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Important C++ Tools.

`cfront`

gcc/g++

Free Software Foundation's is a very interesting initiative: they want hi tech, advanced software not to become exclusive to hi money corporations. They created the GNU Project, hosted at the famous ftp://prep.ai.mit.edu, where a bunch of highly talented programmers offers free software.

It is free, but it is not public domain software. They have what is called a copyleft, as opposed to the common copyright. This idea, exposed in a quite readable legalese in COPYING, briefly states that everyone can freely copy and use GNU software. However, if you change it, then you must offer the changes to public domain too.

It is amazing, but even being free, GNU software uses to be faster and more stable than commercial software. The gcc compiler includes an extension to the ANSI language, called GNU C, that allows for instance, arrays of size known only at runtime, like in

        void some_func (const int buf_siz)
        {
            char buff [ exp (3*log (buf_siz)) ];
           /* ... stuff */
        }

Besides ANSI C and GNU C, gcc also compiles C++ and an interesting language called Objective C, an object-oriented, Smalltalk-like extension of C. Objective C is the native language of NeXT operating environment. Probably we'll hear a lot about it in the near future, as Apple bought NeXT.

The latest version of gcc is gcc-2.8.1.tar.gz, released in March 1997. It is a very huge file, with more than 8 MB of size in source code. So, unless, you have a fast, stable connection, don't try to download it straight: look for another site that may have it in slices.

The gcc distribution is so big because it includes the full source for the gcc optimizing compiler and runtime library, and makefiles for several platforms.

It is amazing again, but gcc is easier to install than several commercial packages I've seen.

gnu-win32

gnu-win32 is the name of a gcc port to Win32, done by Cygnus. Nowadays, it has an important help of a bunch of talented programmers, like Sergey Okhapin and Mumit Kahn.

It is actively discussed by the gnu-win32 mailing list.

DJGPP

The famous port of gcc to MS-DOS. It was done by DJ Delorie and friends. "DJ" are not the initials of two names: the notable programmer name is really DJ, pronounced "dee jay."

Visual C++

Microsoft's Visual C++ homepage.

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These pages are under permanent construction.

Acknowledgements:

Background Patterns by J. Boersma.
Timothy Nall who believes that C++ Doesn't Really Exist, reviewed the text of these pages.
I thank him any paragraph that is correctly written. As I hadn't followed all his suggestions, any error is my own fault.
Prof. Nall is also the author of a very interesting and informative site named The ELT Two Cents Café, dedicated to teaching English as a foreign language.

You can reach me by e-mail at: HFernandes@GeoCities.Com

These pages were accessed times since 1998/10/05.

Last altered: 1998/10/05 21:03:54