OS/2 Shareware BBS: 14 Text/14-Text.zip/EMX31.ZIP/EMXST31.DOC

Text File | 1993-01-18 | 24KB | 542 lines

A FREE GNU SOFTWARE-DEVELOPMENT SYSTEM FOR OS/2 V2.0

by Brooke P. Anderson

This is version 3.1 of this document, last modified on 1/18/93.

Brooke Anderson
1155 E. Del Mar #312
Pasadena, CA  91106
USA
Phone:  [phone]
GEnie:  BROOKE
Internet:  [e-mail]

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1.0 Introduction
2.0 How to get it
3.0 How to install it
     3.1 Unz50x32.exe
     3.2 Whlinf8f.zip
     3.3 Gnumk362.zip
     3.4 Gnudev.zip, emxdev.zip, gppdev.zip, and objcdev.zip
     3.5 The final steps
4.0 How to use it
     4.1 Using info
     4.2 Using the compiler
     4.3 Using the debugger
     4.4 Using make
     4.5 Using the assembler
5.0 Where to get more information
6.0 Conclusions

Appendix 1:  Optional packages
Appendix 2:  Sources of distribution
Appendix 3:  Distributing this document

1.0 INTRODUCTION

This document describes a free GNU software-development system
for OS/2 v2.0.  It tells you how to acquire all of the necessary
software, how to install it, how to start using it, and where to
look for more information.

The GNU software-development system includes a C and C++
compiler, a debugger, an assembler, a make utility (for
automating the compilation of programs made of many source
files), and a hypertext reader (for reading the documentation).
The compiler generates full 32-bit, optimized code, and it
supports all of the OS/2 API calls, so you software developers
out there can use it for PM programming, manipulating semaphores,
manipulating threads, using named pipes, etc.  Optional packages
include curses (a standard library for manipulating screenfuls of
text and for moving the cursor), a collection of sample programs,
and full source code for the system.

GNU software is originally developed by the Free Software
Foundation, an organization which produces a lot of free software
for UNIX.  After the Free Software Foundation releases the UNIX
versions, people often port them to many other operation systems
(such as OS/2).  Despite the fact that the software is free, the
UNIX community considers it a standard and often prefers it over
other products because of its high quality.  The compilers, for
example, produce well-optimized code.

Sometimes, there is more than one port of a GNU program.  For
OS/2, there are two different ports of the GNU compiler (called
"gcc").  This document discusses only one of them (the EMX port)
since the EMX port provides faster floating point routines and
since it works with a debugger.  This document deals with version
0.8f of the EMX port, which is the latest version.  People
frequently produce new versions of and enhancements for the GNU
software and the ports based on it.

IMPORTANT:  I have not tested the software on FAT file systems.
I think it will work, but I have not checked all of the file
names to make sure they comply with the egregious 8.3 file-naming
convention.

2.0 HOW TO GET IT

The full software-development system (and the various optional
packages described in Appendix 1) are available from a variety of
sources.  If you have access to Internet, you can get the files
from anonymous-ftp sites.  In the USA, the main anonymous-ftp
site for OS/2 is ftp-os2.nmsu.edu.  In Germany, the main
anonymous-ftp site for OS/2 is rusinfo.rus.uni-stuttgart.de.
Also, see Appendix 3 for a list of people who are willing to
distribute the whole system through regular mail.

You need to obtain the following files (the sizes of the files
are listed next to the names):  emxdev.zip (620k), gnudev.zip
(873k), gppdev.zip (944k), gobjcdev.zip (426k), gnumk362.zip
(255k), whlinf8f.zip (814k), and unz50x32.exe (114k).  This file
(emxst31.doc) is available in emxst31.zip (10k).

On ftp-os2.nmsu.edu, these files are available in
pub/os2/2.0/programming/emx-0.8f -- except for emxst31.zip,
whlinf8f.zip, and the correct version of gnumk362.zip, which are
temporarily in pub/uploads.  On rusinfo.rus.uni-stuttgart.de,
check in pub/os2/emx-0.8f.

3.0 HOW TO INSTALL IT

The following subsections describe how to install the various
pieces of the GNU software-development system.  Go through the
procedures step by step as described -- the order is important.
Don't feel compelled to read through any of the readme files or
other documentation spit out during the unarchiving process -- I
think you will have a much easier time if you go through this
document beforehand.

3.1 UNZ50X32.EXE

You will need unzip v5.0 to unarchive the files.  Earlier
versions of unzip (including PKZip versions earlier than 1.9)
will not work.

