Tcl is a multi-purpose scripting language used by over half a million programmers in leading organizations such as AOL, Cisco, Cornell University, Ericsson, Kodak, Motorola, NASA, NBC, National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), Raytheon, Siemens, Synopsys, Sun Microsystems, and UC Berkeley.
Tcl is the standard for automated testing, and Tcl/Tk is among the most heavily used languages for building cross-platform graphical user interfaces (GUIs). The scripting engine’s embeddability and extensibility enable test engineers to quickly integrate a wide range of technologies. Tcl is also a standard in EDA and CAD applications requiring an extensible, embedded command language.
The Federal Aviation Administration is another organization that depends on Tcl. “Tcl is so versatile-it’s the perfect language for the utility programs I develop for our air traffic control systems. Unlike many other languages, Tcl is cross-platform and doesn’t require compiling, so I’m able to do my work faster and execute my programs on numerous operating systems,” said Keith Wetherill, Nation Field Support Lead, FAA Second Level Engineering Systems Support Group. “It’s also extremely cost-effective, which is naturally an issue for all government agencies. There is no need to purchase special licenses or compilers; as an open source language, it’s free.
“For complex programming, I rely on the Tcl Dev Kit, using the Debugger, TclApp, and Compiler. ActiveState has also been very responsive to my suggestions for the 3.0 release, incorporating some of the changes I recommended. Their team has been great to work with.”
New in Tcl Dev Kit 3.0
Expands Tcl developer capabilities create higher quality Tcl applications with the Tcl Dev Kit’s new analysis capabilities. A complete set of tools provides enhanced code coverage for thoroughly testing applications; true time-based code profiling ensures that code bottlenecks are easily identified for optimal performance; and the new static analysis cross-reference tool reveals code dependencies.
Easily manage Starkits and Starpacks the standard deployment mechanisms for Tcl now have a new cross-platform Virtual File System Explorer that enables the visual inspection of Starkits and Starpacks contents, ensuring the existence of correct components and versions while saving time and avoiding deployment problems.
“Since TclPro development stopped, there has been pent-up demand for an advanced Tcl toolset, particularly among the major hardware test automation and embedded systems companies. Tcl Dev Kit is the much-needed upgrade from TclPro,” said Matt Herdon, director of product management, ActiveState. “With the 3.0 release, our customers now have a wicked set of professional Tcl tools, and tighter integration with our flagship IDE, Komodo. New Tcl programmers will be blown away by the breadth of Tcl Dev Kit.”
For a limited time, Tcl Dev Kit is available at a special launch price of $265, a savings of $30. Launch pricing for upgrading from previous versions is $59.95; Educational licenses are $49. The launch special also extends to ActiveState’s complete Tcl solution suite, ASPN Tcl, priced at $445, a savings of $50. ASPN Tcl also contains a Tcl-enabled version of ActiveState’s Komodo IDE for open source programming languages, and online access to Tcl resources including the Safari bookshelf. Free trials and more details are available at: http://www.ActiveState.com/Tcl.
Other ActiveState Tcl initiatives include hosting of the primary Tcl community website and ActiveTcl, the free, quality-assured distribution of Tcl. ActiveState also provides comprehensive support for Tcl applications and internals through the TclDirect support package.
About ActiveState
ActiveState, a division of Sophos, is the leading provider of software solutions that increase developer productivity and organizational efficiency through the innovative use of open source technology. Over two million developers rely on ActiveState’s open source language programming tools, language distributions, and enterprise support services. More information is at http://www.ActiveState.com“
Link: activestate.com
