Fortran 90 Update 
November 1992

Overview

This document describes news and events regarding Fortran 90 and the Lahey
Partnership Project. The Fortran 90 language is designed to facilitate the
maintenance and enhancement of current Fortran 77 programs while taking
advantage of innovations in computer hardware such as parallel processing.
New Fortran 90 features-array operations, pointers, and structures,
etc.-will further solidify Fortran as the language for scientific
computing. The Partnership Project supplies software components for
compiler writers who are developing Fortran 90 and High Performance
Fortran(HPF) language systems Components range from a F90/HPF front end to
a Test Suite. For those seeking more details on the Lahey Partnership
Project, there are brochures on each component and newsletters charting
milestones. The fifth newsletter was printed in October '92.

Editors--Contact Us for Fortran 90 Information

Tom Lahey, President of Lahey Computer Systems, is available for articles
and opinions on Fortran 90. His background includes 30 years of compiler
writing, active member of the Fortran 90 Standard committees, and author
of the recent article Fortran 90 is Coming. Please contact Guy Ceragioli
(702) 831-2500 ext. 419 for more information.

Lahey Fortran 90 Test Suite 

In developing their own Fortran 90 language system, Lahey discovered there
is a shortage of both quality tests and formal testing procedures
available to Fortran 90 compiler writers. Lahey's answer to this test
shortage is the Lahey Test Suite. Lahey's goal is to make the Test Suite
the de facto testing standard for all Fortran 90 and High Performance
Fortran compilers.

The Test Suite is a unique product because it is designed as a consortium.
The consortium is an alliance of Fortran 90 implementors who will
contribute test code and have access to the test code contributed by
others. There are several benefits to setting up the Test Suite as a
cooperative program: (1) the Suite will continue to improve and broaden in
scope as programs are added, (2) developers know their compilers will be
continually challenged by new tests, and (3) the developer's cost of
writing in-house tests is drastically reduced. The consortium approach
solves the problem of quantity versus quality. As tests are submitted,
Lahey analyzes the uniqueness and strength of each test. The evaluation
process determines the contributing member's royalty fee and eliminates
redundancy in the Test Suite. The Test Suite is easy to operate with its
menu driven operation. Through a configuration file, you can modify the
Test Suite driver to accommodate your testing requirements. Options
include the ability to select particular tests to be run and to select the
particular machines for running the tests. In addition to the testing
options, you receive reports with test failures and comparisons to
previous runs. The reported data can then be used to select and retest
only those files that failed. There are also statistical reports on
compilation time, object file size, link time, executable file size, and
execution time.

Compiler Writers Gather for Fortran 90 Workshop 

The fifth Fortran 90 Implementors Workshop was hosted by Lahey Computer
Systems, Inc. It was held at the Hyatt Regency Lake Tahoe in Incline
Village, Nevada on November 5th and 6th, 1992. The Workshops are designed
for compiler writers who are interested in exploring Fortran 90
implementation concerns and Standard problems. The sharing of ideas will
help create more commonality and consensus among Fortran compiler writers,
which will ultimately benefit the end user who is interested in moving his
code to several operating systems and hardware platforms. The nominal fee
of $100 included all workshop materials and participation in all workshop
presentations. Forty developers of mainframe, workstation, and PC Fortran
compilers attended this two-day event.

The following topics were presented: 

  (1) Different Strategies for Implementing Fortran 90 
  (2) An update on the X3J3 progress and how it affects
      implementations
  (3) The role of the HPFF (High Performance Fortran Forum) 
      in the Fortran 90 development cycle. 
  (4) Discussion of Fortran 90 procedures 
  (5) Extensions to Fortran 90 
  (6) NAG Test Suite 
  (7) Lahey Test Suite Consortium

Founded in 1967, Lahey Computer Systems specializes in the design and
production of Fortran language systems and development tools for
professional programmers. Their award-winning PC Fortran language systems
include LP77, F77L, and F77L-EM/32.

Lahey Computer Systems, Inc. 
P.O. Box 6091, 865 Tahoe Blvd, Incline Village, NV 89450 
(800) 548-4778 or (702) 831-2500 
Fax: (702) 831-8123 
uunet: uunet!lahey!sales 
Internet/Bitnet: lahey!sales@uunet.uu.net

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