Language/OS - Multiplatform Resource Library/LANGUAGE OS.iso/ast_text/faqs/ada.faq

Internet Message Format | 1993-07-11 | 28.3 KB

From charnel!rat!usc!wupost!wuarchive.wustl.edu!conn Sat Jul 10 22:28:48 PDT 1993
Article: 9264 of comp.lang.ada
Path: charnel!rat!usc!wupost!wuarchive.wustl.edu!conn
From: [e-mail] (Richard Conn)
Newsgroups: comp.lang.ada,comp.answers,news.answers
Subject: Public Ada Library FAQ
Followup-To: poster
Date: 6 Jul 1993 20:47:14 -0500
Organization: Washington University in Saint Louis, MO
Lines: 652
Approved: [e-mail]
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
NNTP-Posting-Host: wuarchive.wustl.edu
Summary: Public Ada Library (PAL) Frequently Asked Questions
Keywords: Public Ada Library, FAQ, PAL
Xref: charnel comp.lang.ada:9264 comp.answers:1210 news.answers:10108

Archive-name: comp-lang-ada/public-ada-library

Date of this FAQ: Tuesday, July 6, 1993
Public Ada Library (PAL) Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Posting Frequency: Monthly

The Public Ada Library is a library of Ada software, courseware, and
documentation on the wuarchive.wustl.edu host computer.  This FAQ
addresses the following questions:

 . What is the Public Ada Library (PAL)?
 . What is WUARCHIVE?
 . How Can I Find Out About the Status of WUARCHIVE?
 . How Can I Receive Announcements of New Items, Changes, and other
   Information about the Public Ada Library (PAL)?
 . How Can I Interact with Ada Educators and Trainers through the PAL?
 . What Documentation is Available to Help the PAL User?
 . How is the PAL Like a Conventional Library?
 . Is the Software in the PAL Free of Defects?
 . How Do I Handle the Various Types of Files in the PAL?
 . How Can I Get to the Items in the PAL?
 . How Do I Work with ZIP Files and MAC Binary Files in the PAL from my MAC?
 . How Can I Submit an Item to the PAL?

Questions about this FAQ?  Suggestions for improvement?  Gripes?
Contact:
  Richard Conn, Manager, Public Ada Library (PAL)
  [e-mail]

=======================================================
What is the Public Ada Library?
Overview of the Public Ada Library (PAL)
Richard Conn, Manager, Public Ada Library
June 21, 1993

The Public Ada Library (PAL) is a library of Ada software, courseware,
and documentation on the Internet-based host computer named
wuarchive.wustl.edu (WUARCHIVE).  PAL is located in the directory
languages/ada if you access WUARCHIVE by FTP, archie, or FTPMAIL, or in
the directory /archive/languages/ada if you access WUARCHIVE by NFS.
The PAL reached the Initial Operational Capability milestone in its
evolution on June 21, 1993.

The purposes of the PAL are:

  . to help make Ada-oriented software, courseware, and documentation
    that has been released for public distribution (as shareware,
    freeware, GNU Copyleft, etc) readily available to the public

  . to support Ada educators by providing a convenient mechanism
    for them to exchange material and ideas

  . to support the Ada user community in general by providing a
    resource in support of their activities

WUARCHIVE is supported by the Office of the Network Coordinator,
Washington University in Saint Louis.  The Manager of the PAL is working
on a voluntary, unfunded basis.  Support for the PAL and its manager is
in the form of unrestricted use of disk space on WUARCHIVE, technical
consulting support, and general support as a user of WUARCHIVE.

To begin using the PAL, read the PAL.FAQ file (posted on USENET and
available in the languages/ada/userdocs/faqfile subdirectory).  It is
highly recommended that users obtain the current PAL Catalog (named
PALCAT.DOC in the subdirectory languages/ada/userdocs/catalog) as well.

The PAL can be accessed by a wide variety of mechanisms.  These
mechanisms include, but are not limited to, the following:

  . FTP to WUARCHIVE itself (up to 250 simultaneous FTP users)
  . NFS mounts on WUARCHIVE
  . archie email servers
  . FTPMAIL email servers
  . CDROM distributions
  . AdaNET distributions and customer support (AdaNET is free to users)




                          General Disclaimer
                          ==================

All software, courseware, documentation, and other items of information
in the PAL are provided "AS IS" without any expressed or implied
warranties whatsoever unless their individual documentation states
otherwise.  No warranties as to performance, merchantability, or fitness
for a particular purpose exist.

