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Watcom C/C++

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Open Watcom C/C++
Original author(s)Watcom
Developer(s)Sybase,SciTech Software
Initial release1988;
36 years ago(1988)
Stable release
1.9 / June 2, 2010;
14 years ago(2010-06-02)
Preview release
2.0 / December 1, 2022;
19 months ago(2022-12-01)[1]
Repositorygithub/open-watcom/open-watcom-v2
Written inC,C++
Operating systemDOS,Windows,OS/2,Linux
Platformx86,IA-32,x86-64
Size66–84 MB
TypeIntegrated development environment
LicenseSybase Open Watcom Public Licenseversion 1.0
Websiteopenwatcom.org

Watcom C/C++(currentlyOpen Watcom C/C++) is anintegrated development environment(IDE) product fromWatcom International Corporationfor theC,C++,andFortranprogramming languages.Watcom C/C++ was a commercial product until it was discontinued, then released under theSybase Open Watcom Public Licenseas Open Watcom C/C++. It features tools fordevelopinganddebuggingcode forDOS,OS/2,Windows,andLinuxoperating systems,which are based upon 16-bitx86,32-bitIA-32,or 64-bitx86-64compatible processors.

History

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Though no longer sold commercially bySybase,the Watcom C/C++ compiler and the WatcomFortrancompiler have been made available free of charge as theOpen Watcompackage.

Stable version 1.9 was released in June 2010.[2][3]

Aforkedversion 2.0 beta was released that supports 64-bit hosts (Windows and Linux), built-in text editor, 2-phase build system, and the DOS version supportslong filenames(LFN).[4]

Release history

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TheOpen Watcom Wikihas a comprehensive history.[5][3]

Release history table
Date Product Notes
1984 Waterloo C forS/370
1985
  • Work on current code generator codebase started
1988 Watcom C 6.0
  • DOS host and target only
  • Included a debugger and full set ofruntime libraries
  • Generated better code than other compilers at the time
  • Watcom C Version 6.5 contained Graphics Library similar to Microsoft Graphics Library
  • Real mode support only[citation needed]
1989 Watcom C 7.0
1989 Watcom C 7.0/386
1990 Watcom C 8.0
1990 Watcom C 8.0/386
1991 Watcom C 8.5
1991 Watcom C 8.5/386
1992 Watcom C 9.0
1992 Watcom C 9.0/386
  • OS/2 2.0 host and target support
  • 486optimizations
  • Based pointer support
Watcom C 9.01/386
1993 Watcom C/C++ 9.5
1993 Watcom C/C++ 9.5/386
1994 Watcom C/C++ 10.0
1995 Watcom C/C++ 10.5
1996 Watcom C/C++ 10.6
1997 Q1[6] Watcom C/C++ 11.0
  • Namespace,RTTI,and new stylecastsupport in C++ compiler
  • 64-bit integer support
  • Multi-byte character support in libraries
  • Incremental linking support
  • COFFandELFobject filesupport in linker and librarian
  • Microsoft clone tools added
  • DLLbased tools for better IDE integration
  • MMX support, including debugging
  • Pentium Pro optimizations, including branch prediction
  • Novell NLMsupport
1998 Watcom C/C++ 11.0B
1999-06-30
2000-08-22
  • Sybase announces open sourcing of Watcom tools[8]
2001-09-27 Watcom C/C++ 11.0c Beta
2002-12-21 Watcom C/C++ 11.0c
2003-01-28 Open Watcom 1.0
2003-08-12 Open Watcom 1.1
2004-01-07 Open Watcom 1.2
2004-08-03 Open Watcom 1.3
2005-12-14 Open Watcom 1.4
2006-04-26 Open Watcom 1.5
2006-12-15 Open Watcom 1.6
2007-08-18 Open Watcom 1.7
2007-10-23 Open Watcom 1.7a
2009-02-21 Open Watcom 1.8
2010-06-02 Open Watcom 1.9
  • Current official version
2015-04-02 Open Watcom 2.0 Beta
  • GitHub V2 fork, numerous fixes[4]
  • Open Watcom ported to 64-bit hosts (Windows and Linux)
  • Resource compiler and Resource editor support WIN64 executables
  • built-in text editor
  • two-phase build system
  • DOS version of tools supportlong filenames(LFN)

License

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Main article:Sybase Open Watcom Public License

TheOpen Source Initiativehas approved the license asopen source,butDebian,Fedoraand theFree Software Foundationhave rejected it because "It requires you to publish the source code publicly whenever you “Deploy” the covered software, and “Deploy” is defined to include many kinds of private use. "[9]

Design

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The compiler can be operated from, and generate executable code for, theDOS,OS/2,Windows,Linuxoperating systems.It also supportsNLMtargets forNovell NetWare.There is ongoing work to extend the targeting toLinux[10]and modernBSD(e.g.,FreeBSD) operating systems, running onx86,PowerPC,and other processors.

