Will C work on the ENIAC ? ?? ?

[Dan Simper]

I found an old ENIAC on the flea-market and I want to program some
games for it in C.Is there a C - compiler for the ENIAC ?

[infobahn]

Dan Simper wrote:

I found an old ENIAC on the flea-market and I want to program some
games for it in C.
Given your opinion of C, I doubt that.
Is there a C - compiler for the ENIAC ?

I'm pretty sure Armed Response Technologies will be able to help you
out. First Google hit.

[Raymond Martineau]

On Sun, 6 Feb 2005 03:28:31 +0000 (UTC), infobahn <in******@btinternet.com>
wrote:

Dan Simper wrote:

I found an old ENIAC on the flea-market and I want to program some
games for it in C.

Given your opinion of C, I doubt that.

If you want to reply, don't crosspost to the trollcounting newsgroup
(is.matur) de jour. It's the most basic way to flood a newsgroup.

[osmium]

"Dan Simper" writes:

I found an old ENIAC on the flea-market and I want to program some
games for it in C.Is there a C - compiler for the ENIAC ?

If you bought the famous ENIAC, no. That was not a stored program computer,
it was told what to do by means of patchboards and switches. And a C
compiler is, after all, a program. So there can be no compiler. ;-(

[Chris Croughton]

On Sun, 6 Feb 2005 07:21:10 -0800, osmium
<r1********@comcast.net> wrote:

"Dan Simper" writes:

I found an old ENIAC on the flea-market and I want to program some
games for it in C.Is there a C - compiler for the ENIAC ?

If you bought the famous ENIAC, no. That was not a stored program computer,
it was told what to do by means of patchboards and switches. And a C
compiler is, after all, a program. So there can be no compiler. ;-(

Is there any requirement that the C program, once translated, must be
run on a stored program computer with writable program memory? I think
not, so a C 'cross' compiler could be written which produced its
'executable' output in the form of switch and patch settings (or even
instructions where to solder diodes in a matrix!).

Chris C

[Dave Thompson]

On Tue, 8 Feb 2005 19:36:25 +0000, Chris Croughton
<ch***@keristor.net> wrote:

On Sun, 6 Feb 2005 07:21:10 -0800, osmium
<r1********@comcast.net> wrote:

"Dan Simper" writes:

I found an old ENIAC on the flea-market and I want to program some
games for it in C.Is there a C - compiler for the ENIAC ?
If you bought the famous ENIAC, no. That was not a stored program computer,
it was told what to do by means of patchboards and switches. And a C
compiler is, after all, a program. So there can be no compiler. ;-(

Is there any requirement that the C program, once translated, must be
run on a stored program computer with writable program memory? I think

No, not even readable. Only partially addressable, in that you have to
be able to call a function designated by a function pointer. Which
doesn't have to be an address, though on normal stored-program
machines it usually is. (I know one arguably abnormal exception.)
not, so a C 'cross' compiler could be written which produced its
'executable' output in the form of switch and patch settings (or even
instructions where to solder diodes in a matrix!).

ENIAC was before (at least usable) semiconductors, and I don't think
tube (aka valve) diodes were used for logic the way semis were. Plus
they were almost invariably socketed not hard-soldered.

- David.Thompson1 at worldnet.att.net