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Volume Number: 12
Issue Number: 10
Column Tag: Symantec Top Ten
Symantec Top 10 [TOKEN:61442](
By Craig Conner
Q: I know that if I use the java.lang classes which extend number, like Double, Float,
Integer and Long, I can get their values as a string without difficulty, however, I
don’t like to use these classes and want to know how to coerce a standard number
type into a string. For example, in C I could use sprintf(&str, “%d”, num);
where num is some variable of type int and the contents of the string str would
contain the value of num. How do I do something similar in Java?
A: There is a simple and elegant method to do just this. You can take advantage of the
+ operator in Java to add a string and a variable together. For instance, say you
had an integer y that you wanted to be displayed next to the string “Output: “, you
could do this by using the + operator: “Output: “ + y. If we assign an arbitrary
value for demonstration purposes to y, say 5, then the result of the expression
would be a string with contents “Output: 5”. So what if you just want the value
of your variable as a string, without anything else? You could use this
expression: “” + y. This results in a string that contains just the value of y as a
string. This is handy when you want to output the contents of a variable to the
system error window for debugging purposes like this: System.err.println(“” +
y);
Q: In Symantec Café I want to make a standalone application so I setup my project to
be an application rather than an applet, but when I get done building the project
all I have is a .class file that presents the Applet Viewer upon double clicking.
Can I make a stand alone application using Café?
A: Currently the only way to run the byte code that the Java compilers produce is
through an applet viewer or through a Java capable browser. The major
difference between generating an application rather than an applet in Café is that
the security issues are not restrictive in an application, as they are in an applet.
By generating an application, you are still generating Java byte code, not machine
code native to the platform. This means that that byte code will still need to be
interpreted at runtime by some implementation of a Java virtual machine,
whether it is the Applet Viewer or a Java capable browser. Rumor has it that, in
the future, Mac OS 8 will have a Java virtual machine built in. Ah, Mac OS 8.
Q: On the PPC, are floating point numbers aligned on the stack?
A: Normally floating point values are stored in floating point registers unless you
are using the address of the floating point value. The significance of this is that,
if the stack is not aligned on an 8-byte boundary, access to that double can be
extremely slow due to misaligned accesses.
Q: How can I create a 68k code resource in the release 5 Symantec Project Manager?
A: You will need the 68K Code Resource project model and
files, available at:
ftp://ftp.symantec.com/public/devtool/mac/developer.tools.and.info/
SPM68KCodeResource.hqx. Since the SPM currently creates a ‘SIZE’ resource
for 68K applications, you will need to execute the “*Remove SIZE
Resource*” AppleScript from the 
menu after building your code resource.
menu after building your code resource.Q: I want to create a PPC shared library, but it appears that exporting names from
the library is an all-or-nothing affair. How can I export only certain names
from my library?
A: Use #pragma export list name[,name[...]] to specify certain names to export.
Conversely, importing certain names is done through the #pragma import list
name,[name[...]] option.
Q: How can I quickly calculate the ProcInfo value procInfoConstant, if I’ve defined it
in my program?
A: Add the line long pinfo = procInfoConstant; as the first line in your main function,
then disassemble your PPC code. You’ll find the value of the procInfo constant as
a decimal value loaded into a register with an LI instruction (it should be the
first LI in the main function), and the hexadecimal value will be the low word of
the hex value to the left of that LI instruction.
Q: I notice that when I am linking my 68k project in the release 5 Symantec Project
Manager it can take a really long time. Is there a way to speed up this process?
A: Yes! We are using the ToolServer, an external application, to invoke the LINK tool
in order to perform the linking process. Since the ToolServer comes up in the
background, link times are often longer than they need to be. To avoid this, and to
speed up linking time for your 68k projects, simply bring the ToolServer to the
front during linking.
Q: I have a PPC application that runs flawlessly in Native PPC but when I run the
68k version it causes runtime errors. How do I Debug 68k code generated from
the release 5 Symantec Project Manager?
A: The Symantec C++ 8.0 Release 5 CD includes an external debugger called,
SourceBug which will allow source level debugging of 68k Applications built
with the Symantec Project Manager. Future releases of Symantec C++ will have
integrated 68k debugging support.
Q: So now that I know I can debug my 68k project using SourceBug, how do I use it?
A: Here are some steps to help you out:
• Install SourceBug onto your hard drive by copying it from Apple
Software:Debuggers:SourceBug on your 8.0 release 5 CD.
“Output” option in the pop-up menu.
• Check the option Generate a Symbol file.
• Inside the Generate a link file box, select Full symbols. This will cause a
myProj.SYM file to be generated when you build the application.
• Launch SourceServer by double clicking on it from the Finder. You can locate an
alias to the SourceServer application by looking in the (Tools) folder inside your
Symantec C++ for Power Mac folder.
• From the Open dialog, open your 68k Application. The source code browser window
will appear.
• Click on the main. in the stack crawl pane in the upper left.
• Click on the function you would like to debug in the pane to the upper right.
• Set break point(s).
• Congratulations.
Q: How does the Enable Symbolic Debugging check box affect the .SYM output files,
and why won’t it stay set when I save the Symantec Project Manager Options?
A: The inclusion of this checkbox is actually an oversight. Setting this checkbox, you
may notice, had no effect on the symbolic output file that gets created by the
linker. (See the linker options for 68k projects.)
Q: Then, how do I create an external symbol file so I can use external debuggers to
debug my 68k project?
Once you get to the Linker page, choose Output in the pop-up menu. To turn on
External Symbol file generation, check the checkbox Generate a symbol file and
select the Full symbols checkbox.
Special thanks to: Glenn Austin, Scott Morison, Andrew McFarland and Mark
Baldwin.
Referenced by (2):