PD Collection CD 1/PD Collection CD 1.iso/programer2/icon/Docs/Ipd132

Text File | 1990-07-19 | 23KB | 793 lines

                  Version 8 of Icon for MS-DOS

                        Ralph E. Griswold
    Department of Computer Science, The University of Arizona



1.__Introduction

   Version 8 of Icon for MS-DOS should run on any computer run-
ning MS-DOS 3.0 or higher.  Math coprocessors are supported and
used if present; otherwise software emulation is used.  Approxi-
mate 500K of free RAM is needed to run Icon satisfactorily.  Two
versions of Icon's executor system are provided. One supports
arithmetic on integers of unlimited magnitude and the other does
not. The latter is smaller and can be used if you do not have
enough RAM for the former.

   Version 8 of Icon for MS-DOS is distributed on 5.25" or 3.5"
diskettes, which include executable binary files, a few test pro-
grams, and documentation in machine-readable form. Printed docu-
mentation is included with diskettes distributed by the Icon Pro-
ject at the University of Arizona.

   This implementation of Icon is in the public domain and may be
copied and used without restriction.  The Icon Project makes no
warranties of any kind as to the correctness of this material or
its suitability for any application.  The responsibility for the
use of Icon lies entirely with the user.


2.__Documentation

   The basic reference for the Icon programming language is the
book

     The Icon Programming Language, second edition, Ralph E.
     Griswold and Madge T. Griswold, Prentice-Hall, Inc., Engle-
     wood Cliffs, New Jersey, 1990. 365 pages. ISBN 0-13-447889-
     4. $29.95.

This book is available from the Icon Project at the University of
Arizona. It also can be ordered through any bookstore that han-
dles special orders or by telephone directly from Prentice-Hall:
[phone].

   Note that the first edition of this book, published in 1983,
describes an older version of Icon and does not contain informa-
tion about many of the features of Version 8.

   A brief overview of Icon is contained in technical report TR
90-6 [1] (tr90-6.doc on the distribution diskette). Features that
have been added to Icon since the book was written are described
in TR 90-1 [2] (tr90-1.doc on the distribution diskette).  These



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technical reports, together with this document (ipd132.doc on
this diskette), provide enough information to write and run sim-
ple Icon programs, but persons who intend to use Icon extensively
will need the book.


3.__Installing_MS-DOS_Icon

   Two executable binary files are needed to run Icon:

        icont.exe   translator
        iconx.exe   executor

These files should be located at a place on your PATH specifica-
tion.  As mentioned in Section 1, there are two forms of iconx:
one without large-integer arithmetic and one with it.  The former
is named iconx.exe as distributed, while the latter is named
iconxl.exe.

   The distribution is contained in several files in ARC format.
A copy of pkxarc.com is included for dearchiving. The distribu-
tion files are:

        pkxarc.com   dearchiving utility
        icon.arc     executable binary files [474KB]
        samples.arc  Icon programs and data [3KB]
        docs.arc     documents [97KB]
        readme       installation overview and recent notes

The figures in brackets give the approximate amount of disk space
needed when the files are extracted from their archives. (It is
not necessary to keep both executors.)

   To install the .exe files, set your current directory to the
desired place, place the second distribution diskette in drive A,
and dearchive the files there using pkxarc.com on the distribu-
tion diskette:

        a:pkxarc a:icon.arc

The same technique can be used for extracting the remaining files
on the other diskette.

   The simplest way to use Icon is to pick the executor that fits
your needs, place it at a location on your path, and rename it to
iconx.exe if necessary. For example, if you want the executor
that supports large-integer arithmetic, the following will do:

        rename iconxl.exe iconx.exe

However, if you want to use both executors, you can either name
them differently (such as they are named above) and use them by
their different names, or you can name them the same but put them
in different locations. In this case, you will have to change



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your path depending on which one you use.


4.__Running_MS-DOS_Icon_-_Basic_Information

   Files containing Icon programs must have the extension .icn.
Such files should be plain text files (without line numbers or
other extraneous information).  The icont  translator produces an
``icode'' file that can be executed by iconx.  For example, an
Icon program in the file prog.icn is translated by

        icont prog.icn

The result is an icode file with the name prog.icx.  This file
can be run by

        iconx prog.icx

If your executor is named differently, simply use that name. For
example, if your executor is named iconxl.exe, use

        iconxl prog.icx

Alternatively, icont can be instructed to execute the icode file
after translation by appending a -x to the command line, as in

        icont prog.icn -x

This only works if your executor is named iconx.exe, since the -x
option looks for this name.  In the sections that follow, it is
assumed that the executor is named iconx.exe.

