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Technotools (Chestnut CD-ROM)(1993).ISO
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mscheap2
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heap.inf
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1990-03-14
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Introduction to the Replacement Heap Manager
--------------------------------------------
The enclosed software is a library of heap management routines
compatible with MSC 5.1. It consists of the basic heap manager,
the extended capability package, which provides user programs with
control over the behavior of the heap, and the heap debugging package,
which adds error checking routines to the basic heap operations.
The file HEAPDC.COM contains the heap documentation files. It includes
both the reference manual and the background technical information. The
file HEAPLB.EXE contains the libraries, header files, and demonstration
source files. Both of these files are self-extracting archives.
The replacement heap library manages the heap in such a way as to
limit the fragmentation of the heap, and, with the global free list,
optimize the speed of heap operations. It also offers the following
benefits:
- automatic recovery of space wasted in the default data segment
- rational handling of zero-length entries and NULL pointers
- precise control over the interface with the DOS memory manager
- consistent treatment of "far" and "huge" heap entries
- superior performance, reliability, and memory efficiency
The extended capabilities of the replacement heap manager include:
- relocation of heap entries for garbage collection and heap
compaction
- shrinking the heap, and releasing excess memory back to DOS
to maximize the space for spawned programs
- user control over the behavior of the heap manager offers
LIFO, first-fit, and best-fit algorithms
- detailed reports on the state of the heap for analysis of
heap usage and behavior
- extended versions of standard functions for "huge" heap entries
- direct access to the heap control data structures
- heap manager accepts non-DOS memory as a resource
The replacement heap manager is less vulnerable to corruption than
the original. It also provides the following tools for identifying
heap-related problems:
- distinctive heap pointers reduce possibility of heap corruption
- user controlled safety margins on every allocation
- detailed consistency checks, including heap-control-block
reciprocity and safety margin integrity
- read-only heap entries may be monitored for unanticipated changes
- debugging versions of heap functions check heap integrity
and report errors.
- tracing versions of heap functions report heap transactions
including parameters and return values.
Further information is available in the file HEAPINFO.TXT which
contains a detailed description of the operation of the replacement
heap manager, and the file HEAP.MAN which contains a reference manual
for the heap management functions.
FAIR WARNING: This version of the heap manager has no known bugs, and
and passes a battery of tests designed to exercise it.
However, it has not been around very long, so the
possibility exists that there are residual bugs still
in existence.
If you find a problem in this package, please contact:
Lee Winter
Optimal Software
4 Lacy Lane
Nashua, NH 03061-2151
603-880-9844
CIS [73710,406]