Free Programming Tools

Introduction

As we discussed in the Programming Languages introductory article, there essentially two types of language:

• Compiled - can be run natively under the operating system;
• Interpreted - must be passed through another application to 'work'.

In this article we shall look at free compilers for Windows 32, covering the compiled family of languages, and also free basic interpreters and compilers, covering BASIC and business oriented languages.

The aim is to provide a quick guide to getting up and running with a free compiler as fast as possible, to make the most out of the tutorials, such as my Introduction to C Programming course.

We'll also pick out a couple of Editors and IDEs which will provide you with an environment that makes coding a much more friendly proposition.

Interpreters

Getting started with programming is often easiest with a simple language such as BASIC. There are several free basic interpreters and compilers available, as well as commercial offerings such as Visual Basic from Microsoft.

We would recommend starting out with a free environment, such as FreeBASIC (www.freebasic.net) which comes in flavours for Windows and Linux (but no Mac version). Mac users are welcome to come aboard with ExtremeBasic (extremebasic.com), but since the author has no Mac available at this time, an unequivocal recommendation is not possible.

Be aware that there are several types of BASIC, and in order to participate in some of the tutorials on CP101, you should choose one that is syntax compatible with QBASIC.

For those who want an interpreted language which embodies the principles of programming, but with a really simple syntax, we recommend Logo, and a free interpreter can be found here near the bottom of the page.

Compilers

There are many good languages for programming, but for learning and support, we recommend C/C++, Modula-2, BASIC, and Java.

To remain as operating system independent as possible, our language tutorials will use command line examples, except where specific topics are addressed, in which case we shall demonstrate using Windows code, supported by the WINE API on Linux, in C/C++.

To make all this work, we recommend Borland C++ (available free from Inprise) for Windows users, and the GCC compiler available as part of any standard Linux distribution, along with the WINE API (WineHQ).

Modula-2 is an excellent teaching language, which is great for those wanting some of the power of C++ but with a more BASIC-friendly syntax. A free compiler set, with TopSpeed compatibility is available here. TopSpeed was one of the most widely used implementations.

The free Java compiler we shall be using is the GNU Compiler for Java (GCJ) available here. We shall stick to cross platform examples in language tutorials, and be as OS neutral as possible in creative programming articles.

Editors & IDEs

For editing, it is useful to have an IDE that supports several languages, along with automatic indenting and syntax highlighting. The resulting source code will be easier to debug (find errors) and read.

Of course, you are welcome to use Notepad, but be aware that without line numbering, finding an error reported by the compiler can be nearly impossible.

We heartily recommend SciTE, available from SourceForge (here) which supports nearly all the languages and meta-languages that we will be covering in this topic, including C/C++, Java and HTML.

Links

Introduction to C Programming - my very own introduction course for CP101 readers.

Source Forge - free compilers, source code, editors & IDEs, etc.

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