The code is portable and, like many other open source compiler projects such asGCCorLCCthe compiler backend (code generator) is retargetable.

Uses

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In the mid-1990s some of the most technically ambitiousDOScomputer gamessuch asDoom,[5]Descent,[5]Duke Nukem 3D,[5]Rise of the Triad,[11]andTomb Raiderwere built using Watcom C/C++ using theDOS/4GWprotected modeextender with the Watcom compiler.

It was used to port the gameRetro City Rampageto DOS in 2015.[12]

It is used byVirtualBoxto compile theBIOS.[13]

Current development forFreeDOSrequires that all Csource codemust be compilable by Open Watcom C.[14]

Open Watcom is the recommended compiler for application and driver development for the OS/2-basedArcaOSoperating system.[15]

Variants

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There is an unofficialfork[16]of Open Watcom V2 onGitHub.[17]A variant of the 16bit DOSCRTlibrary startup was created withWASM.[18]

Compatibility

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Open Watcom's syntax supports many conventions[which?]introduced by other compilers, such asMicrosoft's andBorland's, including differing conventions[which?]regarding (for instance) the number of leading underscores on the "asm" tag. Code written specifically for another compiler rather than standard-compliant C or C++ will often compile with the Watcom compiler.

The compiler supports C89/C90 standards by default.

Open Watcom supports partial compatibility with theC99standard. It implements the most commonly used parts of the standard. However, they are enabled only through the undocumented command-line switch "-za99". Three C99 features have been bundled asC90Extension since pre-v1.0: C++ style comments (//), flexible array members, trailing comma allowed in enum declaration.[19]

The compiler currently doesn't support any new[when?]majorC11features, though the C library does include "Safe C" functions. It is specified in ISO/IEC TR 24731-1[20][21]and known as "Bounds-checking interfaces (Annex K)" in C11. Some function name examples are strcpy_s(), memcpy_s(), printf_s().[22]This library was released along with Open Watcom 1.5 in April 2006.

See also

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References

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  1. ^"Release 2022-12-01 Build · open-watcom/open-watcom-v2".GitHub.
  2. ^"Latest Release (June 2010) - Open Watcom".OpenWatcom.org wiki. Archived fromthe originalon January 18, 2015.
  3. ^ab"C Compiler Release Changes".Open Watcom.March 9, 2010. Archived fromthe originalon February 3, 2015.
  4. ^abList of main differences of v1.9 to v2.0 Beta.
  5. ^abcdHistory - Open Watcom.OpenWatcom wiki.
  6. ^SYBASE INC. ANNOUNCES WATCOM C/C++ VERSION 11.0 Includes New Support For MMX Technology and Improved C++ language Support
  7. ^End of Life Notice for Watcom C/C++ Version 11.0
  8. ^Sybase to Open Source Watcom C/C++ and Fortran Compilers - SciTech Software Selected as Official Maintainer for the Open Watcom Project
  9. ^Free Software Foundation."Various Licenses and Comments about Them".GNU Operating System.RetrievedDec 23,2014.
  10. ^Installing Open Watcom on Linux - Open Watcom.OpenWatcom.org wiki.
  11. ^"RotT was written in Watcom C++ v10.0 with the Rational Systems DOS/4GW extender".
  12. ^"How 5 years of burning ambition brought Retro City Rampage to DOS".Gamasutra. 10 July 2015.
  13. ^"#12011 (Compiling BIOS requires Open Watcom compiler)– Oracle VM VirtualBox".virtualbox.org.Retrieved2017-06-17.
  14. ^"FreeDOS Spec".FreeDOS.Archivedfrom the original on May 1, 2019.
  15. ^"Information for developers".arcanoae.Retrieved2020-09-06.
  16. ^"Open Watcom V2 Fork".
  17. ^"Open Watcom V2 Fork Project on GitHub".GitHub.
  18. ^"pcdosasm.zip archive".2010-07-27.Retrieved2014-02-10.Modified Open Watcom C/C++ DOS 16-bit..\STARTUP\DOS\CSTRT086.ASM code
  19. ^"C99 compliance in Open Watcom".Retrieved2020-11-30.
  20. ^ISO/IEC TR 24731-1; Extension to the C Library, Part 1: Bounds-checking interfaces.
  21. ^WG14 N1969 — "Updated Field Experience With Annex K — Bounds Checking Interfaces", Carlos O'Donell, Martin Sebor
  22. ^"Open Watcom Safer C Library".Retrieved2020-11-30.

Further reading

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[edit]
Current
Archives
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