DJGPP and Music Boxes
By Larry Smith
> That's why I switched to the GNU compiler. Actually, the package is called
> "DJGPP" on the InfoMagik disk. All programs use a parent process called
> "go32" that effectively allows all programs to run with all memory available,
> and then pages out to \TMP when it runs out. So I don't have to worry about
> data structure overhead.
> All this on DOS. And all for $20.
DJGPP was written by DJ Delorie, a good friend of mine. It's a port of the standard GNU C/C++ compiler to DOS. Go32 is the execution manager, it translates calls from the 32-bit virtual memory world of GNU C to the 16-bit real-memory world of DOS, allowing you to run a world of Unix utilities including make using just bare DOS, and supports the entire GNU C/C++ compiler and environment - in fact, most of the POSIX.1 Unix environment that relates to C prog- ramming.
It is widely redistributed, but it is available free for ftp at Clarkson, whose web address evades me right now, but which you can get from DJGCC official web site at http://www.delorie.com/, which is DJ's own computer. Use his list of sites to find a high-band- width ftp site, don't download it from his site - the man is shoving 30 megabytes of data a day through a sniveling little 28.8K modem.
ObMechMusic:
I just latched on to a wonderful Nicole Freres fat-cylinder box. It's a two-tunes-per-turn box playing twelve tunes total - at a minute and a half apiece! The box is lever-wound, but looks pretty early - very plain case. Anyone know any interesting details to look for that might tell me something, or have suggestions for restoring it?
The Big News:
My wife is going up to Maine today to fetch back my completely-restored drum-and-bell box from Danilo Konvalinka. Danilo thinks I will be hugely pleased with the box, and I will post a review of the work - which took just a tad over twice as long as the estimate! - late this week or early next week.
More Interesting News:
One cannot overemphasize that fact that mechanical music is _mechanical_. After having my 22 1/2 in Kalliope down since shortly after I got it, I finally got around to oiling the governor and - Lo! - it plays. Plays with an absolutely staggering beauty, in fact, I've never heard a box with a tone like that one, even my Regina. It's not as brassy as the Regina, but it is louder, richer - and with a huge double-comb, it has an extra- ordinary range. Still needs a good cleaning and detailing, though. Who has some recommendations for people who know how to deal with a really freakin' huge spring motor? _I_ ain't going to touch the thing, it looks like it could knock my house off its foundation. Any- way, the lesson here is, if the box is playing, but slowly, try just a tiny drop of oil at the top and bottom of the governor. Use a good clock oil (which worked fine on the Kalliope even though the scale of the thing and the ironmongery in it suggested something like WD-40! But I don't recommend that. =)
regards,
Larry Smith |
(Message sent Wed 27 Mar 1996, 14:24:42 GMT, from time zone GMT-0500.) |
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