Re: GNAT verses A# for soft-realtime system

[Rob Veenker <veenker@xs4all.nl>]

Chip and Allie Orange wrote:

> 
> "Jeffrey R. Carter" <jrcarter@acm.org> wrote in message
> news:2IWRh.39480$_c5.25338@attbi_s22...
>> Chip and Allie Orange wrote:
>>>
>>> I can purchase a Windows-based PC robot for $5k, and I'd like to learn
>>> to program it to do autonomous functions (including realtime image
>>> analysis).
>>>
>>> I have a choice of GNAT or A# for my programming environment.
>>
>> A# is a version of GNAT that targets .net.
>>
>> If you're willing to pay $5k for your robot, you might be willing to pay
>> 10% or less of that for a supported compiler. AdaCore doesn't provide
>> anything in that price range, but both Aonix and RR SW do.
>>
>> Whether you go with a supported compiler, or with a free version of GNAT
>> (including A#), you have a couple of decisions to make. One is which
>> version of Ada you want to use. Only GNAT GPL implements most of the most
>> recent version; A# and the commercial compilers implement Ada 95.
>>
>> The other is the target platform you want to use. Apparently you have a
>> Windows target but could also use .net on top of that. Using .net would
>> constrain you to A#.
>>
>> These are not decisions we can make for you. GNAT GPL has some errors in
>> the new features, but if you're interested in learning the new version of
>> Ada, that might be the way you want to go. If you'd rather have support
>> and Ada 95 is acceptable, a commercial compiler would probably be your
>> choice. If you'd like to use existing .net SW, A# would be the way to go.
>>
> 
> 
> Thanks Jeff.
> 
> I am constrained by an NDA from saying why .net offers me some advantages,
> but it does.
> 
> You've helped answer one of my questions, in that I now understand A# is
> Ada95, while GNAT/GPL is Ada2005.  I was interested in Ada2005, as long as
> I'm bothering to throw my time and money into this.
> 
> My question was also, does .net have something about it that makes it a
> poor
> environment for soft real-time systems?  Especially, does it produce code
> that's noticeably slow, or that garbage collects in some way that would
> make it less than desirable for real-time systems with very limited CPU
> resources?
> 
> Do the additional features of 2005 target real-time systems?
> 
> Finally, are the products from compiler vendors (Aionix and RR) that much
> better than GNAT/GPL?
> 
> Thanks again.
> 
> Chip

You may want to take a look at
http://www.adacore.com/wp-content/files/attachments/adacore_news_1106_web.pdf


regards,

Rob Veenker