About Fortran on ][s

[secrist@kxovax.enet.dec.com (Strong datatypes for weak minds.)]

	To the person looking to learn Fortran on an Apple:
	Don't forget about possibly acquiring one of the
	Fortrans under CP/M that you could run on an Apple.

	Of the Fortrans you could run on a ][, the most useful
	for learning probably is the once under the Apple Pascal
	system because it is a subset of Fortran-77.  Most
	everything else you find is a dialect of Fortran-66
	(a.k.a. Fortran-IV), which while upward compatible,
	forces you into a lot of extra work (doing all of your
	character work in Logical*1 arrays instead of having a
	CHARACTER data type, for example).  The other thing is
	that a lot of what people take for granted in Fortran
	on a VAX, for example, such as WHILE..DO loops and 32
	character variable names, are *NOT* part of ANSI standard
	Fortran-77 (and are not in Fortran-77 on a PDP-11, for
	example).  

	Either way, an Apple ][ with normal Disk ][ type floppies 
	is NOT a wonderful environment for this kind of edit/compile/link 
	language environment, especially if you're used to contemporary 
	debuggers on a PC under {Turbo;Borland}-something or under 
	VAX/VMS.  If you're going to try to work there the cheapest way
	out might be to buy a suitable RAM card and copy everything into
	it so the compiler, etal. can operate at a descent speed (and
	nab a TransWarp or something if you can while you;re at it).

	Probably the most frustrating thing you're up against may
	be that if you're going to be doing you class in an IBM
	environment you could get the Fortran code done in a
	straight-forward manner and spend DAYS trying to get the
	JCL cards right.  If you're at a university and this course
	is on the general-purpose campus computers perhaps the best
	thing to do would be to look into a guest account there to
	learn from over the summer and use your Apple as a terminal !

	Regards,
	An old Fortran programmer.