Date   : Tue, 09 Jul 1991 03:18:15 GMT
From   : munnari.oz.au!mel.dit.csiro.au!yarra!cm@uunet.uu.net (Charles Meo)
Subject: Re: small c, assemblers, linkers

In article <1991Jul8.073129.22908@cs.rug.nl> laverman@cs.rug.nl (Bert Laverman)
writes:

>>1. Handbook for the compiler
>I have something you might call a manual, but it was for the TRS-80/TRS-DOS
>version of small-c (waaaay back). There's not much manual you need I think.

This is not so much of a problem. What is a problem (and see the next article
in this group) is hardware/software prerequisites, what cpm support is needed,
how to install it, what constitutes, in short, a fully-configured environment
in which the thing has to run.

For example, while smc211 outputs l80/m80 code, an earlier version (203)
makes LASM/MLOAD code. However, it writes the assembler output on stdout
and as far as I can tell there is no I/O redirection in CPM. And no way to
specify an output file name for the compiler!

This sort of hijinks by software makes life very difficult...

>>2. Where to get L80 and M80
>This is the famous & fabulous Macro-80 Macro Assembler Last time I tried to
>get info about it (few years back) the importer for Microsoft in the Netherlands
>didn't now what it was. I'ld allmost publicly advise you to get a copy, but
>who knows how Microsoft would react... ;-)

Hello Bill? Any comments? 

Lets follow this up by mail 'with an expectation of privacy' :-)

>>3. How to use small-c with LASM and MLOAD instead (or any other combination 
>>of assembler and loader).
>The only important thing is compatibility. Small-c produces M80 assembly.
>The library (did you get it in source?) is probably an L80 ".REL" file.

The library source is there, but given the difficulties mentioned above
I can't quite see what to do with it yet. Also, one would presumably need a 
library manager along the lines of Borland TLIB to make alternate libraries.

>>4. Whether any other CPM utilities are required, and where they are.
>Just an editor.

See last point. How are relocateable libraries made under CPM? For different
assembler/linker combinations?

>UZI was written for a fairly complete compiler. I forgot, sorry. Maybe
>somebody else knows more (the author of UZI? ;-)).

OK, so if anyone knows a better way to go, speak up! I am trying to do this
with all PD/shareware software since one _cannot_ buy cpm software in this 
country any more (as far as I know), and in any case, it seems silly to 
actually spend _real money_ on this stuff!

I've had a look at the ASMUTL stuff at wuarchive, does anyone know if any
of these assembler/linker packages will replace L80/M80? 

And so on...I must be mad!
Chuck