Thread: The weird world of C

Hi guys.
I was writing some code recently, and it's a set of around 10 modules-60000 Compiled
lines. Everything was fine until recently I added a simple module with some very simple void
functions. However, when I compile this time i get error messages telling
me "Segment Code _TEXT exceeds 64k". The compiler is the basic BC31. The Help
system is very dry, short and jargonic. So, I turn to you, my friends, as my last hope...
No, i don't want to change memory model from 'Compact' to Large or Huge.


Thanks.



Discover the XBlue:
http://www.angelfire.com/my/bahairom...html:confused:

> No, i don't want to change memory model from 'Compact' to Large or Huge
I don't think you have a choice - compact is 64K max of code (ie TEXT segment) - whether its in 1 source file or 10

Scroll down to the end of
this to see what each memory model gives you.

Your other choice is to look through your code to see if there is any dead code which can be removed. But you are at the limit with this memory model, and without changing it, your options are few.

Split it up into smaller modules

could that really work?

I'll try changing to "Large", but changing to "huge" will just jam all the graphicsa routines.

Thanks a lot for talking to me about this.


Stef

>could that really work?

Yes, but ofcourse I'm not talking only about splitting the source code into different files, but mainly about splitting binaries. In large software projects, programmers usually create libraries with functions. Create one or more libraries and use these.

Doesn't your compiler have any other options? Mine has like 6! And they all would increase something, so I would think it would work on Medium or even small.

>So, let's think about it. Should I still develop any software under DOS?

You don't need to. Unless you want people who use DOS be able to use your software. So it depends on what kind of software you want to write.

I only do DOS because a lot of the programming I do is utilities and stuff. I originally learned how to program because my brother's mother in law had a virus on her computer, where the second you turned it on, it started creating directories. I made a batch file that would put itself as first priority (via something similar to that preprocessor directive where you can specify urgency of tasks), start deleting directories, and deletes the program. The program would install itself again somehow, but wouldn't start until you turned it on (Trojan Horse type thing). So the next time, it would continue deleteing the superfluous directories, and eventually everything was back to normal. When the directories were no longer there, I had a system where it would search out the program installer. Problem solved! I enjoyed doing it so much I started learning C. Anyway - I just do utilities in DOS because its very closely linked with the PC architecture itself. You don't have to keep programming in DOS. It's a personal choice really.

Mmm. .. I think I targeted my question at something else.
If there is however a large group of people who still
use DOS, for example?


C ya.

Oh yeah - a lot of people still use DOS. Most people think Windows is all there is (excluding Linux and all that - I'm talking Microsoft exclusive) because that's what most programmers learn about. But that's the reason itself why Assembly programmers are so highly paid - they're so rare nowadays.

Well I've been doing a lot of DirectX coding and let me tell you, assembly is still used. In fact my knowledge of assembly has helped me a lot in DirectX. Granted that the HEL probably performs what I want to do but just in case it does not I code my own.

For instance I coded my own bi-linear interpolation function for DirectX in assembly. Yes video cards do bi-linear interpolate but its always on textures which is no good for me. If you want to find the altitude of an object and you know the altitude of the four corners of the grid the object is in - and you know how far into the grid on x and y the object is, you can bi-linear interpolate to find the height of the object.

Code:

USHORT Bi_Linear(WORD v1,WORD v2,WORD v3,WORD v4,
double offset_x,double offset_y)
{
  USHORT value1=0,value2=0,final_value=0;
  __asm {
   
    fild [v2]
    fisub [v1]
    fmul [offset_x]
    fiadd [v1]
    fistp [value1]

    fild [v4]
    fisub [v3]
    fmul [offset_y]
    fiadd [v3]
    fistp [value2]

    fild [value2]
    fisub [value1]
    fmul [offset_y]
    fiadd [value1]
    fistp [final_value]
    }
    return (final_value);
}

You could just as easily store final_value in the eax register to return it since this is where C looks for integral return values, but since I did this in inline assembly it looks more logical to use a return (and the compiler does not whine at me) instead of placing the correct value in the eax register (or st(0) for floating point values).

So assembly is not dead (might be used less in Direct3D, but I'm sure I'll still use some) - at least not for games where speed is the prime factor.

Assembly and DOS will always be used a little as long as people use the current style of PC. They what everything else is built on. Right now, we have a really tall tower, and as long as people are going to use the tower and do maintenance on it, the foundations need maintenance as well.