   If icont is run with the -x option, the file prog.icx is left
and can be run subsequently using an explicitly named executor as
described above.

   The extensions .icn and .icx are optional. For example, it is
sufficient to use

        icont prog

and

        iconx prog




5.__Testing_the_Installation

   There are a few programs on the distribution diskette that can
be used for testing the installation and getting a feel for run-
ning Icon:




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     hello.icn   This program prints the Icon version number,
                 time, and date. Run this test as

                         icont hello
                         iconx hello

                 Note that this can be done in one step with

                         icont hello -x


     cross.icn   This program prints all the ways that two words
                 intersect in a common character. The file
                 cross.dat contains typical data. Run this test
                 as

                         icont cross -x <cross.dat


     meander.icn This program prints the ``meandering strings''
                 that contain all subsequences of a specified
                 length from a given set of characters. Run this
                 test as

                         icont meander -x <meander.dat


     roman.icn   This program converts Arabic numerals to Roman
                 numerals. Run this test as

                         icont roman -x

                 and provide some Arabic numbers from your con-
                 sole.

If these tests work, your installation is probably correct and
you should have a running version of Icon.


6.__More_on_Running_Icon

   For simple applications, the instructions for running Icon
given in Section 4 may be adequate. The icont translator supports
a variety of options that may be useful in special situations.
There also are several aspects of execution that can be con-
trolled with environment variables.  These are listed here. If
you are new to Icon, you may wish to skip this section on the
first reading but come back to it if you find the need for more
control over the translation and execution of Icon programs.

6.1__Arguments

   Arguments can be passed to the Icon program by appending them
to the command line.  Such arguments are passed to the main



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procedure as a list of strings.  For example,

        iconx prog text.dat log.dat

runs the icode file prog.icx, passing its main procedure a list
of two strings, "text.dat" and "log.dat".  The program also can
be translated and run with these arguments with a single command
line by putting the arguments after the -x:

        icont prog -x text.dat log.dat

These arguments might be the names of files that prog.icn reads
from and writes to. For example, the main procedure might begin
as follows:

        procedure main(a)
           in := open(a[1]) | stop("cannot open input file")
           out := open(a[2],"w") | stop("cannot open output file")
                       .
                       .
                       .

See also the information about the processing of command-line
arguments given in Section 6.4.

6.2__The_Translator

   The icont translator can accept several Icon source files at
one time.  When several files are given, they are translated and
combined into a single icode file whose name is derived from the
name of the first file.  For example,

        icont prog1 prog2

translates the files prog1.icn and prog2.icn and produces one
icode file, prog1.icx.

   A name other than the default one for the icode file produced
by MiconfR can be specified by using the -o option, followed by
the desired name. For example,

        icont -o probe.icx prog

produces the icode file named probe.icx rather than prog.icx.

   If the -c option is given to icont, the translator stops
before producing an icode file and intermediate ``ucode'' files
with the extensions .u1 and .u2 are left for future use (normally
they are deleted).  For example,

        icont -c prog1

leaves prog1.u1 and prog1.u2, instead of producing prog1.icx.
These ucode files can be used in a subsequent icont command by



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using the .u1 name. This saves translation time when the program
is used again.  For example,

        icont prog2 prog1.u1

translates prog2.icn and combines the result with the ucode files
from a previous translation of prog1.icn. Note that only the .u1
name is given. The extension can be abbreviated to .u, as in

        icont prog2 prog1.u

Ucode files also can be added to a program using the link
declaration in an Icon source program as described in [2].

   Icon source programs may be read from standard input.  The
argument - signifies the use of standard input as a source file.
In this case, the ucode files are named stdin.u1 and stdin.u2 and
the icode file is named stdin.icx.

   The informative messages from the translator can be suppressed
by using the -s option.  Normally, both informative messages and
error messages are sent to standard error output.

   The -t option causes &trace to have an initial value of -1
when the icode file is executed.  Normally, &trace has an initial
value of 0.

   The option -u causes warning messages to be issued for unde-
clared identifiers in the program.