Because of the diversity of conditions under which this software may be
used, no warranty of fitness for a particular purpose is offered.  The
user is advised to test the software and courseware thoroughly before
relying on it.  The user must assume the entire risk and liability of
using this software, courseware, and documentation.

In no event shall any person or organization be held responsible for any
direct, indirect, consequential, or inconsequential damages or lost
profits.

=======================================================
What is WUARCHIVE?
About WUARCHIVE
Chris Myers ([e-mail]) and
  Richard Conn ([e-mail])
June 22, 1993

The host computer named wuarchive.wustl.edu (WUARCHIVE) is a Digital
Equipment Corporation (DEC) Alpha AXP 3000 Model 400.  It is equipped
with 128M bytes of RAM and over 15G bytes of disk space, and it is able
to support up to 250 simultaneous anonymous FTP session as well as many
remote NFS mounts.

WUARCHIVE is owned by the Office of the Network Coordinator, Washington
University in Saint Louis. It is supported out of the budget of the
Office of the Network Coordinator and by a grant from the National
Science Foundation.  The Office of the Network Coordinator and the
National Science Foundation have jointly paid for the hardware of the
machine and for the services of the support personnel at Washington
University in Saint Louis.

The maintainers of the archives which originate on WUARCHIVE are
volunteers, working on an unfunded basis.  The support personnel who
maintain the operational support software, including the software
which keeps the mirrors up to date, are funded by the Office of the
Network Coordinator and the National Science Foundation grant.

We wish to express our gratitude to Digital Equipment Corporation for
the sale of the DEC Alpha at a substantial discount and to the National
Science Foundation for its grant in support of WUARCHIVE.

=======================================================
How Can I Find Out About the Status of WUARCHIVE?
Washington University Archive (WUARCHIVE.WUSTL.EDU) Status Reports
June 21, 1993

Operational status changes (such as planned downtime and enhancements to
service) for wuarchive.wustl.edu are announced over the
wuarchive-announce mailing list.  You can sign up by sending an email
message to:

  [e-mail]

which contains:

  help
  subscribe wuarchive-announce

as the body (not subject) of the email message.

=======================================================
How Can I Receive Announcements of New Items, Changes, and other
Information about the Public Ada Library (PAL)?
Richard Conn, Manager, Public Ada Library
June 21, 1993

An announcement list (PAL-ANNOUNCE) for users of the Public Ada Library
(PAL) has been set up on wunet.wustl.edu (note that this host is NOT
wuarchive.wustl.edu).  The purpose of PAL-ANNOUNCE is to distribute
information on additions to the PAL, changes to the PAL, and other
announcements of interest to the users of the Public Ada Library.
PAL-ANNOUNCE is an announcement-only list and will not accept general
postings for redistribution.

If you wish to subscribe to PAL-ANNOUNCE, send an electronic mail
message to:

  [e-mail]

Leave the subject line blank and place the following line into the body
of this message:

  subscribe pal-announce

Begin this line in column 1.  Your return address will be used as the
address to which announcements will be sent.

You will receive a message back from the listserv software, telling you
of the success or failure of your request.

After you have subscribed, you may wish to send another message to the
listserv address, placing the following line into the body of the
message:

  help

This will result in instructions on the use of the listserv software
being sent back to you.

=======================================================
How Can I Interact with Ada Educators and Trainers through the PAL?
Richard Conn, Manager, Public Ada Library
June 24, 1993

An interactive discussion list (ADA-TRAIN) for Ada educators and
trainers has been set up on wunet.wustl.edu (note that this host is NOT
wuarchive.wustl.edu).  The purpose of ADA-TRAIN is to foster discussion
about both Ada training and education.  This list was set up with
college and university professors, corporate education and training
services, commercial education and training services, government
education and training services, and high school teachers in mind, but
anyone in general is welcome to participate.  ADA-TRAIN is further
supported by the Public Ada Library (PAL) on WUARCHIVE, and the PAL will
act as a medium for file and general information exchange between the
participants. Anyone may send electronic mail to ADA-TRAIN, and email
received by ADA-TRAIN is automatically distributed to its subscribers.

