| CH C/C++ interpreter | |
| Author: | Harry H. Cheng |
| Developer: | SoftIntegration, Inc. |
| Latest Release Version: | 8.0.0 |
| Programming Language: | C |
| Operating System: | Windows, OS X, Linux, AIX, HP-UX, Solaris (SPARC and x86), QNX, FreeBSD |
| Platform: | x86, SPARC |
| Language: | English |
| Genre: | Integrated development environment |
| License: | Proprietary software Standard edition: freeware Student edition: freeware for students Professional edition: trialware for 30 days |
CH is a proprietary cross-platform C and C++ interpreter and scripting language environment. It was designed by Harry Cheng as a scripting language for beginners to learn mathematics, computing, numerical analysis (numeric methods), and programming in C/C++. Ch is now developed and marketed by SoftIntegration, Inc.. Free versions include the student edition, and the non-commercial Professional Edition for Raspberry Pi.
CH can be embedded in C and C++ application programs. It has numerical computing and graphical plotting features. CH is combined of both shell and IDE.[1] CH shell combines the features of common shell and C language.[2] ChIDE provides quick code navigation and symbolic debugging. It is based on embedded CH, Scite, and Scintilla.[3] [4]
CH is written in C and runs on Windows, Linux, macOS, FreeBSD, AIX, Solaris, QNX, and HP-UX. It supports C90 and major C99 features, but it does not support the full set of C++ features. C99 complex number, IEEE-754 floating-point arithmetic, and variable-length array features were supported in CH before they became part of the C99 standard.[5] [6] [7] [8] An article published by Computer Reseller News (CRN) named CH as notable among C-based virtual machines for its functionality and the availability of third-party libraries.[9]
CH has many tool kits that extend its functions. For example, the CH Mechanism Toolkit is used for design and analysis of commonly used mechanisms such as four-bar linkage, five-bar linkage, six-bar linkage, crank-slider mechanism, and cam-follower system.[10] CH Control System Toolkit is used for the design, analysis, and modelling of continuous-time or discrete-time linear time-invariant (LTI) control systems.[11] Both tool kits include the source code.
CH has been integrated into free C-STEM Studio, a platform for learning computing, science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (C-STEM) with robotics. C-STEM Studio is developed by the UC Davis Center for Integrated Computing and STEM Education, offering a curriculum for K-12 students. CH supports LEGO Mindstorms NXT and EV3, Arduino, Linkbot, Finch Robot, RoboTalk and Raspberry Pi, Pi Zero, and ARM for robot programming and learning.[12] [13] [14] It can also be embedded into the LabVIEW system design platform and development environment.[15]
CH supports the 1999 ISO C Standard (C99) and C++ classes. It is a superset of C with C++ classes. Several major features of C99 are supported, such as complex numbers, variable length arrays (VLAs), IEEE-754 floating-point arithmetic, and generic mathematical functions. The specification for wide characters in Addendum 1 for C90 is also supported.
C++ features available in CH include:
CH supports classes in C++ with added abilities, including:
CH can interact with existing C/C++ libraries and call C/C++ functions from CH script.[16] As a C/C++ interpreter, CH can be used as a scripting engine and extension language for applications. Pointers to arrays or variables can be passed and shared in both C-compiled and CH scripting contexts. One example of an embedded CH scripting application is Mobile-C, which has been used for collaborative visualization of distributed mesh model.[17] [18] [19]
CH has a built-in string type (string_t) for automatic memory allocation and de-allocation. It supports shell aliases, history, and piping.[20] [21]
CH has built-in 2D/3D graphical plotting features and computational arrays for numerical computing. A 2D linear equation of the form b = A*x can be written verbatim in Ch.[22]