List of gfortran-ready libraries and packages

[Jerry DeLisle]

On 10/01/2010 02:43 AM, FX wrote:
> This is a question of general interest more than a gfortran development question, but I'm sure you'll excuse me for this slight off topic mail.
>
> Compiler installation and use of libraries are, for gfortran like for many open source projects, an important part of the barrier to adoption (just see c.l.f and regular questions on this list). Commercial compilers now sell packages including common libraries (BLAS, LAPACK, etc.). As a consequence, I was wondering what we could do to work in that direction. I can think of a few things that would help promote the excellent tool you/we strive to develop:
>
>     1. Regarding Windows usage: create a "Libre Fortran for Windows" package (or whatever name), that would include the tools currently distributed (gfortran, gcc, maybe g++, a subset of mingw, pthread and libgomp, ...) and add to that common libraries (blas, lapack, maybe plotting utilities like DISLIN, ...). I am ready to spend some time on that during the next few months; the project would probably start by doing a poll on c.l.f about what software people are interested to see packaged.
>
>     2. For the Unix/Mac world: Try to get a consistent wiki on how to compile the usual libraries, like a series of pages "Compiling BLAS for dummies".
>
>     3. Wiki pages on how to integrate Fortran with other languages and tools (C, C++, Matlab, Mathematica, ...)
>

I think it would be very useful if we could figure out an iterface/interface 
wrapper for wxWidgets.  If a user could simply do "USE wxWidgets" in ther own 
code it would be a huge leap for gfortran. wxWidgets works on both Linux and 
Windows platforms and has a great set of widgets etc. wxWidgets is also Open 
software.

As we get gfortran more CLASSy we should be able to oopify the interface.  I 
only have time to experiment with this a bit.  Maybe someone looking for a good 
project could consider doing this.  I would love to see an intrinsic module in 
gfortran for this one along with the POSIX module. ( I started working on a 
POSIX module at one time, but keep getting side tracked)

Jerry