New Symantec Tools
Volume Number: 11
Issue Number: 12
Column Tag: Development Environments
New Symantec Development Tools 
A grand assortment of tools for all developers
By Rich Parker, Modesto, CA
Symantec’s New Subscription Plan
Symantec has long been known for producing a wide assortment of development tools.
Some of these tools were marketed as individual products and some as collections.
THINK C and Symantec C++ come to mind as examples of the two different approaches -
where the C++ product included THINK C as well as the C++ environment. Symantec
has also offered a Symantec Developer’s Advantage (SDA) program for a while.
This subscription plan has offered developers who want all of the tools the advantage of
having everything, including Apple-created code, on a single CD.
Starting with the release of the Symantec C++ for Power Mac (version 8,
release 4) update, Symantec is simplifying its product line to include only two
products:
• Symantec C++ for 68K (version 7.0.5)
• Symantec C++ for Power Mac (Version 8, Release 4; includes v7.0.5 for 68K
development)
The 68K version of the product comes on floppy disks (about 16 of them!). The
Power Mac version is available on CD-ROM only, and includes all of the current
development environments, utilities, Apple-developed code, and third-party extras
(over 600 megabytes of source code, demonstration applications, and documentation).
Everyone who purchases and registers the Power Mac version from now on will
automatically be enrolled in the new Symantec C++ Subscription for Macintosh
(formerly called the Symantec Developer’s Advantage), and will be sent the next two
CD-ROM updates of the product free of charge. All existing registered 8.x customers
and Symantec Developers Advantage customers have been automatically enrolled in the
new subscription service and are being proactively sent Release 4 and Release 5 (when
it comes available) free of charge as well.
The existing Symantec C++ for 68K product is priced at $79, and a trade-up
from any previous version of the 68K Symantec or any Metrowerks product is only
$49.95. For those who are interested in developing for 68K Macs, this is a real
bargain.
The price of the Symantec C++ for Power Mac product is $399, and a trade-up
from any previous version of the Symantec or Metrowerks products is $149.95 and
includes the subscription and two free updates.
So What Do You Get in the 68K C++ Product?
The 68K product includes all of the elements of the previous Symantec C++ version
7.0.4 distribution, including the following components:
• THINK Project Manager (TPM) development environment (v7.0.4)
• THINK Debugger
• THINK Inspector
• Visual Architect (VA)
• THINK Class Library (TCL)
• Standard libraries, including ANSI libraries, IOStreams, and the Standard
Template Library (STL)
• C and C++ compilers, THINK Rez resource compiler, resource copier, and “.o”
Converter
Of course, this means that the original THINK C product is being superseded by this
new product, which raises the memory requirements bar somewhat. The TPM has a
preferred memory requirement of 5 megabytes, with a minimum requirement of 3.2
megabytes. In addition to this, system temporary memory is used to hold the
precompiled headers when compiling. So it is reasonable to expect that one would need
to have at least 8 megabytes of RAM in one’s system to permit the TPM, debugger, and
the program being debugged to coexist in memory during the testing process. One thing
I’ve found in looking at all of the new development environments, both for the
Macintosh and for Windows platforms, is that memory requirements for development
tools are steadily rising. We should feel lucky that 32-bit C++ development is even
possible on an 8 megabyte Macintosh. On the Windows front, 32-bit development
demands at least 16 megabytes of RAM, with 20-24 megabytes preferred.
Increased memory requirements notwithstanding, this product provides a greatly
enhanced development capability. The Visual Architect alone is a wonderful tool for
creating TCL-based applications. We lost the ability to use the TCL with the latest
version of the THINK C product, and I think that loss was significant. Many people have
had to step up to C++ for that fact alone. In retrospect, my own feeling is that moving
from what has been called a C+ language to full C++ has been good for everyone who
has learned and used THINK C and the TCL in the past.
In addition to its built-in editor, the TPM environment has a very useful graphic
class browser that shows the class hierarchy of a project, after it has been first
compiled, by means of boxes that contain the class name and lines that connect the
members of the hierarchy. By clicking on any class name box and holding down the
mouse button, a pop-up menu of all of the class’s methods is displayed. By choosing
one of the method names in the menu, the browser opens the corresponding source file
and brings the selected method into view. Double-clicking on any class name box
causes the browser to open its associated class description (header) file and display its
contents.
The Visual Architect tool (VA) is a superb graphic user interface design tool. And
the VA is not only a GUI design tool, but it generates code for a complete application
skeleton that can be compiled and run without having to write a single line of code.
This is a tremendous facility for creating applications very quickly. Of course, we
still have to add the custom code that makes the application unique, but the mere fact
that all of the scaffolding for the application is put into place, automatically, cannot be
dismissed. It is a major factor in the ability to create complex applications quickly
and easily.
The THINK Debugger is an important component in this product, as well. I have
never needed to use a low-level debugger, such as TMON or even MacsBug, for my
projects. Admittedly, my projects are neither huge nor terribly complex, but they
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