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Subject: Re: Viability of Linux as Chess Platform

Author: leonid

Date: 04:52:35 07/21/99

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On July 20, 1999 at 19:41:35, Vincent Diepeveen wrote:

>On July 20, 1999 at 18:14:57, Dann Corbit wrote:
>
>>On July 20, 1999 at 17:58:34, Robert Pawlak wrote:
>>
>>>I'd be interested to hear what some of the people directly involved with the
>>>development of chess software think about Linux.
>>>
>>>Specifically, do you think that it is now/will be a platform worth developing
>>>for. From a layman's standpoint, I would think that it would not be too
>>>difficult to port an engine written in ANSI C over to Linux, then use Tkl or
>>>something like it to build an interface.
>>>
>>>Also, do you think that the development tools are sufficiently mature to
>>>undertake something like this?
>>There are already a large number of very good chess programs for Linux.
>>Crafty and Phalanx spring to mind.  With an xboard front end, they have an
>>interface that is second to none also.
>>
>>>But, I realize that not all engines are coded in C... As a side question, what
>>>is the percentage of chess engines coded in C, and in assembler?
>>Most chess programs are written in C, with smaller numbers in C++, Pascal, BASIC
>>and Assembly.
>
>majority of commercial chess engines is still assembly, although
>that's slowly changing to C.
>
>Majority of *all* engines is C. Like 9 out of 10 are in C.

I can't say what I like so much about the Linux, since I still never
installed this system, but I know for sure what I don't like in Windows.
Windows is secretive and closed system. No complet description of its
"services" and not that many books (for the same reason) about
programming on Assembler. You can't start programming on Windows immediately
after buying this system because no C or Assembler program comes with it.
And, finally, even after buying your Assembler for Windows you are still
forced to go and to buy SDK (software developement kit) that make you
programming on Assembler finally possible. In DOS it was not so. Linux
include all the initial tools for programming on C or Assembler with it.
I hope very much that Linux will become very populer and will stay as open
as it is now. For me its use is nothing more that the question when I will start
trying my Linux. I already bought the system and wait for some free
time.

Leonid.



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