dos_compilers/Digital Research CB-86 v2/READ1.ME

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                    * R E L E A S E   N O T E S *
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                        ASSEMBLER PLUS TOOLS

                             VERSION 1.0


         FOR THE IBM PERSONAL COMPUTER DISK OPERATING SYSTEM


            Copyright (c) 1983 by Digital Research, Inc.
























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        Assembler Plus Tools                    Release Notes



        These release notes pertain to both the software  and
        the   documentation  set  for  the  Digital  Research
        product:


                        Assembler Plus Tools

                    For the IBM Personal Computer
                        Disk Operating System



        They provide the most current information regarding:

           o changes and corrections  to  the  software  that
             have  been  identified  since  the  product  was
             released.

           o errors or omissions  in  the  documentation  set
             that  could not be corrected because of the lead
             time needed for production and printing.



        Note:  These release notes have been formatted so you
        can  print them on your own printer, cut them to size
        (6 1/2 x 8 1/2), and place them in your manuals.















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        Assembler Plus Tools                    Release Notes


                            LINK-86 Notes


        A new command line  option  has  been  added  to  the
        linker.  The  $MY  option directs LINK-86 to send the
        .MAP file to your line printer.

        A new optional parameter has been added  to  the  MAP
        option. The  NOCOMMON  parameter  directs  LINK-86 to
        suppress the listing of common segment names  in  the
        MAP file.

        LINK-86 now displays the  filename  and  module  name
        indicating the location of an undefined symbol.

        The Assembler Plus Tools package does not include  an
        overlay  manager.  The overlay manager is part of the
        run-time library that is packaged with your  language
        software.

        LINK-86  can  now  report  three   additional   error
        messages:

          CLASS NOT FOUND  -  The class name specified in
          the command line does not exist in any of the
          files being linked.

          GROUP NOT FOUND  -  The group name specified in
          the command line does not exist in any of the
          files being linked.

          SEGMENT NOT FOUND  -  The segment name specified
          in the command line does not exist in any of the
          files being linked.









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        Assembler Plus Tools                    Release Notes


                           RASM-86 NOTES 


        A new command line option has been added to the RASM-
        86  assembler.  The $NC option directs RASM-86 not to
        convert letters in symbol names to  uppercase.   This
        feature supports users of the C language.

        RASM-86  Version  1.3  now  supports  8087   opcodes.
        However,  RASM-86  does  not  allow  types other than
        byte, word, and double-word.  Therefore, in order  to
        support  the 8087 instructions, the form of the RASM-
        86 instruction is slightly different from  the  Intel
        convention.

        All memory reference instructions have two characters
        appended  to  the  end  of  the opcode name.  The two
        characters represent the number of bits referenced by
        the instruction.  For example,

             FADD64   byte ptr  my_var


        This instruction assumes that my_var contains 64 bits
        (4  bytes).  This  convention  applies  to  all  8087
        instructions that reference user memory, except those
        that  always  reference the same number of bits (i.e.
        FSTCW).

        Also, in the Intel convention, any  instruction  that
        is followed by a P causes the stack to be popped.  In
        RASM-86, the P  follows  the  number  of  bits.   For
        example,

             FSUB80P   byte ptr  my_var; sub and pop temp real


        We recommend that you carefully study all  the  Intel
        documentation  about  the  8087  coprocessor  and its
        opcodes before using them in RASM-86.



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        Assembler Plus Tools                    Release Notes


                            SID-86 Notes 


        Currently, SID-86 does not fully support symbol files
        for  programs  configured  according  to  the  LARGE,
        COMPACT, or MEDIUM memory models.

        To reference symbols  in  a  LARGE  or  MEDIUM  model
        program,  you  must  refer to the .MAP file generated
        for the program by LINK-86.  The .MAP  file  provides
        you with relative segment locations.

        To reference a segment during debugging with  SID-86,
        you  must  add the relative segment location provided
        by the .MAP file to  the  absolute  segment  location
        which is displayed by SID-86 when the file is loaded.


                         END OF READ.ME FILE
























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