   Icon has several tables related to the translation of pro-
grams.  These tables are large enough for most programs, but
translation is terminated with an error message, indicating the
offending table, if there is not enough room.  If this happens,
larger table sizes can be specified by using the -S option. This
option has the form -S[cfgilnrstCFL]n, where the letter following
the S specifies the table and n is the number of storage units to
allocate for the table.

     c  constant table          100
     f  field table             100
     g  global symbol table     200
     i  identifier table        500
     l  local symbol table      100
     n  line number table      1000
     r  record table            100
     s  string space          20000
     t  tree space            15000
     C  code buffer           15000
     F  file names               10
     L  labels                  500

The units depend on the table involved, but the default values
can be used as guides for appropriate settings of -S options



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without knowing the units.  For example,

        icont -Sc200 -Sg600 prog

translates prog.icn with twice the constant table space and three
times the global symbol table space that ordinarily would be pro-
vided.

6.3__Environment_Variables

   When an icode file is executed, several environment variables
are examined to determine execution parameters.  The values
assigned to these variables should be numbers.

   Environment variables are particularly useful in adjusting
Icon's storage requirements. This may be necessary if your com-
puter does not have enough memory to run programs that require an
unusually large amount of data.  Particular care should be taken
when changing default sizes: unreasonable values may cause Icon
to malfunction.

   The following environment variables can be set to affect
Icon's execution parameters. Their default values are listed in
parentheses after the environment variable name:

        TRACE (undefined).  This variable initializes the value
     of &trace.  If this variable has a value, it overrides the
     translation-time -t option.

        NOERRBUF (undefined).  If this variable is set, &errout
     is not buffered.

        STRSIZE (65000). This variable determines the initial
     size, in bytes, of the region in which strings are stored.

        HEAPSIZE (65000).  This variable determines the initial
     size, in bytes, of the region in which Icon allocates lists,
     tables, and other objects.

        COEXPSIZE (2000). This variable determines the size, in
     32-bit words, of each co-expression block.

        MSTKSIZE (10000). This variable determines the size, in
     words, of the main interpreter stack.

        QLSIZE (5000). This variable determines the size, in
     bytes, of the region used by the garbage collector for
     pointers to strings.

   The maximum region size that can be specified is 65000.







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6.4__Details_of_Command-Line_Processing

   The processing of command-line arguments normally is important
only in running iconx. Some details follow:

     +  An argument containing white space must be enclosed in
        double quotes ("). For example, "abc def" is a valid
        argument. The quotes are deleted in the string passed to
        iconx.

     +  If a quoted argument contains a double quote, the embed-
        ded quote must be preceded by a backslash. For example,
        "abc de\"f" is a valid argument. The outer quotes and the
        backslash are deleted in the string passed to iconx.

     +  If a non-quoted argument contains a double quote, the
        embedded quote can be preceded by a backslash or not. For
        example, abc\"d and abc"d are equivalent arguments.

     +  To pass a double quote as an argument, precede it with a
        backslash.

     +  Wild-card characters are not expanded.

     +  Quote-balancing errors are not checked.  The start-up
        routine scans the residual command line from left to
        right.


7.__Features_of_MS-DOS_Icon

   MS-DOS Icon supports all the features of Version 8 of Icon,
with the following exceptions and additions:

     +  Pipes are not supported. A file cannot be opened with the
        "p" option.

     +  There are two additional options for open: "t" and "u".
        The "t" option, which is the default, indicates that the
        file is to be translated into UNIX* format.  All
        carriage-return/line-feed sequences are translated into
        line-feed characters on both input and output.  The "u"
        option indicates that the file is to be untranslated.
        Examples are:

                untranfile := open("test.fil","ru")
                tranfile := open("test.new","wt")




__________________________
*UNIX is a trademark of AT&T Bell Laboratories.




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        For files opened in the translate mode, the position pro-
        duced by seek() may not reflect the actual byte position
        because of the translation of carriage-return/line-feed
        sequences to line-feed characters.

     +  Path specifications can be entered using either a / or a
        \. Examples are:

                A:\ICON\TEST.ICN
                A:/ICON/TEST.ICN


     +  The following MS-DOS device names can be used as file
        names:

                console        CON
                printer        PRN LST LPT LPT1
                auxiliary port AUX COM RDR PUN
                null           NUL NULL

        For example,

                prompt := open("CON","w")

        causes strings written to prompt to be displayed on the
        console.  Use of a null file name means no file is
        created.

   MS-DOS Icon also has some functions in addition to the stan-
dard repertoire:

MS-DOS_Interface_Functions

   Disclaimer: The following functions provide a gateway to func-
tions provided by MS-DOS and ROM BIOS. They should be used with
care, since Icon maintains strict control over its environment
(although it uses standard MS-DOS interfaces and does not bypass
MS-DOS or ROM BIOS in any way).  The descriptions that follow are
low-level descriptions. They assume knowledge of the Intel 8086
(8088, 80x86 etc.) architecture.