To unarchive unz50x32.exe, you simply move it to a convenient
directory and type "unz50x32".  Add the name of the directory
unzip is in to your path.  For example, I have unzip in
c:\apps\unzip, so I appended "c:\apps\unzip;" to the "SET PATH"
statement in my config.sys file.  Then reboot.  Now, you can
unarchive any zip archive by typing "unzip filename", where
"filename.zip" is the name of the archive.

3.2 WHLINF8F.ZIP

Copy whlinf8f.zip to any convenient directory and unarchive it.
It will disgorge a program called "info.exe" (the hypertext
reader), several auxiliary files, and a bunch of documentation
files for itself, the compiler, the debugger, and make.

3.3 GNUMK362.ZIP

Copy gnumk362.zip to any convenient directory and unarchive it.
The archive will create the directory ".\make" and disgorge
several files into it.  In other words, if you unarchive
gnumk362.zip in the directory "\apps", the process will create
the directory "\apps\make".  You can delete the info directory
(the one in the make directory) as its contents are duplicated in
whlinf8f.zip.

Add the name of the directory make is in to your path statement
in config.sys.  (I have make in c:\apps\make, so I appended
"c:\apps\make;" to the "SET PATH" statement in my config.sys.)

3.4 GNUDEV.ZIP, EMXDEV.ZIP, GPPDEV.ZIP, AND OBJCDEV.ZIP

These archives create the directory ".\emx" and a bunch of
directories under that.  Thus, unarchive the files from the
directory in which you want this emx directory.  (In other words,
if you unarchive gnudev.zip in the directory "\apps", the process
will create \apps\emx, \apps\emx\bin, \apps\emx\lib, and many
other such directories.)

3.5 THE FINAL STEPS

Now, you need to modify your config.sys file.  The examples below
are from my config.sys file, and I have the emx directory
installed under c:\apps.  Thus, my system has the directories
"c:\apps\emx\dll", "c:\apps\emx\lib", "c:\apps\emx\include",
"c:\apps\emx\bin", and so on -- you will need to modify the
following examples so that the directories are specified
correctly.

First, you need to specify in your libpath the location of
emx.dll and other dll files.  In my config.sys, I have

LIBPATH=.;C:\OS2\DLL;C:\OS2\MDOS;C:\;C:\OS2\APPS\DLL;c:\apps\emx\dll;

Second, add the name of the emx\bin directory to your path
statement in config.sys.  (I appended "c:\apps\emx\bin;" to the
"SET PATH" statement in my config.sys.)

Third, you need to set a few environmental variables so that the
compiler knows where to find and how to use various files:

set C_INCLUDE_PATH=c:/apps/emx/include
set LIBRARY_PATH=c:/apps/emx/lib
set CPLUS_INCLUDE_PATH=C:/apps/emx/include.cpp;C:/apps/emx/include
set PROTODIR=c:/apps/emx/include.cpp/gen
set OBJC_INCLUDE_PATH=c:/apps/emx/include
set TERM=mono
set TERMCAP=c:/apps/emx/etc/termcap.dat

IMPORTANT:  you need to use forward slashes ("/") and not
backward slashes ("\") when setting these environmental
variables.  However, do NOT use forward slashes in your libpath
statement.

Now, reboot your machine so that these definitions take effect.
Then, go into an OS/2 window and type "cd \apps\emx\lib" (or
whatever you would type to get to emx\lib), and type "omflib".
This completes the installation process.

4.0 HOW TO USE IT

Now, you are ready to use info (the hypertext reader), to compile
programs, to debug programs, and to use make.  The next
subsections discuss each of these actions in turn.

4.1 USING INFO

Go into the directory in which info.exe resides.  Type "info".
You are now looking at a screen that has some information on the
top half (information such as "Typing 'd' returns here, 'q'
quits, '?' lists all info commands, 'h' gives a primer for
first-timers . . .") and a list of subjects near the bottom
(subjects such as "Info", "Make," "Gcc", "Gdb", etc.).

Go ahead and type "h" for a tutorial.  The most basic functions
to remember are:  type "q" to quit, type "?" to get a list of
commands, hit the space bar or PgDn key to go down a page, press
the Del key or the PgUp key to go up a page, press "n" to go to
the next node (think of a node as being a collection of one or
more pages dealing with a single topic), press "p" to go to the
previous node, use the up and down arrow keys to highlight
choices of new nodes to jump to, and press enter to jump to the
highlighted node.

