Title: Absoft Fortran 3.2
Post by: mikei on April 20, 2025, 12:39:36 PM
Post by: mikei on April 20, 2025, 12:39:36 PM
Just recently realized that the f77 compiler on my NeXT black slab is not a renamed g77 but is actually a copy of Absoft's Fortran compiler ( version 3.2 ) It has a lot of object oriented extensions to connect to the NeXT libraries and build NeXT applications along with being able to compile/run dirty deck Fortran programs.
I have sent a note to Absoft ( who are no longer in business ) ... it didn't bounce, but I also didn't hear anything back, asking them if this could be shared for hobbyist use. I don't think it needs a license, can't find any indication that it does. I don't have the original package but some documentation makes it reasonably clear what would need to be gathered up to post someplace.
Thoughts re sharing this thing?
I have sent a note to Absoft ( who are no longer in business ) ... it didn't bounce, but I also didn't hear anything back, asking them if this could be shared for hobbyist use. I don't think it needs a license, can't find any indication that it does. I don't have the original package but some documentation makes it reasonably clear what would need to be gathered up to post someplace.
Thoughts re sharing this thing?
Title: Re: Absoft Fortran 3.2
Post by: user217 on April 21, 2025, 03:33:25 PM
Post by: user217 on April 21, 2025, 03:33:25 PM
Software preservation (by which I mean uploading) is always worth it. As I understand it, relatively few developers have refused to give permission for redistribution of their NeXT abandonware when actually asked, although it does seem Black Hole has a monopoly on a few things (I think Rob has TIFFany 3 and the Stone Design products on lockdown.)
If you'll allow me to get on the soapbox for a moment...
The simple truth is that many NeXT enthusiasts are now getting up there in age, and with them, there is a chance of their software libraries being thrown out by uninterested relatives. Since the people who made this software no longer have any reasonable expectation of deriving revenue from it, the best way to honour their work that remains to us is to make sure it isn't lost or forgotten.
Last year there was a court case (Hachette v. Internet Archive) where the IA got in trouble for allowing unlimited access to copyrighted books during the pandemic. Although the IA lost the case and was forced to disable access to some half-million books, the judge limited the scope of the take-down order to only those works that were currently available for purchase.
This establishes a strong precedent that, even in the most copyright-friendly country in the world, distributing abandonware is apparently beneath the law. Moreover, remember that only the copyright holder has standing to sue—we've been conditioned by years of propaganda by the movie and music industries to think that copyright infringement is something that will instantly attract the ire of a big, scary, nebulous establishment, but the truth is that those industries have cartels that farm lawsuits to protect themselves from copyright abandonment and to promote forms of media distribution that earn them royalties.
No such cabal exists for software! Either the creator asks you to take it down, or it stays available forever. The greatest risk to you is losing out on the time it took to rip and upload the item. That's definitely worth the kudos and gratitude of the community for helping to save more of the treasured past from total obscurity.
So would anyone complain?
Well, doing some quick Googling... Absoft went out of business in 2022. Their Fortran compiler was maintained up through that year, accumulating support for new standards and changes the whole time. When they went out of business they did not release any license keys for their final product versions, but all of the software binaries and documentation involved was successfully archived. At least one developer suggested that Windows users migrate to using Intel IFORT in Visual Studio.
Absoft wasn't bought by anyone, nor was their IP. They were a legacy vendor who died out because their customers migrated away to the competition.
Owing to the relatively weak feature set of a version of their software from the 90s, there is pretty much zero chance that anyone from Absoft would complain about an old version of their software being made available—it wouldn't compete commercially with their final offerings. (Fortran continued to receive big new standards in the 90s.) But perhaps more importantly, it doesn't seem like there's anyone left to complain...
If you'll allow me to get on the soapbox for a moment...
The simple truth is that many NeXT enthusiasts are now getting up there in age, and with them, there is a chance of their software libraries being thrown out by uninterested relatives. Since the people who made this software no longer have any reasonable expectation of deriving revenue from it, the best way to honour their work that remains to us is to make sure it isn't lost or forgotten.
Last year there was a court case (Hachette v. Internet Archive) where the IA got in trouble for allowing unlimited access to copyrighted books during the pandemic. Although the IA lost the case and was forced to disable access to some half-million books, the judge limited the scope of the take-down order to only those works that were currently available for purchase.
This establishes a strong precedent that, even in the most copyright-friendly country in the world, distributing abandonware is apparently beneath the law. Moreover, remember that only the copyright holder has standing to sue—we've been conditioned by years of propaganda by the movie and music industries to think that copyright infringement is something that will instantly attract the ire of a big, scary, nebulous establishment, but the truth is that those industries have cartels that farm lawsuits to protect themselves from copyright abandonment and to promote forms of media distribution that earn them royalties.
No such cabal exists for software! Either the creator asks you to take it down, or it stays available forever. The greatest risk to you is losing out on the time it took to rip and upload the item. That's definitely worth the kudos and gratitude of the community for helping to save more of the treasured past from total obscurity.
So would anyone complain?
