ThinkC -> MPW library xlator

[STEVE.M@AppleLink.Apple.COM (Carbon-based, S Mitchell,APD)]

To:    Mike Rockhold   [ALink: THINK.QA]
cc:    info-mcl
From:  Steve Mitchell
Date:  5/15/92
 
Mike:
 
Thanks for responding and offering to help!
 
Given that Think C's object file format has remained proprietary
through 5 versions, and there is a translator (oConv) for converting
from MPW object file format to Think C format, I would hope that
a translator in the other direction will be provided if the need
is demonstrated. I wrote to you when I saw that others also need it.
Below I set out reasons why it is necessary for MCL.
 
Macintosh Commom Lisp standalone programs contain a runtime kernel
consisting of the full LISP interpreter, garbage collector, optional
transcript window, and system services. Naturally, this is not in
MPW .o format, and cannot be directly called from a Think C program
or any other program.
 
As an example of the kind of thing MCL programmers would like to do,
I recently interfaced the API (written in Think C) for Notify! to
Excel, Resolve and HyperCard and now want to interface to MCL. To
interface the API to MCL requires using MCL's foreign function
interface: "Foreign function code must be compiled into an MPW object
file format. Any compiler that produces object files of the MPW format
may be used." The MCL FFI provides a call that loads the MPW format
file into the MCL environment.
 
Thanks,
Steve
 
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Item    8857982                         15-May-92        11:22PDT
 
From:   THINK.QA                        Symantec, Michael Rockhold,PRT
 
Sub:    Re: ThinkC -> MPW library xlat
 
Dear Steve,
 
    While I can't discuss our future plans in any but the most general terms
(eg, "We plan to sell software that does some stuff on some machines"), I agree
that a tool that made the LISP programmer's life easier would be a good thing.
Tell me, what are the problems for you with going the other direction, ie,
using oConv to convert your MPW .o files into THINK C projects? I'm genuinely
interested in helping with this.
 
Mike Rockhold, QAE
Symantec Dev Tools
 
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To:     STEVE.M                         Carbon-based, S Mitchell,APD