Creating a DLL in Ada

Creating a DLL in Ada

[Daniel Dudley]

Is it possible to create a dynamic link library (DLL) in
Ada? This is important technology, yet I cannot see any
provision for it in, for example, Gnat 3.14p.

Daniel

Re: Creating a DLL in Ada

[Chad R. Meiners]

"Daniel Dudley" <dudley@online.no> wrote in message
news:ho0Z8.6145$HR.85630@news4.ulv.nextra.no...
> Is it possible to create a dynamic link library (DLL) in
> Ada? This is important technology, yet I cannot see any
> provision for it in, for example, Gnat 3.14p.
>
> Daniel

Really, I am surprised since if you look at the GNAT user guide, you will
find a section devoted to Microsoft Windows Topics.  In this section you
will find information on building DLLs with GNAT.  This makes me curious.
How exactly did you examine GNAT's functionality so that you missed this
provision?  Did you just read a list of features off of a web page without
downloading the compiler, did you overlook the section on Windows, or did
you not look at the user guide?

-CRM

Re: Creating a DLL in Ada

[Jeffrey Creem]

It is not at all surprising that you could not see any provisions for it
since it appears in the GNAT users guide under
the cryptic name

Building DLLs with GNAT

I am not sure how these people that write these help documents expect us to
find things with such strange titles.

Even more odd, if you actually go to this section and read the first few
lines is says

This section explains how to build DLLs containing Ada code




"Daniel Dudley" <dudley@online.no> wrote in message
news:ho0Z8.6145$HR.85630@news4.ulv.nextra.no...
> Is it possible to create a dynamic link library (DLL) in
> Ada? This is important technology, yet I cannot see any
> provision for it in, for example, Gnat 3.14p.
>
> Daniel
>
>

Re: Creating a DLL in Ada

[sk]

Hi,

In reference to 

> "Chad R. Meiners" <crmeiners@hotmail.com> 
> ...

and

> "Jeffrey Creem" <jeff@thecreems.com>
> ... Building DLLs with GNAT ...

I know I have seen these sections in the GNAT Users Guide 
and Reference Manual at some stage, however I have looked
and searched in both my current (3.13p) and future (3.14p) 
documents (gnat-3.13p-docs.tar, ditto 3.14p) packages and 
I have not found any reference to building Windows DLLs.

Perhaps there are different sets of documents for Windows 
and other disributions ? and perhaps the OP picked up the
non-windows docs similar to mine ?

-- 
-------------------------------------
-- Merge vertically for real address
-------------------------------------
s n p @ t . o
 k i e k c c m
-------------------------------------

Re: Creating a DLL in Ada

[Daniel Dudley]

"sk" <noname@myob.com> wrote in message
news:mailman.1026878522.27555.comp.lang.ada@ada.eu.org...
>
> In reference to
>
> > "Chad R. Meiners" <crmeiners@hotmail.com>
> > ...
>
> and
>
> > "Jeffrey Creem" <jeff@thecreems.com>
> > ... Building DLLs with GNAT ...
>
> I know I have seen these sections in the GNAT Users Guide
> and Reference Manual at some stage, however I have looked
> and searched in both my current (3.13p) and future (3.14p)
> documents (gnat-3.13p-docs.tar, ditto 3.14p) packages and
> I have not found any reference to building Windows DLLs.
>
> Perhaps there are different sets of documents for Windows
> and other disributions ? and perhaps the OP picked up the
> non-windows docs similar to mine ?

Actually, it is to be found in the HTML version of the User
Guide but not in the PDF version, which I have been using
(because I dislike reading manuals and the like online).

Thanks to all for their concern.

Daniel

Re: Creating a DLL in Ada

[Pascal Obry]

"Daniel Dudley" <dudley@online.no> writes:

> Actually, it is to be found in the HTML version of the User
> Guide but not in the PDF version, which I have been using

The HTML version is provided with GNAT 3.14p but not the PDF one.
This has certainly been built by somebody else than ACT and
the PDF you have is not for the Windows platform !

Pascal.

