[OpenSTA-devel] Re: New build environment

[Daniel S. <da...@Op...>]

Mark Elam wrote:
> Just a a thought from my own time playing with the build
> environment, the code will build fine without using *any* version
> of STL_Port (a couple of minor changes)

The point is well taken Mark and this has cross my mind more than a
few times over the last couple of days...

> and although, If memory serves, there was a reason for using
> STL_Port 5 years ago because of some problems with the MS STL I do
> not know if this is still the case.

This is as far as my memory stretches as well.  I knew there *were*
bugs in the M$ STL implementation and that was one of the reasons
STLport was used - the other being a common STL for cross platform
coding (the standard wasn't ratified back then) which became
meaningless once the  switch to Win32 only was made...

My big problem is I can't find any documentation as to what the STL
bugs were (or even what their symptoms were) that prompted STLport
usages.  Which would be nice for piece of mind.

I think that I will just produce a build and give it a try...

> As for future cross-platform compatibility etc. The STL certainly
> was part of the C++ ansi standard and is, to my knowledge, quite
> complete in most major platform's compilers as for as the sort of
> code that OpenSTA requires.

As far as I can tell; todays reason for using the STLport over the
native implementation is really more for speed than anything else...
This is nice (I guess) but some benchmarking would be nice to prove
it useful for us - there'll be more on this in Thierry's viewstate
thread, later.

There are also the 2 major modes that STLport can be used in:
 - with their compiled iostreams implementation.
 - were their iostreams just provides a shell to the native.

I think that the goal of simplifying OpenSTAs recommended build
environment means that we should definitely consider making sure
the build will work without STLport.  Although it would be nice to
leave it as a build option (maybe used in the Release versions) if it
does give a reasonable speed boost.

Thanks for your feedback Mark, I'm interested in all others thoughts
on this and related matters,
Cheers
/dan
-- 
Daniel Sutcliffe <Da...@Op...>
  OpenSTA part-time caretaker - http://OpenSTA.org/