376 Part VII: The Part of Tens

Programming a handheld computer

Microsoft created a stripped-down version of Windows known as Windows CE for use in handheld and palm-size computers (often known as PocketPC computers). Unfortunately, programs that you write for Windows 98/Me/NT/2000/XP can’t run on Windows CE. So if you want to write programs for Windows CE, you must use a special Windows CE compiler. Microsoft developed Windows CE, so naturally Microsoft offers Windows CE programming toolkits so that you can write programs for Windows CE/PocketPC computers by using either Visual C++ or Visual Basic.

Two other programming languages for writing Windows CE/PocketPC programs include Pocket C (at www.orbworks.com) and NSBASIC (at

www.nsbasic.com). Pocket C uses a strippeddown version of the C programming language, and NSBASIC uses a stripped-down version of the BASIC programming language. Pocket C and NSBASIC aren’t quite as powerful as Visual C++ and Visual Basic, but they still enable you to create commercial-quality programs for a Windows CE/PocketPC computer.

Both Pocket C and NSBASIC also come in versions that run under the Palm OS, so you can also write programs for the Palm handheld computer. Because the Palm OS and Windows CE/Pocket PC are drastically different computers, you can’t run your programs on both the Palm OS and Windows CE/Pocket PC without extensive modification.

Testing the Shareware and

Freeware Compilers

Choosing a programming language can often prove as emotional and subjective as choosing someone to marry. Rather than buy a handful of commercial compilers only to find out that you don’t like any of them or the programming languages that they use, take some time to download a shareware or freeware compiler instead.

As you test shareware or freeware compilers, you can practice using different programming languages such as C++ or Java. If you find a programming language that you like, consider buying the shareware or a similar commercial compiler. For a list of free compilers for a variety of different programming languages, visit the Catalog of Free Compilers and Interpreters Web page at www.idiom.com/free-compilers.

BASIC compilers

For a BASIC compiler that can create MS-DOS and Windows programs, consider PowerBasic (at www.powerbasic.com). For writing MS-DOS programs,

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the company offers their FirstBasic and PowerBasic shareware compilers. For writing Windows programs, try the PowerBasic for Windows compiler.

If you have a Macintosh, you can download the freeware Chipmunk Basic interpreter (not a compiler) from www.nicholson.com/rhn/basic.

One of the more challenging tasks for any programmer is writing 3D computer animated games. Although most programmers use C/C++ to write computer video games, you may want to use your knowledge of BASIC to write your own computer games for Windows by using a special game-creation language known as DarkBASIC (at http://darkbasic.thegamecreators.com).

C/C++ and Java compilers

C and C++ are powerful languages, but they can prove intimidating to many people. Rather than spend lots of money buying a commercial C/C++ compiler, spend some time playing with shareware and freeware C/C++ compilers first.

The most popular C compiler for Linux is the GNU C compiler, so that same compiler was ported to Windows and renamed the Cygwin compiler (at http://sources.redhat.com/cygwin).

For those who want to tackle Java programming, download the free Java software development kit direct from Sun Microsystems (at java.sun.com), the inventors of Java. This bare-bones Java programming tool can help you learn Java.

To help spread the popularity of their C++ and Java compilers, Borland International offers free versions of their C++ Builder and JBuilder compilers. The idea is that if you like using the free versions, you might want to buy their more advanced versions later.

Pascal compilers

Although Pascal has faded in popularity in North America, it’s still popular among a small group of programming die-hards. For a free Pascal compiler for MS-DOS, Windows, and Linux, download Free Pascal from www.freepascal. org. If you always wanted to dig into the guts of a compiler, visit the Bloodshed Software Web site (at www.bloodshed.net), where you can join an ongoing effort to create and develop a Pascal compiler for Windows.

Currently the most well-known Pascal compiler is Delphi, a Visual Basic-like compiler developed by Borland International. To help spread the popularity of Delphi, Borland offers a free version of Delphi (and Kylix, their Linux