-- 

--|------------------------------------------------------
--| Pascal Obry                           Team-Ada Member
--| 45, rue Gabriel Peri - 78114 Magny Les Hameaux FRANCE
--|------------------------------------------------------
--|         http://perso.wanadoo.fr/pascal.obry
--| "The best way to travel is by means of imagination"
--|
--| gpg --keyserver wwwkeys.pgp.net --recv-key C1082595

Re: Creating a DLL in Ada

[Daniel Dudley]

"Pascal Obry" <p.obry@wanadoo.fr> wrote in message
news:usn2iep6h.fsf@wanadoo.fr...
>
> "Daniel Dudley" <dudley@online.no> writes:
>
> > Actually, it is to be found in the HTML version of the User
> > Guide but not in the PDF version, which I have been using
>
> The HTML version is provided with GNAT 3.14p but not the PDF one.
> This has certainly been built by somebody else than ACT and
> the PDF you have is not for the Windows platform !

Perhaps ACT ought to produce an authorized PDF version,
Pascal? I'm sure there are many users like me who are wary
of the potential damage to their eyesight with prolonged
reading of text online. Besides, hardcopies are far more
suitable for getting the "overall picture".

Daniel

Re: Creating a DLL in Ada

[Pascal Obry]

"Daniel Dudley" <dudley@online.no> writes:

> Perhaps ACT ought to produce an authorized PDF version,
> Pascal? 

Agreed, I don't have 3.14p at hand but I'm think there is a Postscript
version provided. My point was only that ACT can't be blamed for
documentation badly built by volunteers :)

Pascal.

-- 

--|------------------------------------------------------
--| Pascal Obry                           Team-Ada Member
--| 45, rue Gabriel Peri - 78114 Magny Les Hameaux FRANCE
--|------------------------------------------------------
--|         http://perso.wanadoo.fr/pascal.obry
--| "The best way to travel is by means of imagination"
--|
--| gpg --keyserver wwwkeys.pgp.net --recv-key C1082595

Re: Creating a DLL in Ada

[Daniel Dudley]

"Pascal Obry" <p.obry@wanadoo.fr> wrote in message
news:un0sqe73u.fsf@wanadoo.fr...
>
> "Daniel Dudley" <dudley@online.no> writes:
>
> > Perhaps ACT ought to produce an authorized PDF version,
> > Pascal?
>
> Agreed, I don't have 3.14p at hand but I'm think there is a
Postscript
> version provided.

The PS documentation is badly formatted, and distilling it
to PDF resulted in less than satisfactory print quality. I
got the "unauthorized" PDF version as a result of posting
a request for a well-formatted version in this newsgroup
(not so many weeks ago).

> My point was only that ACT can't be blamed for
> documentation badly built by volunteers :)

A valid point, Pascal. However, ACT surely can be blamed
for the poor quality PS documentation, what? :-( Perhaps
it's a result of this wanting quality that forced the
creation of "unauthorized" PDF documentation.

Daniel

Re: Creating a DLL in Ada

[Larry Kilgallen]

In article <aRhZ8.62$sR2.1275@news4.ulv.nextra.no>, "Daniel Dudley" <dudley@online.no> writes:
> "Pascal Obry" <p.obry@wanadoo.fr> wrote in message
> news:un0sqe73u.fsf@wanadoo.fr...

>> My point was only that ACT can't be blamed for
>> documentation badly built by volunteers :)
> 
> A valid point, Pascal. However, ACT surely can be blamed
> for the poor quality PS documentation, what? :-( Perhaps
> it's a result of this wanting quality that forced the
> creation of "unauthorized" PDF documentation.

Authorize or unauthorized, the front page of the document
should indicate the version of the software to which it
applies.  If the user goes looking for a more recent version
of the documentation in hopes that DLLs will be supported by
the new version of the software, it is all to their advantage,
even if only the documentation was enhanced in this regard.

Re: Creating a DLL in Ada

[Daniel Dudley]

"Larry Kilgallen" <Kilgallen@SpamCop.net> wrote in message
news:a157UXntK+J9@eisner.encompasserve.org...
> In article <aRhZ8.62$sR2.1275@news4.ulv.nextra.no>,
> "Daniel Dudley" <dudley@online.no> writes:
> > "Pascal Obry" <p.obry@wanadoo.fr> wrote in message
> > news:un0sqe73u.fsf@wanadoo.fr...
>
> >> My point was only that ACT can't be blamed for
> >> documentation badly built by volunteers :)
> >
> > A valid point, Pascal. However, ACT surely can be blamed
> > for the poor quality PS documentation, what? :-( Perhaps
> > it's a result of this wanting quality that forced the
> > creation of "unauthorized" PDF documentation.
>
> Authorize or unauthorized, the front page of the document
> should indicate the version of the software to which it
> applies.

Indeed it should, and does -- version 3.14p.

