9fans archive / 2000 / 08 / 70 /    prev next

From: "Doug Henderson" <djhender@tel...>
Subject: [9fans] ugrading edition 2 graphics to edition 3
Date: Wed, 2 Aug 2000 07:23:20 -0600

While I looked at Plan9 a number of years back - I downloaded the 3 disk
install set I think, I didn't get seriously involved until 3rd edition, what
with ADSL & cable making 50Meg downloads a practicality for the individual.

A lot of the existing native plan9 source code out there is written for the
2nd edition graphics libraries, with headers like <libg.h>, <panel.h>, and
<layer.h>. I don't have access to the 2nd edition graphics library
documention. I have not seen both versions of any programs which have been
transformed from 2nd to 3rd editions.

One of the most valuable aids (for me) to learning a new environment is
building and experimenting with existing code. So I am lacking some of the
tools that I can use to figure out how to do these tranforms. Is the 2nd
edition documentation still available anywhere, for download or browsing? Is
there a porting guide? A feature comparision?

The <libg.h> looks like it used to be supported in the APE environment (the
header is still there in 3rd, but it doesn't work - also no libg.a). Is the
3rd edition <draw.h> and etc. going to be supported under the 3rd edition?
Anyone working on that? Are there guidelines / suggestions for doing such a
thing? My efforts so far get to the linker where I get a conflict between
the ape atexit and the libc atexit (I think).

Are there any feature test programs available? I mean simple programs
(perhaps used by the developers of the 3rd edition graphics libraries) to
excercise the features of the code. I find these kinds of programs a
valuable starting point for testing out my own pieces of code - the ones
where I find out how to do the basic things I need for a larger project.