🚀 go-pugleaf

In article <1993Jan22.222424.24191@klaava.Helsinki.FI>, lukka@klaava.Helsinki.FI (Tuomas J Lukka) writes:

>... Gcc is slow in compilation 
> (especially on a machine like mine at home), but still, it's free...
> why not be satisfied? This attitude is very dangerous, it leads into 
> accepting much lower quality software, because of the concentrated 
> effort. GNU has several people working on this stuff, why would I
> want to do anything about it, even though I knew how to? 

Well I haven't quite got hold of g++ yet (didn't fill in the cheque properly :(
OK, Bjarne, email on its way), but I can imagine that it'll run pretty slow
on my Atari ST. And will probably fill most of my 4 MB of RAM.

I can live with this, or upgrade my machine, or ... well I do have the source
code, don't I? I would be very surprised to find that g++ was already optim-
ised for speed or space, written as it is for the Un*x make-believe world
where memory is infinite and CPU cycles plentiful (see under "VM considered
harmful", etc :)). I would be prepared to bet, um, a copy of Llamatron :>
that the contraption could be made smaller and faster without compromising
correctness or functionality. Not because the gnu programmers aren't the best
in the world, but because the general tool is never as efficient as the specific.

This could make me very popular in the ST world, tho' not necessarily very
rich - I can try and add value in the form of support (for those switches I
added :>), but I can't stop "my" STg++ from joining the pool of "`free'"
software on the bulletin boards etc..

BTW on comp.os.minix or whatever (yes I've been looking at minix too) there
has recently been some lively discussion og g++ vs. the Amsterdam Compiler
Kit (commercial). "Why pay $200 when g++ is free", "g++ won't run on my 286",
"g++ is slow", "ACK is buggy",... seeming to confirm that gnu doesn't lock
out other software, but does serve as a baseline.

> Just look at Gnu Emacs... several megabytes of an EDITOR in memory.

Emacs an EDITOR???

>	TJL


__________________________________________________________________________
Chris Gray        | Any views expressed are those of the author and not of 
cgra@se.alcbel.be | Alcatel Bell, Technology Project Services, the British
Compu$erve:       | Computer Society, Whale and Dolphin Conservation Soc.,
100065.2102       | Scottish Youth Hostels Association, etc. etc. etc.