Just play around with it a little while, and you will get the
hang of it.  Type "d" to get back to the main directory, use the
down arrow to highlight "Gcc", press enter, press the down arrow
to highlight "Contributors", press enter, scan through the pages
of text by hitting the PgDn key a couple of times, type "?" to
see a list of commands, type "p" a couple of times, etc.

4.2 USING THE COMPILER

To compile a C source file called "myprog.c", type "gcc -o
myprog.exe myprog.c".  The -o switch tells gcc that it should
call the resulting executable "myprog.exe".  To compile the C++
source file "myprog.cc", type "gcc -o myprog.exe myprog.cc
-lgpp".  C++ source files should have the extension ".cc".  The
-lgpp switch tells gcc to link the C++ libraries.  You can also
tell gcc to optimize your code by using the -O switch.  There are
two levels of optimization (-O and -O2, the highest being -O2).
Thus, for the fastest-executing code (at the expense of time to
compile and of size of the executable), you would type "gcc -O2
-o myprog.exe myprog.c" for myprog.c and "gcc -O2 -o myprog.exe
myprog.cc -lgpp" for myprog.cc.

Note:  Specifying "-o myprog.exe" is important.  If you don't
specify ".exe" as the suffix of the output file name, the
compiler will generate a UNIX-style executable which will not run
under OS/2 even if you subsequently rename the file so that it
has a .exe extension.

4.3 USING THE DEBUGGER

To debug a program, you need to compile it with the -g switch:
"gcc -g -o myprog.exe myprog.c" for myprog.c and likewise for
myprog.cc.  After compiling, you then type "gdb myprog.exe" to
start the debugger.  Type "h" at the debugger prompt to get a
list of help topics.  gdb supports all sorts of breakpoints
(including conditional ones), and you can watch variables, set
variables to different values, etc.  For example, to get help on
running programs from within the gdb, you can type "help
running".  That will give you a list of commands such as run,
kill, step, etc.  You can get help on individual commands by
typing, for example, "help step".

The following is a sample compile and debug session.  Go into the
emx\test directory and type "gcc -g -o hello.exe hello.cc -lgpp"
to compile hello.cc.  Type "hello" to run it, to see if the
compiler is functioning.  The program will print "Hello, world!"
on the screen.  Now type "gdb hello.exe" to start gdb.  At the
prompt "(gdb)", type "list main" to list the function "main".
Then type "break 5" to cause execution to stop at line 5 in the
main function.  Type "run" to start execution -- it will stop at
line 5.  Type "print argc" to see the value of the variable
"argc".  Type "step" to run line 5 then halt execution at the
next line.  Type "quit" to quit.  To list a function (main(),
say) that is longer than a screenful, type "list main"; then type
"list" again to list the next screenful of main.

4.4 USING MAKE

Assume you have a program made of the following source files:
"myprog1.c" and "myprog2.c".  You might manually compile these
files by typing "gcc -o myprog.exe myprog1.c myprog2.c".  Of
course, if you change only one of the files, typing such a
command causes the recompiling of both source files.  During
development, this could be tiresome if the files take a long time
to compile.  A better way would be to type "gcc -c myprog1.c"
which compiles myprog1.c into the object file "myprog1.o" (the -c
switch tells gcc to make an object file), then to type "gcc -c
myprog2.c" to generate myprog2.o, and finally to type "gcc -o
myprog.exe myprog1.o myprog2.o".  This way, if you change only
myprog1.c, you can recompile it and relink it with myprog2.o to
create myprog.exe (skipping the "gcc -c myprog2.c" step).  This
will be much faster if the source files take a long time to
compile (or if you have a lot of source files).

Of course, doing all this typing is tiresome, too.  Also, if
myprog1.c happens to depend on myprog1.h, and you change
myprog1.h, you must recompile myprog1.c.  Thus, you have to keep
track of all the file dependencies in order to know, after
changing one header file, which other files need to be
recompiled.

Fortunately, make takes care of all of this automatically.  All
you have to do is create one text file that describes the various
dependencies and the various steps to compile the program.  You
name the text file "Makefile".  From then on, whenever you type
"make", make examines the Makefile, looks for files which have
changed since the last compile, recompiles any files which depend
on the changed files, and relinks everything into a new
executable.