If you wish to subscribe to ADA-TRAIN, send an electronic mail
message to:

  [e-mail]

Leave the subject line blank and place the following line into the body
of this message:

  subscribe ada-train

Begin this line in column 1.  Your return address will be used as the
address to which announcements will be sent.

You will receive a message back from the listserv software, telling you
of the success or failure of your request.

After you have subscribed, you may wish to send another message to the
listserv address, placing the following line into the body of the
message:

  help

This will result in instructions on the use of the listserv software
being sent back to you.


=======================================================
What Documentation is Available to Help the PAL User?
USERDOCS
Key User Documents in the Public Ada Library (PAL)
Richard Conn, Manager, Public Ada Library (PAL)
June 21, 1993

The subdirectory userdocs in the PAL contains a number of documents of
interest to the users of the PAL.  The key user documents in this
subdirectory are:

  PAL.FAQ       -- the Frequently Asked Questions list
  PALCAT.DOC    -- a softcopy catalog of the contents of the PAL
  PALDB.DOC,    -- a Comma-Separated-Value (CSV) text file suitable
    PALHDR.DOC     -- for reading by database managers and spreadsheets
  PALTAX.DOC    -- a taxonomy of the PAL

Other files in the userdocs/catalog and userdocs/faqfile subdirectories
are used to create these key files.  Additionally, the user is invited
to look in the following directories for additional useful information:

  userdocs/alt_srcs    -- alternate sources to the items in the PAL
  userdocs/internet    -- information on using the Internet

=======================================================
How is PAL Like a Conventional Library?
Analogy of the Public Ada Library (PAL) to a Conventional Library
Richard Conn, Manager, Public Ada Library (PAL)
June 21, 1993

Many similarities can be drawn between the Public Ada Library (PAL) on
the WUARCHIVE.WUSTL.EDU host computer and a conventional library.  These
similarities include:
  . the way users browse through the libraries,
  . the availability of a catalog of the contents of the libraries,
  . the availability of reviews of the items in the libraries,
  . the availability of bulletin boards to find out what is new, and
  . the availability of support to help you use the libraries.

In a conventional library, you can walk into the library and walk
amongst the books, picking them off the shelves as you wish.  In the
PAL, you can FTP into it and move amongst the directories (via the CD
command), copying files out of PAL as you wish.  You could also mount
the disk containing PAL via NFS and access it like any read-only disk,
again copying files out of PAL as you wish.  There is one significant
drawback to this approach: by picking up an item "at random," you may
miss other items which are prerequisites to the one you selected.  The
catalog (a card catalog in a conventional library or the PAL catalog in
the PAL) can help you avoid this problem.

In a conventional library, you can go up to the card catalog and look
for what you are interested in by topic.  In the PAL, you can copy down
the catalog file and browse through it at your convenience or you can
copy down the online database files, load them into a database manager
or spreadsheet of your choice, and browse through them in that fashion.

In a conventional library, there are books you can examine which are
reviews of other books.  In the current PAL, the catalog includes REVIEW
CODES to give you a brief review of an item.  CMM files are also
available occasionally.  In phase 2 of the PAL, there will be review
reports generated by automated tools.

In a conventional library, there are bulletin boards and other places
where you can go to find out about the new releases.  In the PAL, there
are release notices, currently being posted to comp.lang.ada.

Finally, in a conventional library, there is a reference librarian you
can speak to if you have a question.  In the PAL, there is only me at
this time, and I can be reached via electronic mail.  However, there are
also the alternate sources of the PAL, particularly AdaNET.  I ask that
you try to exhaust all the other possibilities before contacting me
directly. Instead, please subscribe to a service like AdaNET (which is
currently free to you).  They are providing a mirror of the PAL and they
support their users via electronic mail and customer support telephone
line, including an 800 telephone number.

