Questions tagged [compilers]

Historical compilers, or modern compilers targeting retro platforms.

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109 votes
10 answers
43k views

Why do C to Z80 compilers produce poor code?

When reading some other questions about compiling C for the Z80, How much benefit should be expected on a more advanced compiler for z80/r800 based computers? Native C compiler for Sinclair ZX ...
Omar and Lorraine's user avatar
55 votes
13 answers
10k views

What languages are better fit for generating efficient code for 8-bit CPU's than C?

I found Why do C to Z80 compilers produce poor code? very interesting as it pointed out that C (which was leveraged to be an abstraction of a CPU for porting Unix) was not a very easy language to ...
Thorbjørn Ravn Andersen's user avatar
21 votes
3 answers
7k views

Native C compiler for Sinclair ZX Spectrum

I am looking for a native C compiler for the Spectrum 128. I would like one which: Has good support for the latest C standard at the time. Is not limited to compiling ridiculously short source code. ...
forest's user avatar
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66 votes
10 answers
16k views

How was C ported to architectures that had no hardware stack?

Thinking about machines such as the PDP-7, PDP-10, CDC-160 and so on1, these are machines which do not have a stack pointer which can quickly and easily change to point to a new stack frame, like the ...
Omar and Lorraine's user avatar
60 votes
7 answers
16k views

Did any compiler fully use Intel x87 80-bit floating point?

There is a paradox about floating point that I'm trying to understand. Floating point is an eternal struggle with the problem that real numbers happen to be both essential and incomputable. It's the ...
rwallace's user avatar
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56 votes
2 answers
25k views

Why were the /\ (min) and the \/ (max) operators abandoned in the C language?

In the UNIX V7 version of the C language (but not yet in the V6 version), there were the /\ (min) and the \/ (max) operators. In the source of the scanner part of the compiler, case BSLASH: if (...
Leo B.'s user avatar
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28 votes
3 answers
5k views

Most modern C compilers targeting DOS 8086, running on DOS 8086 (16-bit)

I'm looking for the most recent versions of modern C compilers which were/are targeting DOS 8086, also running on DOS 8086 (16-bit). I'm mostly interested in production-ready C compilers, rather than ...
pts's user avatar
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24 votes
5 answers
3k views

How much benefit should be expected on a more advanced compiler for z80/r800 based computers?

I am self studying about compilers, and get hands on very good textbooks about the subject. I am thinking in develop a compiler using the almighty llvm infrastructure to cross compile to old computers,...
flavio's user avatar
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17 votes
1 answer
2k views

ZSPL language, anyone heard of it?

While reading the Byte sieve article (Gilbreath 1981), I came across a language I have never heard of, ZSPL. I suspected this was actually a specific version of another language, perhaps PL/1. ...
Maury Markowitz's user avatar
11 votes
1 answer
3k views

What was the first Lisp implementation that could generate machine code?

LISP is considered by some to be primarily an interpreted language, but compilers have been made for it. What was the first compiler? To be clear, this is about compilers that compile LISP code stored ...
cjs's user avatar
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9 votes
1 answer
677 views

What was the first compiler/interpreter/assembler to indicate problematic columns in diagnostic messages?

These days, most compilers and interpreters seem to provide the following in diagnostics: A description of the problem The name of the source file A line number A relevant position within the line ...
texdr.aft's user avatar
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7 votes
1 answer
500 views

Was dynamic type check in Pascal commonplace?

The BESM-6 Pascal compiler I'm experimenting with has a notable difference from Standard Pascal: formal arguments of formal parameters-procedures or functions are not specified, but are checked at ...
Leo B.'s user avatar
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3 votes
1 answer
1k views

What were top-10 popular programming languages in the 60s, 70s, and the 80s?

TIOBE index has been tracking the most popular programming languages since 2001, which reflects the dominance of C/C++/Java in the first score of 21st century. However C derivatives hadn't beat Pascal ...
Schezuk's user avatar
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