In order to port programs from C to Python, one must have an excellent *C* environment.
This is a totally new train of thought for me. What would an execute- c-script do? Could we dispense of some (all?) of C's build issues? What other capabilities might we want in order to analyze C programs? Searching for C interpreters (hey, let's make it as easy as possible), I stumbled across root http://root.cern.ch/drupal/ and cint, root's C+ + interpreter: http://root.cern.ch/drupal/content/cint In typical Geeky fashion, there is *nothing* on the home page or even in the tutorial to indicate what root is! However, on page 2(!) of the Introduction, the secret is finally revealed: "ROOT is an object-oriented framework aimed at solving the data analysis challenges of high-energy physics." It sounds very cool: there are 1200+ classes and apparently about a dozen full-time (?) developers: http://root.cern.ch/drupal/content/root-development-team These guys are at CERN--it looks like quite a brain trust. About Cint from http://root.cern.ch/drupal/content/cint: QQQ CINT is an interpreter for C and C++ code. It is useful e.g. for situations where rapid development is more important than execution time. Using an interpreter the compile and link cycle is dramatically reduced facilitating rapid development. CINT makes C/C++ programming enjoyable even for part-time programmers. CINT is written in C++ itself, with slightly less than 400,000 lines of code. It is used in production by several companies in the banking, integrated devices, and even gaming environment, and of course by ROOT, making it the default interpreter for a large number of high energy physicists all over the world. QQQ I've downloaded cint and am starting to play with it. Now suppose that somehow Leo's execute-c-script command could use cint. This *might* become a "laboratory" for investigating C programs. If so, it might be part of the toolchain for converting C programs to Python and *verifying* that the conversion went well. Edward P.S. For those ironically challenged, the irony is that we want excellent C tools to further the goal of getting rid of as much C code as possible. You could call it a variation of "embrace and extinguish" :-) P.P.S In the back of my mind is the thought that swig would be a good prototype for this conversion process. Swig is important enough, and small enough, to be an attractive candidate. The day is coming when I'll introduce myself to David Beazley... EKR -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "leo-editor" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected]. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/leo-editor?hl=en.