=======================================================
Is the Software in PAL Free of Defects?
Expectations of the Software in the Public Ada Library (PAL)
Richard Conn, Manager, Public Ada Library (PAL)
June 21, 1993

The software in the PAL is an outstanding collection from all over the
world, but it comes with a warning: like any such collection, there are
outstanding items, good items, average items, and poor items.  This
software contains items which are really useful, items which you cannot
live without, and items which simply may not work in your environment.
So you, as a user, must not come into this thinking that everything is
perfect.

So how do you know in advance what software is good and what is bad?
Study.  This problem has come up over and over again with the Ada
Software Repository (ASR), and I answered this by adding a REVIEW CODE
field to all the items in the ASR Master Index.  Chapter 1 of the Master
Index gives the keys for this field (e.g., CS means Compiled
Successfully, ES means Executed Successfully, NR means Not Rated (I
don't know if it is good or bad), etc.).  Every item in the Master Index
book has an associated REVIEW CODE field.  Look at this when you
consider using the item.  Also, look for Comment (CMM) files throughout
the ASR.  They tell success/problem stories.  They are text files, so
you can just read them.  Finally, if you find an item marked with a CS
and ES, note the compilers/platforms noted with this mark (e.g., CS(DEC
Ada), etc.). If a number of compilers/platforms are named, you probably
have a very portable item.

The PAL has a document called the PAL Catalog (similar in nature to the
Master Index of the ASR).  The PAL Catalog has a similar REVIEW CODE
field, and CMM files are also support in the PAL.  In phase 2 of the
PAL, one or more automated static code analysis tools will be used to
analyze the Ada source code in the PAL and report on it.

=======================================================
How Do I Handle the Various Types of FIles in PAL?
Text and Other File Formats in the Public Ada Library (PAL)
Richard Conn, Manager, Public Ada Library
June 21, 1993

Only a limited number of file formats have come into play among the
files in the PAL, and this document is designed to bring them to your
attention.

Text Files
==========
There are two basic kinds of ASCII text files: MSDOS format and UNIX
format.  The difference is that lines in MSDOS format files are
terminated by a pair of characters (carriage return and line feed)
while lines in UNIX format files are terminated by a single character
(line feed).  Occasionally, MSDOS format files will also have one or
more ^Z characters at their end, but this is becoming more and more
rare.

Consequently, if you are on a UNIX system and want to process an MSDOS
text file, there may be problems.  Likewise if you are on an MSDOS
system trying to process a UNIX text file.  In the toolkit directory
are the programs

  u2m   -- unix to msdos text file format converter
  m2u   -- msdos to unix text file format converter
  t2t   -- whatever to current text file format converter

The toolkit directory includes executables of these programs for MSDOS.
Source code is also included for others.  The t2t program also has a -c
option that can be used to test a text file to determine what kind of a
text file it is.  You may find these programs to be very useful.

As a rule, the text files in the PAL are UNIX text files.

PAGER2 Files
============
PAGER2 files are UNIX or MSDOS text files created by the PAGER2 program
in the PAL.  They have a file type of SRC (altho not all SRC files are
necessarily PAGER2 files).  PAGER2 is used to concatenate a number of
Ada source files into one file, where each component file is separated
by a special Ada comment.  That way, Ada source files can be stored in a
single SRC file in compilation order and compiled as one group.  The
pager2 program can be found in the toolkit directory.

ZIP Files
=========
These are binary archive files, usually containing a set of files in a
directory tree structure that will be reproduced when the files are
extracted.  The toolkit directory contains the source code to popular
ZIP and UNZIP programs.

TAR Files
=========
These are text/binary archive files, usually containing a set of files
like a ZIP file.  TAR (Tape Archiver) came from the UNIX world, and the
toolkit directory contains a TAR.EXE program so MSDOS users can get at
and extract files from TAR files.

Compressed (*.Z) Files
======================
The compress/uncompress program pair came from the UNIX world for file
compression purposes.  The toolkit directory includes an UNCOMP.EXE
program for uncompressing UNIX *.Z files on a PC.  With ZIP on PCs
(and now on virtually all other platforms), compress is less and less
necessary since ZIP automatically compresses as it stores.
Files named *.taz are compressed *.tar files; uncompress them
first, then use tar to extract their contents.