> If the user goes looking for a more recent version
> of the documentation in hopes that DLLs will be supported by
> the new version of the software, it is all to their advantage,
> even if only the documentation was enhanced in this regard.

Daniel

Re: Creating a DLL in Ada

[Britt Snodgrass]

"Daniel Dudley" <dudley@online.no> wrote in message news:<w5pZ8.207$sR2.4518@news4.ulv.nextra.no>...
> "Larry Kilgallen" <Kilgallen@SpamCop.net> wrote in message
> news:a157UXntK+J9@eisner.encompasserve.org...
> > In article <aRhZ8.62$sR2.1275@news4.ulv.nextra.no>,
> > "Daniel Dudley" <dudley@online.no> writes:
> > > "Pascal Obry" <p.obry@wanadoo.fr> wrote in message
> > > news:un0sqe73u.fsf@wanadoo.fr...
>  
> > >> My point was only that ACT can't be blamed for
> > >> documentation badly built by volunteers :)
> > >
> > > A valid point, Pascal. However, ACT surely can be blamed
> > > for the poor quality PS documentation, what? :-( Perhaps
> > > it's a result of this wanting quality that forced the
> > > creation of "unauthorized" PDF documentation.
> >
> > Authorize or unauthorized, the front page of the document
> > should indicate the version of the software to which it
> > applies.
> 
> Indeed it should, and does -- version 3.14p.
> 
> > If the user goes looking for a more recent version
> > of the documentation in hopes that DLLs will be supported by
> > the new version of the software, it is all to their advantage,
> > even if only the documentation was enhanced in this regard.
> 
> Daniel

The HTML version of the GNAT User's Guide included in the GNAT 3.14p
for Windows setup is titled "GNAT for Windows NT: User's Guide" and it
includes an additional chapter titled "Microsoft Windows Topics" that
does not appear in the GNAT User's Guide in the standalone Postscript
document set.  Unfortunately, the document version ID (Document
revision level 1.408.2.6) and timestamp (Date: 2001/05/10 16:08:26) is
the same for on both the HTML and Postscript cover pages.  I think ACT
should include the GNAT for Windows User's Guide in the standalone
Postscript documentation set (and provide PDF versions as well).

Britt

Re: Creating a DLL in Ada

[Daniel Dudley]

"Britt Snodgrass" <britt@acm.org> wrote in message
news:5fe90c1a.0207180846.4f4671ec@posting.google.com...
> "Daniel Dudley" <dudley@online.no> wrote in message
> news:<w5pZ8.207$sR2.4518@news4.ulv.nextra.no>...
> > "Larry Kilgallen" <Kilgallen@SpamCop.net> wrote in message
> > news:a157UXntK+J9@eisner.encompasserve.org...
> > > In article <aRhZ8.62$sR2.1275@news4.ulv.nextra.no>,
> > > "Daniel Dudley" <dudley@online.no> writes:
> > > > "Pascal Obry" <p.obry@wanadoo.fr> wrote in message
> > > > news:un0sqe73u.fsf@wanadoo.fr...
> >
> > > >> My point was only that ACT can't be blamed for
> > > >> documentation badly built by volunteers :)
> > > >
> > > > A valid point, Pascal. However, ACT surely can be blamed
> > > > for the poor quality PS documentation, what? :-( Perhaps
> > > > it's a result of this wanting quality that forced the
> > > > creation of "unauthorized" PDF documentation.
> > >
> > > Authorize or unauthorized, the front page of the document
> > > should indicate the version of the software to which it
> > > applies.
> >
> > Indeed it should, and does -- version 3.14p.
> >
> > > If the user goes looking for a more recent version
> > > of the documentation in hopes that DLLs will be supported by
> > > the new version of the software, it is all to their advantage,
> > > even if only the documentation was enhanced in this regard.
> >
> > Daniel
>
> The HTML version of the GNAT User's Guide included in the
> GNAT 3.14p for Windows setup is titled "GNAT for Windows
> NT: User's Guide" and it includes an additional chapter
> titled "Microsoft Windows Topics" that does not appear in
> the GNAT User's Guide in the standalone Postscript
> document set.  Unfortunately, the document version ID
> (Document revision level 1.408.2.6) and timestamp (Date:
> 2001/05/10 16:08:26) is the same for on both the HTML and
> Postscript cover pages.  I think ACT should include the
> GNAT for Windows User's Guide in the standalone Postscript
> documentation set (and provide PDF versions as well).

I'll second that, Britt. ;-)

Daniel