OpenGL bindings for Ada

OpenGL bindings for Ada

[Chip Richards]

Well, I've finally gotten my penurious little hands on Mesa (an excellent
GPL'ed OpenGL-like library from Brian Paul of the University of Wisconsin) and
I wanna use it, use it, use it!  And when I mean use it, I mean from programs
written in another of my low-cost favorites, GNAT.

Now, OpenGL being as popular as it is, there are probably already several Ada
bindings available for it, all outside my budget.  I'd like to hear of them
anyway, just for reference sake.  However, if I am to have Mesa bindings
anytime soon, I suspect I'll have to write them myself, unless they're already
ftp'able.

Given the recent traffic on c.l.a in reference to "good" bindings, I'm almost
afraid to raise the subject of lil' ole me having the temerity to write
bindings.  After all, I'm a mere mortal, and definitely *not* an experienced
bindings author, so I'm certain that I won't be able to do justice to the
project.  Anyone who looks at the result will probably be blinded.

What I really want is GNAT bindings for Mesa.  Failing that, I'll take GNAT
bindings for licensed OpenGL.  Next on the list would be any Ada 95 bindings
for Mesa, or OpenGL.  Finally, I suppose even Ada 83 bindings for OpenGL would
be nice to have on hand if they are available.  Beyond that, I don't think
there's much help:  I already have what I laughingly call a binding for VOGL
(an Iris GL clone library) which compiles under GNAT 2.00.  So quick, somebody
who can do bindings right, tell me you already have GNAT bindings for Mesa, or
I'm gonna do it.  Stop me before I code again!

BTW, I also have a GNAT conversion of the Arcadia project's adatcl which works
well enough for my needs, and I've made a half-assed GL canvas widget, which
has allowed me to open a window on my screen with Tcl/Tk widgets and GL
graphics.  And the Tk controls actually control the GL drawings.  And all the
application code is Ada 95.  So if anyone was wondering how to GUI from Ada,
that's one way.  <g>

If anyone has any interest in my shoddy artifacts, or even better, if anyone
has done them "right", then feel free to e-mail me and we'll chat.

--
Chip Richards                             +----------------------------------+
Honeywell IAC, Phoenix AZ                 |       Tiel estas skribite.       |
richards@eng.iac.honeywell.com            +----------------------------------+

Re: OpenGL bindings for Ada

[David Weller]

In article <3ir5g2$5am@adm09.iac.honeywell.com>,
Chip Richards <richards@eng.iac.honeywell.com> wrote:
>What I really want is GNAT bindings for Mesa.  Failing that, I'll take GNAT
>bindings for licensed OpenGL.  Next on the list would be any Ada 95 bindings
>for Mesa, or OpenGL.  Finally, I suppose even Ada 83 bindings for OpenGL would

SGI fully supports Ada95 and has already got a set of OpenGL bindings
for Ada95 (as well as GL, Performer, etc.).  I have no idea what
their terms and conditions are on distribution of those bindings.
Anybody from SGI care to comment?  Dave McAllister? Wes Embry?


-- 
      Frustrated with C, C++, Pascal, Fortran?  Ada95 _might_ be for you!
	  For all sorts of interesting Ada95 tidbits, run the command:
"finger dweller@starbase.neosoft.com | more" (or e-mail with "finger" as subj.)
	

Re: OpenGL bindings for Ada

[Chip Richards]

David Weller (dweller@Starbase.NeoSoft.COM) wrote:

   SGI fully supports Ada95 and has already got a set of OpenGL bindings
   for Ada95 (as well as GL, Performer, etc.).  I have no idea what
   their terms and conditions are on distribution of those bindings.
   Anybody from SGI care to comment?  Dave McAllister? Wes Embry?

Thanks for the info, David.  I expected something like this might be the case.
I've gotten several inquiries via e-mail, which I find promising--apparently
this is something that others want to do besides me!  One fellow from Germany
said that "the original GL bindings . . . are freely available from the net"
and suggested that I write to Wes Embry or Tom Quiggle at SGI.  I've done
that, but have gotten no response as yet.