For example, suppose that myprog.exe is made from myprog1.c and
myprog2.c, that myprog1.c contains the lines "#include
"myprog1.c"" and "#include "mainhead.h"", and that myprog2.c
includes myprog2.h and mainhead.h.  The Makefile describing all
of this is

myprog.exe: myprog1.o myprog2.o
     gcc -o myprog.exe myprog1.o myprog2.o

myprog1.o: myprog1.c myprog1.h mainhead.h
     gcc -c myprog1.c

myprog2.o: myprog2.c myprog2.h mainhead.h
     gcc -c myprog2.c

The first line shows that myprog.exe depends on myprog1.o and
myprog2.o.  If either of those has changed since the last time
make was invoked, make will relink them to create myprog.exe by
giving the command under the first line.  The fourth line shows
that myprog1.o depends on myprog1.c, myprog1.h, and mainhead.h.
If any of these three files have changed since the last time make
was run, make will recompile myprog1.o by issuing the command on
line five.  It will also realize that myprog.o has changed, that
myprog.exe depends on myprog.o, and will relink myprog.exe.  If
mainhead.h is changed, make will recompile and relink everything
since myprog1.o needs to be changed, myprog2.o needs to be
changed, and thus myprog.exe needs to be changed.

The example above shows the general form of a Makefile.  You give
a target (like "myprog.exe" or "myprog1.o") followed by a colon,
followed by a space, followed by a space-delimited list of files
the target depends on.  The next line specifies the action to be
taken when any of the dependencies change:  the first character
MUST be a tab (not just a bunch of spaces used for indentation);
then you type the command make should issue.  A Makefile is just
a list of such targets, dependencies, and actions.

4.5 USING THE ASSEMBLER

The compiler provided with this system (gcc) can handle not only
C and C++ code but assembly as well.  It can also generate
assembly language from C or C++ source.  To assemble and link
assembly-language programs, type "gcc -o myprog.exe myprog.s"
where "myprog.exe" is the name of the executable and where
"myprog.s" is the name of the source-code file.
Assembly-language source-code files should have the extension
".s".  To generate assembly from C code, type "gcc -S myprog.c"
where "myprog.c" is the name of the C-source-code file -- the
resulting assembly language will be put into the file "myprog.s".

5.0 WHERE TO GET MORE INFORMATION

The GNU software-development system does not come with
documentation like that you would get with, for example, Borland
C++.  However, emxdev.doc (in the emx\doc directory) does contain
a complete list of library functions, including a list of headers
you need to include, what the functions do, and what parameters
they accept.

Also, since the C compiler is ANSI-C compliant (or at least close
to it) and since the C++ compiler is close to AT&T-C++-2.0
compliant, you can use just about any reference manuals for ANSI
C and AT&T C++ 2.0.  I use the ones I got with an old version of
Borland Turbo C++.  If you don't have such manuals, you should be
able to find something suitable in a bookstore.  If you want a C
reference manual, I recommend C:  A REFERENCE MANUAL, by S. P.
Harbison and G. L. Steele, Jr. (Prentice-Hall, 1991).  If you are
just learning C or C++, there is a large number of books to
choose from, and you shouldn't have any trouble finding one that
is suitable.

For those of you developing applications that use the PM or that
use special OS/2 functions, the system DOES support all of the
OS/2 API functions, including ones for semaphores, PM
programming, named pipes, threads, etc., and it supports Kbd,
Mou, and Vio functions.  See emxdev.doc (in the emx\doc
directory) for a list of the supported functions.  The
documentation does not contain a manual on how to use these API
calls -- you need an OS/2 programming book for that.  For
information on programming the PM, take a look at OS/2 2.0
PRESENTATION MANAGER GPI:  A PROGRAMMING GUIDE TO TEXT, GRAPHICS,
AND PRINTING, by G. C. E. Winn (Van Norstrand Reinhold, 1992); or
LEARNING TO PROGRAM OS/2 2.0 PRESENTATION MANAGER BY EXAMPLE:
PUTTING THE PIECES TOGETHER, by Stephen Knight (Van Norstrand
Reinhold, 1992).  You can also get the IBM redbooks (which are
quite economical and of which there is a large assortment of
titles).  [I  will add more titles when I find out more
information.  Does anyone have recommendations for books on the
OS/2 API in general, not just the PM?]

For using assembly language, the best choice would be a book
about assembly-language programming in OS/2, supplemented perhaps
with a book on programming the 80386 or 80486.  [Again, does
anyone have specific recommendations?]

Also, way back when you were unarchiving, you might have been
itching to examine the various readme files and other
documentation.  Now is the time to do that to your heart's
content.  Browse through the files in the emx/doc directory and
the information available from the hypertext reader.

