Re: GNAT for OS/2 and general GNU questions ...

[ct_oreg@vega.concordia.ca (Chris O'Regan)]

In article <3l0eoq$kjb@cville-srv.wam.umd.edu>

AAS := Arcadio Alivio Sincero <lotu@wam.umd.edu>
AAS>Anyhow .. is there a GENERAL FAQ sheet on GNU compilers in general?  I'm 
AAS>a little confused as how they work.  They're obviously very different from 
AAS>the usual DOS-based compilers I've used.  Are the Ada95, Fortran, and 
AAS>soon-to-be Extended Pascal GNU compilers merely TRANSLATORS to C or 
AAS>something?  It seems that ALL the GNU compilers I've come across are all 
AAS>invoked using the GCC program.  And I thought GCC was a C/C++ compiler.  
AAS>Could somebody fill me in or direct me to a FAQ sheet?  

   They are all *real* compilers.  Gcc is a frontend which calls the
C/C++/Ada/Fortran/Pascal compiler.  From what I understand, these compilers
generate assembly language pseudocode.  Gcc can then optimize this code and,
finally, generate the machine-specific object file.  Gcc can also call the
linker to create the machine-specific executable.

   Although GNAT is called an "Ada Translator", it does not translate Ada
code to C.

AAS>Also, is there a full screen, source level debugger available for GNAT?  

   Although I have not tried the GNU debuggers (gdb and xxgdb), I have
heard that they will handle programs generated by GNAT, however, from what
I understand, they will not display the Ada code.


Chris O'Regan
Computer Engineering,
Concordia University,
Montreal, Canada.
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