Will JWASM understand IDEAL mode?

[Ficko]

Just wondering. ::)

[BlackVortex]

Better to look towards the future, more x64 features, more instruction sets. Screw tasm.

That's my opinion. Yep, screw tasm. (This feels sooo good)

[Ficko]

You right I didn't actually mean 100% TASM support rather thought "JIDEAL" support.  :wink

TASM "IDEAL" mode fixed up a lot of "dissonance" in MASM which were not bugs more like products of "Bill" when he was drunk. :green
JWASM has already some fixes to this direction – consciously or unconsciously – but the approach is more rigid.
Too many command line switches.
It would be more flexible to have a ".JIDEAL" directive to turn on extended futures like TASM did.
And TASM object oriented support is missing as well.
I know there is "objasm32" but it is really stretches the macro capability to the limit and slows down the assembler to a speed of a C++ compiler.
TASM by the way was about 30% faster in IDEAL mode due to the more strait forward approach required less complexity.

[Vortex]

The Lazy Assembler is based on the TASM (Turbo Assembler) IDEAL mode.

[hutch--]

I confess to happily having been part of the death of TASM, it was almost a competitor back in the DOS days and later picked up a big following with the virus brigade but binary for binary, MASM kicked its arse big time, could handle large complex include files, had built in ssyematic pre-processing capacity and was maintained on an occasional basis by Microsoft where TASM floundered under Borland/Inprise/Borland, went badly out of date, had no support and fell to the all conquering Microsoft assembler.

Now perhaps someone could motivate the JWASM author to write JTASM so its successor could flounder with lack of support just like TASM did.  :bg

[Ficko]

Just for info :wink

the current version of TASM is:

Turbo Assembler  Version 5.4  Copyright (c) 1988, 2009 CodeGear
Syntax:  TASM [options] source [,object] [,listing] [,xref]
/a,/s          Alphabetic or Source-code segment ordering
/c             Generate cross-reference in listing
/dSYM[=VAL]    Define symbol SYM = 0, or = value VAL
/e,/r          Emulated or Real floating-point instructions
/h,/?          Display this help screen
/iPATH         Search PATH for include files
/jCMD          Jam in an assembler directive CMD (eg. /jIDEAL)
/kh#           Hash table capacity # symbols
/l,/la         Generate listing: l=normal listing, la=expanded listing
/ml,/mx,/mu    Case sensitivity on symbols: ml=all, mx=globals, mu=none
/mv#           Set maximum valid length for symbols
/m#            Allow # multiple passes to resolve forward references
/n             Suppress symbol tables in listing
/os,/o,/op,/oi Object code: standard, standard w/overlays, Phar Lap, IBM
/p             Check for code segment overrides in protected mode
/q             Suppress OBJ records not needed for linking
/t             Suppress messages if successful assembly
/uxxxx         Set version emulation, version xxxx
/w0,/w1,/w2    Set warning level: w0=none, w1=w2=warnings on
/w-xxx,/w+xxx  Disable (-) or enable (+) warning xxx
/x             Include false conditionals in listing
/z             Display source line with error message
/zi,/zd,/zn    Debug info: zi=full, zd=line numbers only, zn=none

it is part of RAD Studio

[hutch--]

Interesting, not TASM but the entire product line, a rebirth of Delphi after Borland. I read the specs and had a billious attack, that much clutter in one space gives me that "glass eyed" look, how to try and be all things to all people and end up being nothing to anyone.  :bg