= --- === --------------------------------------------------------------------- ======= -L- -I- -B- -E- -R- -E- -T- -T- -O- May 1999 ========= ======= The iMatix Newsletter Volume IV Issue 5 --- === --------------------------------------------------------------------- = Copyright (c) 1999 iMatix Corporation - distribute freely Back issues at http://www.imatix.com Comments to: editors@imatix.com Programming -- Technology -- Finite State Machines -- News -- Other Stuff == COMMENT ---...-.-...-.--...-.--...-.-...-.....---..-....--.--..-.-.---.-- iMatix Corporation is an internet company, but of course we consist of real people, working in real offices. Each month I write this editorial from Antwerpen, the capital of Flanders, and a lovely port city. Sometime soon, iMatix will be moving its headquarters to a new building, in Brussels. With a little luck, the work will be finished for the millenium (the real one, 1 January 2001, the re-millenium). And 'work' it is, because we bought an old industrial depot, in one of Brussels' post-industrial areas, Molenbeek. It's a large, low brick thing with a beautiful facade, and various levels and workshops. Suddenly, after many years of doing projects for clients, we are the client, and while this is strictly a hardware project, not software, it's curious to be at the paying end and making hard decisions. We're still chosing an architect. Some architects, like Madame V, are into 'formal methods'. They work according to a formal procedure, well-explained with brochures with titles like 'How To Work With An Architect (For Idiots)'. I'll not bore you with details, but after a long process, apparently driven by truckloads of cash, we get the keys to a sparkling new building. There are also architects, like Monsieur B, who work as consultants. They provide advice and plans, but don't take responsibility for the overall results. The parallels with software development are amusing. In both cases we're trying to build an environment that will support our work. There is the Big Bang approach: make plans, give full artistic control to Madame V, wait for two years, and hope the results are what we need. Then there is the organic approach: start with a bag of cement and a discussion with Monsieur B, and spend the next two years learning and building at the same time. Everything we've made at iMatix - Libero, SMT, SFL, Xitami, and the other tools we depend on - were built organically, often over many years. So I guess it's a foregone conclusion that we will thank Mdm. V for her brochures, and make another appointment with Monsieur B. Pieter Hintjens Antwerpen 1 May 1999 == INBOX -..-..---.-.---..-.-.-.--...---.....----.-.-.----....--.--...----.- From: "Anthony T. Colyandro" Subject: new schema I love your Libero. It is a great tool. I read in the documentation that you do custom schemas. I have a request for a Windows version: 1. Fortran 90 2. Standard ML (SML) (http://cm.bell-labs.com/cm/cs/what/smlnj/index.html) and 3: Is there some book / tutorial to learn about making schemas that work with Libero? Thanks, - Anthony T. Colyandro Software Manager NASA Goddard Space Flight Center >>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Good question. We asked Libero's author, Pieter Hintjens, to reply. Liberetto: Pieter, could you reply to this question? Pieter: First off, I'm happy to see that Libero is working its way into space. Perhaps one day, on a far-off planet, a young alien will discover the magic of using Libero to write a tentacle-interface program to control dispensers of stimulant non-nourishing liquids. Let's lobby to get Libero sent on the next Voyager disk. Liberetto: Right, whatever. How about Fortran 90 and SML? Pieter: Oh yeah. Schemas. Look: a Libero schema is just a mix of whatever language you're programming in - Fortran, Cobol, C, whatever - and instructions to Libero like 'put the name of the program here' and 'put the state/event transition table here'. In 1999, we saw people make new schemas for PHP (a web programming language) and for PL/SQL (used in the Oracle database). My guess is that a decent Fortran 90 programmer can make a Libero schema in a day or so, simply by taking one of the existing schemas, and converting it to Fortran. Looking at SML, which is a nice clean programming language, this should be a simple task too. Liberetto: How about the tutorial? Pieter: everything I ever wanted to say about Libero is online at imatix.com. The nice thing about the Internet is you never need to repeat yourself. Liberetto: How about the tutorial? Pieter: yeah, thanks, and have a nice day! == TERMINATE THE PROGRAM -...---...-..----....-.---..---...-...---.-...---.- To unsubscribe, just send us an e-mail.