Int86(a):

Int86(a) generates a hardware interrupt. The input is a list of
integer values: [interrupt number, ax, bx, cx, dx, si, di, es,
ds].  It returns a list of the form [flags, ax, bx, cx, dx, si,
di, es, ds].

   Great care must be taken in using this function. Some things
to watch out for are:

     +  Interrupt functions that alter the stack registers (SS or
        SP) or alter the MS-DOS memory chain (that is, allocate
        or deallocate memory in the MS-DOS memory region). When



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        Icon expands memory, it expects the next allocation to be
        contiguous with the region it currently owns.

     +  Interrupt functions that operate on files opened by
        Icon's open(s) function - that is, closing, seeking,
        reading, or writing.

     +  The values of ES and DS may not be valid on return.


InPort(i):

InPort(i) returns an integer from hardware port i.

OutPort(i1,i2):

OutPort(i1,i2) writes value i2 to hardware port i1.

GetSpace(i):

GetSpace(i) allocates a static block of storage outside of Icon's
direct control (that is, it is not be affected by garbage collec-
tion).  This function simply calls the malloc() allocation rou-
tine and returns the address of the resulting block as a long
integer.

FreeSpace(A):

FreeSpace(A) frees a static block of storage. A is a value
returned by GetSpace(i).  No check is make to verify that the
block was allocated by GetSpace(i). The results are unpredictable
if it was not.  Arithmetic should not be performed directly on a
value returned by GetSpace(i).

Peek(A,i):

Peek(A,i) builds a string pointing to the address specified by A
with a length of i, where A is either an integer that specifies a
linear address value or a list of the form [segment, offset] and
i is a length (default 1).

   This is the only way of `seeing' the contents of a block of
storage allocated by GetSpace(i). Consider the following example:

        block := Peek(addr := GetSpace(100),100)

The value of block is a string of length 100 and addr is the
linear address of the block.

Peek(A,i) does not move data into Icon's memory region.  Instead,
it builds a string qualifier that points to the data.

Poke(A,s):




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Poke(A,s) copies a string s to location A, where A is an address
specified in the same way as for Peek(A,s) and s is a string to
be copied to that storage location. The string is copied directly
into storage, byte by byte. No conversion is performed.  This is
the only way of assigning data to a block of storage allocated by
GetSpace(i).


8.__Known_Bugs

   A list of known bugs in Icon itself is given in [2].

   Under MS-DOS some programs that require a lot of memory may
hang when run by the -x option to icont.  This can be avoided by
using iconx in a separate step.

   Also, if there is not enough free RAM, the system() function
may fail silently or hang.


9.__Reporting_Problems

   Problems with Icon should be noted on a trouble report form
(included with the distribution) and sent to

        Icon Project
        Department of Computer Science
        Gould-Simpson Building
        The University of Arizona
        Tucson, AZ   85721
        U.S.A.
        [phone]
        [e-mail]     (Internet)
        ... {uunet, allegra, noao}!arizona!icon-project     (uucp)



10.__Registering_Copies_of_Icon

   If you received your copy of Version 8 of Icon directly from
the Icon Project, it has been registered in your name and you
will receive the Icon Newsletter without charge. This Newsletter
contains information about new implementations, updates, program-
ming techniques, and information of general interest about Icon.

   If you received your copy of Version 8 of Icon from another
source, please fill out the registration form that is included in
the documents in the distribution) and send it to the Icon Pro-
ject at the address listed above. This will entitle you to a free
subscription to the Icon Newsletter and assure that you receive
information about updates.






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Acknowledgements

   The design and development of the Icon programming language
was supported, in part, by the National Science Foundation under
grants MCS75-01397, MCS79-03890, MCS81-01916, DCR-8320138, DCR-
8401831, and DCR-8502015.

   Many individuals contributed to the design and implementation
of Icon. The principal ones are Cary Coutant, Dave Gudeman, Dave
Hanson, Tim Korb, Bill Mitchell, Kelvin Nilsen, Janalee O'Bagy,
Gregg Townsend, Ken Walker, and Steve Wampler.

   The implementation of Icon was adapted to MS-DOS by Cheyenne
Wills in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania. He also provided some of
the technical material contained in this document.

References


1.   R. E. Griswold, An Overview of Version 8 of the Icon
     Programming Language, The Univ. of Arizona Tech. Rep. 90-6,
     1990.

2.   R. E. Griswold, Version 8 of Icon, The Univ. of Arizona
     Tech. Rep. 90-1, 1990.
































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