Re: HELP - Urgent

[Mike Stump <mrs at windriver dot com>]

> From: parthi@tpi.techprov.com
> Date: Thu, 13 Jan 2000 20:38:11 +0600

> I have millions of lines of C code compiled using gcc 2.8.1. Our
> client tried to compile it using 2.95 and fails for all the warnings
> in gcc 2.8.1.  What do I do now?

You could try something called software maintenance.  It is the
process by which one cleans up broken code and makes it better.  You
start by grabbing gcc 2.95.2 and try compiling your software up,
fixing those things that are broken, then you retest the whole thing,
fix those bugs, and then you code will probably be (if done right) a
little bit better, a little bit more portable.

> He is going to use 2.95 and if it doesn't compile, I lose my job.

This is a non-technical issue.  This is a business issue.

When doing software, you want to get an idea of what environments the
code should work in, what compilers and so on, and only support that
to clients.  If your clients want X and you didn't previously test and
QA for X, then you write em up a contract for X, have them pay their
money and then port the software at that time for X.  After you have
done this, then you deliver the code.  You seem to have shipped the
code before doing the work, this is bad.  Or worse, not knowing what
the client wanted.

If the idea is to write portable code, you should have an AT&T machine
from 1985 with the pcc compiler, a new sun with gcc, a PC with win
3.1, a PC with nt, a mac, somewith with gcc 2.0, and ensure the
software works well in each environment.  It is very hard to write
portable code, but it can be done (look at gcc, look at emacs).

Since you didn't give any examples of the problems you had, nor
compiler output, nor code, there isn't any specific help I can give.
Had you, I might have been able to say somrthing more.

Sorry, live and learn.