Re: Re: Class Notes for a PL/I Course.

On Thu, 3 Oct 2019, [email protected] [H390-MVS] wrote:

> The course is primarily (it would appear) based on the Checkout compiler 
> - although it does mention differences, here and there, to the 
> Optimizing compiler. So there are going to be some differences between 
> this and the F compiler that we have. Whether they are significant or 
> not is going to depend on what you want to do with PL/1 on Hercules.
>
>
> For example, I'm interested in mixing Pl/1 modules with modules in other 
> languages such as COBOL and Assembler, and none of the interlanguage 
> communications facilities described in the course are applicable to the 
> F compiler - they're just not there. So, for example, a PL/1 F program 
> can't be used unmodified in environments where a MAIN procedure needs to 
> be invoked with multiple parameters (e.g. an IMS transaction program), 
> so I've developed my own quick and dirty Assembler interface routines to 
> cope with this sort of thing. Even simply passing a simple linear 
> reference to (say) a COBOL sub-program is fraught with issues when you 
> use the F compiler.
>
>
> AFAIK the later compilers were program products, and therefore 
> chargeable, so getting hold of versions to run on Hercules would 
> presumably be out of the question.
>

Really useful to know, John, thanks for the insight.

I hope I'm not boring the list with this naive topic.

If this would be the case, I'll stop as soon as adviced in this
direction.

Peppe.