Well, doing some quick Googling... Absoft went out of business in 2022. Their Fortran compiler was maintained up through that year, accumulating support for new standards and changes the whole time. When they went out of business they did not release any license keys for their final product versions, but all of the software binaries and documentation involved was successfully archived. At least one developer suggested that Windows users migrate to using Intel IFORT in Visual Studio.
Absoft wasn't bought by anyone, nor was their IP. They were a legacy vendor who died out because their customers migrated away to the competition.
Owing to the relatively weak feature set of a version of their software from the 90s, there is pretty much zero chance that anyone from Absoft would complain about an old version of their software being made available—it wouldn't compete commercially with their final offerings. (Fortran continued to receive big new standards in the 90s.) But perhaps more importantly, it doesn't seem like there's anyone left to complain...
Title: Re: Absoft Fortran 3.2
Post by: mikei on April 21, 2025, 04:20:25 PM
Post by: mikei on April 21, 2025, 04:20:25 PM
Am posting the compiler here ( absoft.tar.gz ) Everything should go into /LocalApps on a black machine. Ran under NS 3.3 on mine. It seems to be a 68k binary only, I tried it on an Intel and it's the wrong CPU type. To test go into the FExamples directory and there are subdirectories with various examples. Plot has a nice plot of xsin(x) ... do a make clean and a make, then ./Plot and it should pop a new window with the plot.
I have a notebook with some docs, if I can find a scanner and anyone is interested will scan it up.
Hopefully this doesn't break a site rule.
https://archive.org/download/absoft.tar
I have a notebook with some docs, if I can find a scanner and anyone is interested will scan it up.
Hopefully this doesn't break a site rule.
https://archive.org/download/absoft.tar
Title: Re: Absoft Fortran 3.2
Post by: spitfire on April 22, 2025, 09:10:43 PM
Post by: spitfire on April 22, 2025, 09:10:43 PM
Quote from: Rhetorica on April 21, 2025, 03:33:25 PMSoftware preservation (by which I mean uploading) is always worth it. As I understand it, relatively few developers have refused to give permission for redistribution of their NeXT abandonware when actually asked, although it does seem Black Hole has a monopoly on a few things (I think Rob has TIFFany 3 and the Stone Design products on lockdown.)
If you'll allow me to get on the soapbox for a moment...
The simple truth is that many NeXT enthusiasts are now getting up there in age, and with them, there is a chance of their software libraries being thrown out by uninterested relatives. Since the people who made this software no longer have any reasonable expectation of deriving revenue from it, the best way to honour their work that remains to us is to make sure it isn't lost or forgotten.
Last year there was a court case (Hachette v. Internet Archive) where the IA got in trouble for allowing unlimited access to copyrighted books during the pandemic. Although the IA lost the case and was forced to disable access to some half-million books, the judge limited the scope of the take-down order to only those works that were currently available for purchase.
This establishes a strong precedent that, even in the most copyright-friendly country in the world, distributing abandonware is apparently beneath the law. Moreover, remember that only the copyright holder has standing to sue—we've been conditioned by years of propaganda by the movie and music industries to think that copyright infringement is something that will instantly attract the ire of a big, scary, nebulous establishment, but the truth is that those industries have cartels that farm lawsuits to protect themselves from copyright abandonment and to promote forms of media distribution that earn them royalties.
No such cabal exists for software! Either the creator asks you to take it down, or it stays available forever. The greatest risk to you is losing out on the time it took to rip and upload the item. That's definitely worth the kudos and gratitude of the community for helping to save more of the treasured past from total obscurity.
So would anyone complain?
Well, doing some quick Googling... Absoft went out of business in 2022. Their Fortran compiler was maintained up through that year, accumulating support for new standards and changes the whole time. When they went out of business they did not release any license keys for their final product versions, but all of the software binaries and documentation involved was successfully archived. At least one developer suggested that Windows users migrate to using Intel IFORT in Visual Studio.
Absoft wasn't bought by anyone, nor was their IP. They were a legacy vendor who died out because their customers migrated away to the competition.
Owing to the relatively weak feature set of a version of their software from the 90s, there is pretty much zero chance that anyone from Absoft would complain about an old version of their software being made available—it wouldn't compete commercially with their final offerings. (Fortran continued to receive big new standards in the 90s.) But perhaps more importantly, it doesn't seem like there's anyone left to complain...
This is something that bothers me a lot. A lot of collectors are very hostile to sharing, even though they may realistically have the last copy of some program. Bitrot is real, and I expect over the next 5-10 years it will set in for NeXT equipment hard.
Please make backups of all software, note serial numbers and share with everyone you can.
In that same vein, Rob, do you have a continuity plan in place for Black hole?
Title: Re: Absoft Fortran 3.2
Post by: Andreas on April 23, 2025, 02:58:19 PM
Post by: Andreas on April 23, 2025, 02:58:19 PM
Quote from: spitfire on April 22, 2025, 09:10:43 PMPlease make backups of all software, note serial numbers and share with everyone you can.My copy of Absoft Fortran is laying here:
https://fsck.technology/software/NeXT/NeXTSTEP%20Applications/Fortran77%20v3.2%20NeXTSTEP/ (https://fsck.technology/software/NeXT/NeXTSTEP%20Applications/Fortran77%20v3.2%20NeXTSTEP/)
the serial is included in the filename.