Now, I've looked in what I thought would be the most likely places on the net
for GL bindings, and have come up dry.  Anybody have a clue where they might
be?  If the OpenGL bindings are also available (less likely but still
possible) they *might* be in the same place, I would think.

--
Chip Richards                             +----------------------------------+
Honeywell IAC, Phoenix AZ                 |       Tiel estas skribite.       |
richards@eng.iac.honeywell.com            +----------------------------------+

Re: OpenGL bindings for Ada

[Paula Womack]

In article <3irb3o$sse@starbase.neosoft.com>,
David Weller <dweller@Starbase.NeoSoft.COM> wrote:
>In article <3ir5g2$5am@adm09.iac.honeywell.com>,
>Chip Richards <richards@eng.iac.honeywell.com> wrote:
>>What I really want is GNAT bindings for Mesa.  Failing that, I'll take GNAT
>>bindings for licensed OpenGL.  Next on the list would be any Ada 95 bindings
>>for Mesa, or OpenGL.  Finally, I suppose even Ada 83 bindings for OpenGL would
>
>SGI fully supports Ada95 and has already got a set of OpenGL bindings
>for Ada95 (as well as GL, Performer, etc.).  I have no idea what
>their terms and conditions are on distribution of those bindings.
>Anybody from SGI care to comment?  Dave McAllister? Wes Embry?
>

SGI is working on Ada bindings for OpenGL but we haven't released them yet. 

They will be available in a future release of sampleGL that we distribute 
to OpenGL licensees. 

Paula
-- 
======================================================
 womack@sgi.com        415-390-1946         MS 8U-590

 2011 N. Shoreline Blvd, Mountain View, CA 94039-7311

Re: OpenGL bindings for Ada

[Chip Richards]

Paula Womack (womack@tessera.asd.sgi.com) wrote:

   SGI is working on Ada bindings for OpenGL but we haven't released them yet. 

Soon, we hope!  Thanks for the reply, Paula.  I have received a number of
inquiries asking what I've found, so there are apparently a considerable
number of people waiting to use the bindings.

   They will be available in a future release of sampleGL that we distribute 
   to OpenGL licensees. 

I hope they will be as widely publicized as the C API is, and not just
revealed to licensees.  Otherwise, Ada folks will make their own best guesses
as to an OpenGL Ada interface spec, and it will differ from the "official"
one, and that would be bad for everyone.  Please tell us that you didn't mean
"available *only* in a future relase of sampleGL"!

--
Chip Richards                             +----------------------------------+
Honeywell IAC, Phoenix AZ                 |       Tiel estas skribite.       |
richards@eng.iac.honeywell.com            +----------------------------------+

Re: OpenGL bindings for Ada

[Paula Womack]

In article <3jvmvk$t2g@adm09.iac.honeywell.com>,
Chip Richards <richards@eng.iac.honeywell.com> wrote:
>Paula Womack (womack@tessera.asd.sgi.com) wrote:
>
>   SGI is working on Ada bindings for OpenGL but we haven't released them yet. 
>
>Soon, we hope!  Thanks for the reply, Paula.  I have received a number of
>inquiries asking what I've found, so there are apparently a considerable
>number of people waiting to use the bindings.
>
>   They will be available in a future release of sampleGL that we distribute 
>   to OpenGL licensees. 
>
>I hope they will be as widely publicized as the C API is, and not just
>revealed to licensees.  Otherwise, Ada folks will make their own best guesses
>as to an OpenGL Ada interface spec, and it will differ from the "official"
>one, and that would be bad for everyone.  Please tell us that you didn't mean
>"available *only* in a future relase of sampleGL"!
>

No, I didn't mean that. We can make the specs publicly available as soon as 
they have been released to licensees and the OpenGL ARB has approved them.

Stay tuned.

