aztec C and have heard and seen nice things
about TML Pascal.