Digital Mars
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 | |
| Industry | Software industry |
|---|---|
| Founders | Walter Bright |
| Headquarters | |
| Website | digitalmars |
Digital Mars is an American computer software company founded by Walter Bright and based in Vienna, Virginia. The company has released compilers for the C, C++, and D programming languages, ECMA 262-compliant scripting engines, associated utilities such as an integrated development environment for Windows and MS-DOS (which Digital Mars calls an "integrated development and debugging environment"),[1] and the video game Empire. Many of Digital Mars's product releases include similar or equivalent software implemented in and for C++, for integration into C++ codebases, and alternatives written likewise in the D programming language.
The compilers are available for free and can be downloaded from the Digital Mars and D community GitHub project pages, with earlier releases still being available from the Digital Mars website.[2]
Product names changed over time. The C compiler was first sold by Datalight as the Datalight C compiler, then Zorland C, then Zortech C, then Digital Mars C/C++ compiler. The C++ compiler was first named Zortech C++, then Symantec C++, then Digital Mars C++ (DMC++).
The company gained notice in the software development community for creating the D programming language. D resulted from Bright's frustration with the direction of the C++ language and from his experience implementing it.[3] Digital Mars is also notable for having shipped the first commercial C++ compiler for Windows.[4]
History
[edit]In 1988, Zortech was the first C++ compiler to ship for Windows. PC Magazine ran a graphics benchmark and reported that most executables produced by Zortech ran faster than executables produced by Microsoft C 5.1 and by Watcom C 6.5.[4] Stanley B. Lippman wrote that Zortech was the first C++ compiler to implement return value optimization. Later, the C++ standard required this.[5]
In 2023, Mike Engelhardt released a new simulator QSPICE, which uses this compiler on the backend to allow for C++ and Verilog authored behavioral simulation models to be compiled to native code and loaded by the simulation environment.[6][7]
Reception
[edit]In a February 1989 overview of optimizing C compilers, BYTE approved of Zortech C 1.07's $90 price, included IDE, and Microsoft CodeView compatibility. The magazine reported that the software "lacks some of the features of those in the $400 range" but its code often benchmarked better. BYTE concluded that "Zortech does everything that a compiler has to do—at an attractive price".[8]
References
[edit]- ^ "Digital Mars Features".
- ^ "Digital Mars License Agreement".
- ^ "Overview of the D Programming Language". digitalmars.com. Digital Mars. Retrieved 2026-04-22.
- ^ a b Randy Davis, Stephen (October 31, 1988). "Zortech Ships First C++ Compiler". PC Magazine. New York: Ziff Davis. p. 38. Retrieved March 7, 2018.
The first true C++ compiler for the PC
- ^ Stanley B. Lippman (1997). C++ Gems: Programming Pearls from The C++ Report (SIGS Reference Library). ISBN 0-13-570581-9.
It was first implemented by Walter Bright in a version of his Zortech C++ compiler
- ^ "Using C++ and Verilog in QSPICE". Retrieved July 26, 2023.
- ^ "QSPICE Revolutionizes Power, Analog Device Circuit Simulation". Retrieved July 26, 2023.
- ^ Apiki, Steven; Udell, Jon (February 1989). "Smoothing Out C". BYTE. pp. 170–186. Retrieved 2024-10-08.
External links
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