How to migrate C++ Builder 6 to X, missing vcl header files
Andrew
Hi,
I am a C++ novice and need to convert a Borland C++ Builder 6 project to Borland C++ Builder X.
C++ Builder X cannot associate the file extension of .bpr, I build a new project with .cbx.
In the old project, there are some files that C++ Builder X cannot recognize. They are:
.ddp
.dfm
.res
Do they the Delphin document project and form files? Why did they include in a C/C++ project? How can I open that form in C++ Builder?
Moreoever, there is compile error:
Unable to open include file 'vcl.h' at line 1
Does vcl.h relate to Windows Form?
There is no vcl.h in include directory of C++ Builder X.
I searched over the net and found it at http://chicory.stanford.edu/CVCL/doc/vcl_8h-source.html
However, vcl.h requires
#include "vc.h"
#include "command_line_flags.h"
#include "statistics.h"
#include "theorem.h"
#include "cdmap.h"
#include "compat_hash_map.h"
and they require other header files.
Do I need to download all of them? or, I can get them from C++ Builder 6 directly? or Borland website has those header files for download?
There are 4 C/C++ compilers:
Intel(R) C++ Compiler 7.1 for Windows (IA-32) Tools
Minimalist GNU For Windows
Microsoft C/C++ Compiler Tools
Borland Win32 Compiler Tools (Active)
Should I choose Borland Win32 Compiler Tools to build Windows GUI application?
Thanks for advice.
Alisdair Meredith (TeamB)
> In the old project, there are some files that C++ Builder X cannot
> recognize. They are:
> .ddp
> .dfm
> .res
> Do they the Delphin document project and form files? Why did they
> include in a C/C++ project? How can I open that form in C++ Builder?
OK, ddp is the 'Diagram' page of your form in BCB6. AFAICT these are
not used by the compiler/linker.
.dfm is the form state file. This is embedded as a resource into your
final executable in order to recreate the form state from the property
values you set at design time (in the object inspector)
.res is a Windows resource file. This contains things like your
application icon, version info and so forth. It is also linked into
the final executable.
Now for the bad news:
You cannot open this form in an editor in CBuilderX. You can edit the
text files (.cpp, .h) and edit the .dfm as text as well. However,
there is no visual form editor for CBuilderX yet.
> Moreoever, there is compile error:
> Unable to open include file 'vcl.h' at line 1
> There is no vcl.h in include directory of C++ Builder X.
Correct. CBuilderX is a new tool, does not have the Visual designers
of CBuilder6 and so does not ship with the VCL libraries.
However, it does ship with the same compiler as BCB6, and if you have a
licensed copy on your hard disk you can set up the project options to
include this copy of the VCL in your search paths.
> There are 4 C/C++ compilers:
>
> Intel(R) C++ Compiler 7.1 for Windows (IA-32) Tools
> Minimalist GNU For Windows
> Microsoft C/C++ Compiler Tools
> Borland Win32 Compiler Tools (Active)
>
> Should I choose Borland Win32 Compiler Tools to build Windows GUI
> application?
Depends on the GUI libraries you are using.
If you want to compile VCL applications, you must still use Borland
Win32 compiler. If you are planning to use some other library (such as
wxWidgets) you may be able to use all of the compilers (or just pick
your favourite)
Likewise, if you want to use some Microsoft specific libraries such as
MFC or WinForms, you will probably want to choose the Microsoft
compiler.
CBuilderX is a very different product compared to CBuilder6 and
addresses different needs. It is designed with cross-platform
development in mind, where you may want to support as many compilers as
your customers/suppliers use.
CBuilder6 is still the best 'RAD' solution for C++ from Borland, if
form editors are more important to you you may want to stay with that
product a while longer yet.
If you set up the paths correctly, you can also use CBX as your main
IDE, and fall back on BCB6 just when you need to do some form editting.
This might be appropriate if GUI/RAD work is only a small part of your
development.
AlisdairM(TeamB)