Compatibility with Microsoft Fortran PowerStation

Visual Fortran recognizes the FL32 command and many of the command-line options provided by the Microsoft Fortran PowerStation Version 4 compiler. For more information on command-line compatibility, see Microsoft Fortran PowerStation Command-Line Compatibility.

Visual Fortran supports many of the language extensions to the Fortran 90 Standard supported by Microsoft Fortran PowerStation Version 4. Certain extensions may require the /fpscomp compiler option (also see Categories of Compiler Options). These extensions to the Fortran 90 Standard (and Fortran 95 Standard) include the following:

• .f, .for, .f90 source file types
• # Constants – constants using other than base 10
• C strings – NULL terminated strings
• MBCS characters in comments
• MBCS characters in string literals
• Conditional compilation and metacommand (directive) expressions ($DEFINE, $UNDEFINE, $IF, $ELSEIF, $ELSE, $ENDIF)
• !MS$ directive form (see Compiler Directives: table)
• $FREEFORM, $NOFREEFORM, $FIXEDFORM – source file format
• $OBJCOMMENT – place library-search record in object file
• $INTEGER, $REAL – selects size
• $FIXEDFORMLINESIZE – line length for fixed-form source
• $STRICT, $NOSTRICT – F90 conformance
• $ATTRIBUTES, identifier attributes (C, STDCALL, REFERENCE, VALUE, DLLIMPORT, DLLEXPORT, EXTERN, ALIAS, VARYING)
• $PACK – structure packing
• Kind numbers match bytes – kind parameters
• AUTOMATIC attribute – automatic storage class
• Integer Pointers (Cray pointers)
• VAX Structures equivalent to Fortran 90 sequence derived types
• Mixing logicals and numerics – logicals used with arithmetic operators and variables
• Argument matching for procedure calls
• Mixing integer kinds to intrinsics
• Byte data type equivalent to INTEGER*1
• $ATTRIBUTES [ ] Form
• $ATTRIBUTES ALIAS – external name for a subprogram
• $ATTRIBUTES C, STDCALL – calling and naming conventions
• $ATTRIBUTES VALUE, REFERENCE – argument passing calling conventions
• $ATTRIBUTES DLLIMPORT, DLLEXPORT – import from/export to DLL
• Character and non-character equivalence
• Double complex data type
• .XOR. – exclusive disjunction
• Integer arguments in logical expressions
• OPEN statement specifier options:
  
  • BLOCKSIZE= internal buffer size used in I/O
  • CARRIAGECONTROL= controls the output of formatted files
  • MODE= controls access to files on networked systems
  • TITLE= affects and IOFOCUS= controls QuickWin child windows
  • SHARE= controls simultaneous access to files on networked systems
• Default carriage control
• Implicit open – prompt user for filenames
• Special device names for FILE in OPEN statements
• FORM=BINARY in INQUIRE/OPEN statements
• Unformatted sequential file form
• Q edit descriptor – number of characters remaining in the input record
• \ descriptor– prevents writing an end-of-record mark
• $ edit descriptor – suppresses the carriage return at the end of a record
• X edit descriptor default – 1
• Ew.dDe and Gw.dDe edit descriptors – similar to Ew.dEe and Gw.dEe
• Variable Format Expressions (VFEs) – integer expression in FORMAT statement
• Expanded missing ,'s in FORMAT statements – optional commas
• Expanded namelist start/end sequences
• All path names, including driver, compiler, and INCLUDE statements are MBCS enabled [not on Windows 95]
• UNC pathnames
• Long filenames
• 7200 character statement length
• Free form infinite line length
• $DECLARE and $NODECLARE like IMPLICIT NONE
• Logical truth: 0 = false, non-zero = true
• $ATTRIBUTES EXTERN – variable allocated in another source file
• $ATTRIBUTES VARYING – variable number of arguments
• Alternate PARAMETER syntax – no parenthesis
• $ in identifiers
• INTERFACE TO – subroutine/function prototype, however global scoping is not supported
• Argument passing modifiers – %VAL, %REF
• Argument passing modifiers – %DESCR (treated as %REF)
• CRAY pointer support for procedure names (for COM/OLE support)
• $ATTRIBUTES ALLOCATABLE – allocatable array
• Mixing subroutines/functions in generic interfaces
• $MESSAGE – output message during compilation
• Listing directives – $TITLE, $SUBTITLE
• STATIC attribute – static storage class
• EOF checks for end of file
• LOC equivalent to %LOC
• HFIXconverts to short integer
• INT1 converts to one byte integer by truncating
• INT2 converts to two byte integer by truncating
• INT4 converts to four byte integer by truncating
• JFIX same as INT4
• MALLOC allocates a memory block of the specified number of bytes and returns an integer pointer to the block
• FREE frees the memory block specified by the integer pointer
• COTAN returns cotangent
• DCOTAN returns double precision cotangent
• IMAG returns the imaginary part of complex number
• IBCHNG reverses value of bit
• ISHA shifts arithmetically left or right
• ISHC performs a circular shift
• ISHL shifts logically left or right

The following known source incompatibilities exist between Microsoft Fortran PowerStation Version 4 and Visual Fortran:

• DATA statement style initialization in attribute style declaration (not supported)
• Debug lines (other than D) (not supported)
• $OPTIMIZE – change optimization options (not supported)
• Listing directives – $PAGE, $PAGESIZE, $LINESIZE, $[NO]LIST, $INCLUDE (not supported)
• $DEBUG, $NODEBUG – additional run-time checking (not supported)
• $LINE = C's #line (not supported)
• Internal files can be any type (not supported)
• Negative I/O unit numbers (not supported)
• Interface blocks using INTERFACE [TO] at the beginning of a source file to provide global scoping for subsequent program units (not supported)
  Visual Fortran uses standard Fortran 90 semantic rules about interface block placement and use.
• Tab continuation lines that start with characters other than digits 1 through 9 (not supported)