Paula

-- 
======================================================
 womack@sgi.com        415-390-1946         MS 8U-590

 2011 N. Shoreline Blvd, Mountain View, CA 94039-7311

Re: OpenGL bindings for Ada

[John Howard]

Paula Womack (womack@tessera.asd.sgi.com) wrote:
: In article <3jvmvk$t2g@adm09.iac.honeywell.com>,
: Chip Richards <richards@eng.iac.honeywell.com> wrote:
: >Paula Womack (womack@tessera.asd.sgi.com) wrote:
: >
: > >  SGI is working on Ada bindings for OpenGL but we haven't released 
: > >  them yet.
: >Soon, we hope!  Thanks for the reply, Paula.  I have received a number of
: >inquiries asking what I've found, so there are apparently a considerable
: >number of people waiting to use the bindings.
: >
: > >  They will be available in a future release of sampleGL that we 
: > >  distribute to OpenGL licensees. 
: >
: >I hope they will be as widely publicized as the C API is, and not just
: >revealed to licensees.  Otherwise, Ada folks will make their own best 
: >guesses
: >as to an OpenGL Ada interface spec, and it will differ from the "official"
: >one, and that would be bad for everyone.  Please tell us that you 
: >didn't mean "available *only* in a future relase of sampleGL"!

: No, I didn't mean that. We can make the specs publicly available as soon as 
: they have been released to licensees and the OpenGL ARB has approved them.

: Paula
:  womack@sgi.com        415-390-1946         MS 8U-590
:  2011 N. Shoreline Blvd, Mountain View, CA 94039-7311

The IBM Developer's Connection CD #6 for OS/2 contains an OpenGL 
interface specification.  Would it be illegal if I were to write and 
distribute an Ada95 library which documented those OpenGL calls?  I need 
to know in advance of having done so.  My limited understanding is that 
IBM will provide the licensed OpenGL binding with OS/2 later.  The DevCon CD 
just gives OS/2 developers a headstart by providing the OpenGL specs.

Re: OpenGL bindings for Ada

[Daniel Wengelin]

John Howard (jhoward@solar.sky.net) wrote:

: The IBM Developer's Connection CD #6 for OS/2 contains an OpenGL 
: interface specification.  Would it be illegal if I were to write and 
: distribute an Ada95 library which documented those OpenGL calls?  I need 
: to know in advance of having done so.  My limited understanding is that 
: IBM will provide the licensed OpenGL binding with OS/2 later.  The DevCon CD 
: just gives OS/2 developers a headstart by providing the OpenGL specs.


The interface specs are there to enable people to write
software on top of them, which is exactly what you are going
to do. there is absolutely no way that anyone can publish an
interface spec and having restrictions on writing software
that use that interface.


   Just my 0.02$.


--------------------------------------------------------------------
--    Daniel Wengelin       -- Team Ada, what a nice idea....     --
--    CelsiusTech           --                                    --
--    dawe@celsiustech.se   --                                    --
--                          --                                    --
--------------------------------------------------------------------
with Standard_Disclaimer;        
--------------------------------------------------------------------

Re: OpenGL bindings for Ada

[Robert Dewar]

Daniel Wengelin says

"The interface specs are there to enable people to write
software on top of them, which is exactly what you are going
to do. there is absolutely no way that anyone can publish an
interface spec and having restrictions on writing software
that use that interface."

Unfortunately this seemingly innocuous and non-controversion statement
is in fact the product of wishful thinking. People can and do claim
intellectual properly rights in interfaces (e.g. Apple's claim to the
idea of a windowing interface, or Lotus' claim to their macro language,
the latter being used to prevent Borland from distributing a product
that reads macros written in this language.

Daniel, what you say *should* be true, but it is far from clear that
courts will eventually understand the wisdom of this position. 
Especailly in the US, where the fundamental purpose of IPR's is
to encourage innovation, it is particularly ironic that anyone
would argue that protecting interfaces promotes innovation, but
this is exactly what some people *do* argue.

This of course can start a long and interesting thread, but it really
does not belong on CLA :-)