This is just to open up the question of which compilers/tools to use in such
Win32 porting projects like OpenSA. It is more of a long-term thinking than
something that need to be addressed soon. This said, here are my thoughts :
a) I have seen that a lot of Win32 porting effort of various projects, do
standardize around Microsoft Visual C++. This may very easily introduce many
conditionnals, tighting the source code very easily to this commercial
compiler and tools.
b) On the contrary there are some other free compilers available on Win32.
And a fairly good one, certainly more C++ Standards compliant by the way, is
even offered for free by Borland/Inprise for some monthes. That free offer
is only a command-line compiler and linker and some tools and basic C/C++
libraries. Its main problem was that NO debugging environnement was offered.
On the other side that compiler is not a "toy". It is the back-end of the
Borland C++ Builder 5.
c) Borland/Inprise now also offers a TurboDebugger for free, to go with that
free C/C++ compiler.
I know my talk is focused and biased toward that particular compiler.
But I wonder if it wouldn't be profitable for open-source projects to more
heavily rely, if not on open-source compilers and tools, at least on binary
ones that are made available for free instead of purely commercial versions.
As I said at the beginning : that's just an open suggestion on my behalf. No
polemic intended here.
Sincerely yours,
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Olivier Mascia T.I.P. Group SA
[EMAIL PROTECTED] www.tipgroup.com
Director, Chief Software Architect +32 65 401111
