Dirk wrote > 2017-04-08 0:30 GMT+02:00 Bailey, Jim <[email protected]>: > > > I have been watching the listserv for replies to this post, but I haven't seen > any... > > > > I constantly use pmx and I would be upset if anything happened to prevent > me from using it. On the other hand, there is an old saying "Never ask > someone to do something which you wouldn't do yourself." Consequently, I > would like to volunteer for the project. > > > > I have been using LuaLaTeX for about a year (in fact, it was this listserv > which put me onto it) and so I have some knowledge of how it works. This > was my introduction of Lua, most of my programming has been in C. > > > > I would like to know how you envisage the project. It seems to me that it > would involve replacing the Pascal and Fortran programs with equivalent > ones written in Lau. The user would then load a generic .tex file, insert the > name of the file to be processed, and compile that document. TeX would > load the Lua script(s) which would translate the .mtx/.pmx files to a .tex file, > and then TeX would produce a .pdf file. Does that sound about right? > > > > So the project would involve: > > 1. Produce Lua scripts for .mtx, .pmx. These are best done > > independently, and one would be useful without the other; and 2. Write > the TeX file which calls the Lua scripts and produces the .pdf file (this would > be easy). > > > > I won't be able to do anything until the end of May, but I would like to start > thinking about it. > > I suggest we do M-Tx first. I know it better :-), PMX is six times the size, and it > is easier to see the big picture in Pascal than in Fortran. Conquer the hill > before attempting the mountain. > > Also, there is the intriguing possibility of exploiting the Lua unit of Free > Pascal, gradually migrating functionality to Lua (starting with its vastly > superior string handling and I/O library) until the Lua is just one step away > from being standalone. > > Dirk >
If I'm reading this right, Dirk and Jim are contemplating translating PMX into Lua. If so, I have no doubt that would ultimately make it easier for someone to maintain and expand it, but I'm almost as certain that person would not be me...over the years I've never even mustered the energy to learn the first bit about C, C++, or Pascal, let alone Lua. I've been programming in FORTRAN for over 40 years and have gotten pretty comfortable with it. In the 20 years or so since its inception, PMX has ballooned to over 25000 lines. As I approach age 72 and retirement, I've imagined I'd have more time to address PMX issues as they arose. It would be a massive job to convert PMX to another language. Nevertheless, if Dirk and Jim do decide to pursue that, I'll be glad to help however I can, although I must confess that more and more I need to spend considerable time reconstructing the existing logic before I can make ongoing modifications. --Don ------------------------------- [email protected] mailing list If you want to unsubscribe or look at the archives, go to http://tug.org/mailman/listinfo/tex-music