Additional sources of information include GEnie (the OS/2
category of the IBMPC bulletin board), Usenet news (the
comp.os.os2 newsgroups), and CompuServe.  These are places where
you can exchange information with other people who use and
program for OS/2.  In particular, CompuServe is one of the
official homes for the OS/2 developers' assistance program.  If
you are a member of the program, IBM will (for only $15) provide
you with a CD that contains a beta version of the software
development kit (including the C and C++ compiler and debugger
and a full set of on-line documentation), a beta version of OS/2
(which contains enhancements such as Windows 3.1 compatibility),
and many other goodies.  For more information, type "go os2dap"
on CompuServe or call 1-407-982-6408.  The people at
1-800-3-ibm-os2 might also be able to provide more information.

6.0 CONCLUSIONS

I wrote this to help people get started with a free -- yet
powerful -- 32-bit software-development system for OS/2.  For (at
most) the price of a few books, you have a full programming
system for C++, C, and assembly language.  For the additional
price of an OS/2 programming book, you have a bargain-basement
SDK.

If you find errors in this document, or if you have suggestions
for its improvement, please let me know.  My GEnie address is
"BROOKE", and my Internet address is "[e-mail]".

APPENDIX 1:  OPTIONAL PACKAGES

There are three optional packages you can get for this
software-development system, packages which are not necessary but
which can nevertheless be important.  All of them are in the
pub/os2/2.0/programming/emx-0.8f directory on ftp-os2.nmsu.edu.
On rusinfo.rus.uni-stuttgart.de, they are probably available in a
directory such as pub/os2/emx-0.8f.

The first package contains curses.  Curses is a library of
functions that allow you to move the cursor around on the screen,
manipulate screenfuls of text, and get input.  You need the files
"bsddev.zip" and "bsddoc.zip".  The source code is available in
"bsdsrc.zip".

The second package contains full source code to the
software-development system.  Most people do not need the source
code to everything, but the source code to the libraries (i.e.,
to all the functions) is sometimes useful.  The source code to
the C libraries is in "emxlib.zip", and the source to the C++
libraries is in "gccsrc.zip".  install.doc (in the emx\doc
directory) gives the names of all the other relevant archives.

The third package is a collection of sample and test programs
that you can use to test the compiler and to learn about various
aspects of programming.  These programs are in the file
"emxtest.zip."

APPENDIX 2:  SOURCES OF DISTRIBUTION

This document already described some places from which you can
get the necessary archives:  ftp-os2.nmsu.edu and
rusinfo.rus.uni-stuttgart.de.  However, some people don't have
access to these sites or don't have modems fast enough to
download megabytes of data in a reasonable amount of time.  For
these people, I am including the following list of people who are
willing to distribute the whole system through regular mail.
Keep in mind that people might change their prices, cease
distributing the software, move, etc., so contact them first to
get current details.  Make sure you ask them if they have the
latest version of the EMX port (which is currently version 0.8f).

Brooke Anderson
1155 E. Del Mar #312
Pasadena, CA  91106
USA
Phone:  [phone]
GEnie:  BROOKE
Internet:  [e-mail]
Cost:  $18 in US; in other countries, shipping + US$10
Provides:  the basic set of archives and bsddev.zip, bsddoc.zip,
bsdsrc.zip, emxtest.zip, emxlib.zip, and gccsrc.zip.

Juergen Egeling
Werderstr. 41
7500 Karlsruhe
Germany
Phone:  [phone]
FAX:  [phone]
BITNET:  ry90@dkauni2
Internet:  [e-mail]
X.400:  S=ry90;OU=ibm3090;OU=rz;P=uni-karlsruhe;A=dbp;C=de
Cost:  disks + shipping + DM 25

Wey J. Ho
Department of Physics
Monash University
Clayton
VIC 3168
Australia
Phone:  [phone] (or Australia [phone])
Fax:  [phone] (or Australia [phone])
Internet:  [e-mail]
Cost:  disks + shipping + AU$10

Doug Robison
1311 Webster
Chillicothe, MO  64601
USA
Phone:  [phone]
GEnie:  D.ROBISON
Cost:  disks + shipping + US$5

If you would like to get on this list and if you have access to
Internet or an on-line service, just send me your name, a
description of how people can contact you (including your e-mail
address), how much money you want for the job (such as "$20",
"disks + shipping + $30", or whatever you want to charge), and
what you are offering for that price.  It is helpful to have a
list that includes people in various countries.

APPENDIX 3:  DISTRIBUTING THIS DOCUMENT

I give permission to use, to distribute, and to copy this
document freely.  If you want to upload it to any bulletin-board
or on-line service, please do so.  I do update this document
occasionally (and put the latest version on GEnie and
ftp-os2.nmsu.edu), so you might want to make sure you have the
latest version before distributing it.


                             The End