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Mail Archives: djgpp/1996/12/19/20:57:50

From: "John M. Aldrich" <fighteer AT cs DOT com>
Newsgroups: comp.os.msdos.djgpp
Subject: Re: Cross Compiler for 8086 PDA
Date: Thu, 19 Dec 1996 19:37:37 -0800
Organization: Two pounds of chaos and a pinch of salt
Lines: 33
Message-ID: <32BA0A01.6F40@cs.com>
References: <32B91E18 DOT 4CE7 AT tertio DOT co DOT uk>
Reply-To: fighteer AT cs DOT com
NNTP-Posting-Host: ppp211.cs.com
Mime-Version: 1.0
To: Andrew Lord <Andrew_Lord AT tertio DOT co DOT uk>
DJ-Gateway: from newsgroup comp.os.msdos.djgpp

Andrew Lord wrote:
> 
> Is it posisble to get DJGPP to produce 8086 code a hand-held PDA (Psion
> 3a ).
> 
> The important thing is that the resultant code mustn't mess with the
> ES segment resgister and must be less than 64K (unless some kind of
> run-time overlay is used ). For this reason the official development
> compiler is TopSpeed apparently 'cause it's the only one that doesn't
> play with the ES register.
> 
> I guess I would have to find my own libc.a?

The GNU documentation very explicitly states that they are only
concerned with coding for 32-bit processors.  In order to get DJGPP to
make code which is compatible with an 8086, you would have to turn it
back into a 16-bit compiler, which simply won't work.

That said, it would *theoretically* be possible to create an 8086
cross-compiler with DJGPP, if you are willing to write a completely new
set of machine description files and a completely new set of libc
functions.  Getting the code to fit in 64K and support overlays would
obviously be part and parcel of this work.

My recommendation:  "Borrow" an old copy of Turbo C from somebody.  ;)

-- 
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| John M. Aldrich, aka Fighteer I  |        fighteer AT cs DOT com         |
| "Starting flamewars since 1993"  |   http://www.cs.com/fighteer   |
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