WARNING: *.tar files may contain directory or file names that are not
compatible with your operating system.  For example, the tar file may have
originally been created on a UNIX system and you are trying to extract its
contents on an MSDOS system.  The MSDOS tar program may correctly shorten
the file and directory names, but if there are conflicts, files may be
overwritten.  Watch out for this potential problem.

=======================================================
How Can I Get to the Items in the PAL?
PAL Alternate Sources Tree
Richard Conn, 8 June 1993
[e-mail]

The PAL can be accessed directly via FTP and NFS to the
wuarchive.wustl.edu host computer.  For users interested in a general
background on the Internet and the techniques for using FTP and NFS, see
the PAL subdirectory userdocs/internet for documentation and pointers to
books.

This userdocs/alt_srcs tree contains information about companies and
organizations that provide support in some way to the PAL user community
through value-added services and products.  Some users of PAL may not
have access to PAL directly via FTP and NFS, so the following
information is presented to help them find alternate ways of accessing
the PAL.

Examples of such services are:
  1. The donation of equipment to Washington University at St. Louis
     that is used by PAL
  2. The sale of consulting services to the PAL user community to answer
     questions about PAL and help users locate items they are looking for
     in PAL or other resources

Examples of such products are:
  1. The sale of CDROMs, magnetic tapes, floppy disks, etc., that contain
     a copy of PAL in an alternate form, making it possible for people
     who do not have Internet or email archive server access to obtain
     a copy of the items in PAL
  2. The sale of computer accounts that place users on the Internet so
     they can access PAL

Companies and organizations wishing to be added to this tree are invited
to send email describing their services or products to me at the above
email address. I will work with them to provide "free advertising" space
in PAL under this tree so users of PAL can be made aware of their
services and products.  I reserve the right to edit material provided by
these companies in the event that this material violates some known law,
public sensibilities, or the like.

  ============================================
  File: /archive/languages/ada/userdocs/alt_srcs/adanet.txt
                     AdaNET Service Version Three (ASV3)
                              a component of
            Repository Based Software Engineering (RBSE) Program

                             Administered by:
                     University of Houston - Clear Lake

       Operated by:                        AdaNET Client Service:
       MountainNet, Inc.                   1-800-444-1458
       2705 Cranberry Square               [e-mail]
       Morgantown, WV 26505


       The AdaNET repository contains PAL software and more.  In
       addition, our Phased Certification Process provides Ada
       software with value-added analysis reports, including
       complexity reports, declaration tree reports and invocation
       tree reports. Our non-software information includes research
       papers, standards and technical reports authored by recognized,
       authoritative sources on software engineering principles and
       practices.

       Our Client Service team provides timely response to requests
       for any component in print or electronic media.  Clients can
       have qualified software engineers and librarians to assist in
       locating AdaNET and/or PAL components that satisfy their needs.
       All of our services are free of charge.

       AdaNET clients automatically receive an account on our host
       which is connected to Internet.  While this does not provide
       full Internet access, Internet e-mail facilities are available.

       Lastly, MountainNet provides a service, MountainNetWorks,
       which offers Internet access at a reasonable rate for
       individuals and groups.

  ============================================
  File: /archive/languages/ada/userdocs/alt_srcs/archie.txt
  Getting Started with Archie
  Derived from: HELP for the archie email server, as of 10 April, 1993.

  To get started with using archie to retrieve files from the Public
  Ada Library (or any of about 800 archives on the Internet, for that
  matter), send an email message with a subject of "help" and a body
  of "help" (no quotes in either the subject or body) to:

      archie@<archie_server>

  <archie_server> is the name of an archie host. The current (and
  complete) list of archie servers can be found with the "servers" command
  (described in the help message). A sample list is:

      archie.rutgers.edu   128.6.18.15     (USA)
      archie.unl.edu       129.93.1.14     (USA)
      archie.sura.net      128.167.254.179 (USA)
      archie.ans.net       147.225.1.2     (USA)
      archie.au            139.130.4.6     (Australia)
      archie.funet.fi      128.214.6.100   (European server in Finland)
      archie.sogang.ac.kr  163.239.1.11    (Korea)

  If you do not get mail back within 2 days or so, try using one of the
  other archie sites.

  ============================================
  File: /archive/languages/ada/userdocs/alt_srcs/decus.txt
  CDROMs from DECUS

  The Digital Equipment Computer Users' Society (DECUS) is in the
  process of systematically making CDROMs of the entire WUARCHIVE,
  including the Public Ada Library (PAL).  I have been advised that
  DECUS intends to create new versions periodically.

  You can get an application for membership in the DECUS U.S. Chapter by
  calling [phone].

  Sites which wish to get DECUS CDROMs should contact their DECUS Local
  User Group or the DECUS Library at:

      DECUS Library
      333 South St, SHR1-4/D33
      Shrewsbury, MA  01545-4112

      [phone] / [phone] / [phone]

  When contacting DECUS, be sure to check on the date of the CDROM
  release.

  Richard Conn
  Manager, PAL

  ============================================
  File: /archive/languages/ada/userdocs/alt_srcs/ftpmail.txt
  Anonymous FTP via Electronic Mail
  Derived from: HELP for the archie email server, as of 10 April, 1993.

  Anonymous FTP may be performed through the mail by various ftp-mail
  servers. Send a message with the word 'help' in it to:

  For BITNET/EARN sites ONLY:

          [e-mail]

  or (general access):

          [e-mail]

  for an explanations on how to use them.

  ============================================
  File: /archive/languages/ada/userdocs/alt_srcs/wcreek.txt
  The file wcreek.zip is a copy of most of the readme files in the
  top-level directory of the Walnut Creek Ada CDROM.  This is also a copy
  of the index tree from that CDROM, showing you in detail the contents of
  the CDROM.

  Note: the omitted top-level readme files were omitted because they were
  more of an operational bent than an informational bent, and, as someone
  who wants to know what is on the CDROM, I restricted this blurb of
  information to a higher level of detail.

  This information is provided as a service to the PAL user community.
  Users should be able to determine if they wish to acquire the CDROM from
  this information.  To some users, acquisition of this CDROM would also
  require the acquisition of a CDROM reader.  It is hoped that this
  information will allow them to adequately judge the value of the CDROM
  to them before expending the funds for such a purchase.

  People who have made a contribution of a significant item on this CDROM
  are entitled to a free copy of the CDROM.  I personally find this to be
  a very generous offer on the part of Walnut Creek, but, as a contributor
  to PAL who also wants to see efforts like Walnut Creek succeed, I chose
  to purchase their CDROM anyway.  However, their offer stands, and it is
  up to you.

  People who wish to examine the contents of the CDROM via the Internet
  may access cdrom.com via anonymous FTP.  Follow the instructions in the
  signon messages.

  The price of the Ada CDROM is $39.95.  Quantity discounts are available
  starting in lots of 10 CDROMs.  Contact Walnut Creek for details. As
  always, shipping, handling, and sales tax are extra when you consider
  the final price.

  For further information contact:
    Walnut Creek CDROM
    4041 Pike Lane, Suite E
    Concord, CA  94520
    800/786-9907 or 510/674-0783
    FAX [phone]
    Email [e-mail]

  This information was last updated on 8 June 1993.

  Richard Conn
  Manager, ASR and PAL

=======================================================
How Do I Work with ZIP Files and MAC Binary Files in the PAL from my MAC?
How Do I Work with ZIP Files and MAC Binary Files in the PAL from my MAC?
Richard Conn, Manger, Public Ada Library
June 29, 1993

See the file mbin*.abs (a text file) in the PAL toolkit directory.
There is a program for converting binary images in the PAL into Mac
Binary format.  There are also ZIP and UNZIP programs for the Mac.

Thanks to Mike Feldman for his support in this matter.

=======================================================
How Can I Submit an Item to the PAL?
Submitting Items to the PAL
Richard Conn, Manger, Public Ada Library
June 21, 1993

Contact me at

  [e-mail]

if you wish to submit an item to the PAL.  Several different mechanisms
are in place for making a submission, including direct FTP into the PAL
(which is by far the easiest from my point of view).  I will ask you to
fill out an Item Description (ID) file which describes the item you are
submitting.  Once the item is on WUARCHIVE and I have your filled-out
ID file, I can take it from there.


--
====================================================================
Richard Conn, ASR and PAL Manager  |  [e-mail]