Partial automation of code translation

[Petr Schreiber]

ThinBASIC contains very powerful Tokenizer (http://www.thinbasic.com/public/products/thinBasic/help/html/index.html?tokenizer.htm)module, which helps a lot when you need to analyze text, especially source code of some programming language.

Recently, I faced a situation where I needed to port code of other person prototyped using MatLAB to C, which was the only choice for ATMega CPU. Conversions from language to language can be very annoying procedure when doing manually, not speaking of possibility of doing lot of mistakes just because of inattention.
With little help of the script, you can do this very fast, thanks to automation of some routine operations.

What I attach is ThinBASIC script which helps me to translate MatLAB code to C, but it can be easily extended to support other languages, thanks to possibility of masked #include files.

How to use?
Just load source file and hit "Translate". Partially translated code will appear on the right, and you can finish the job now.
The listbox on the bottom of the window shows some warnings, double clicking on the items will take you to problematic areas.

I hope it might be useful and inspiring for you, the Tokenizer module is really worth investing some time!


Petr

13-05-2010: Works from resolution 640x480 up

[zak]

Hi Petr
i think you can convert your project to a commercial one on a larger scale if you developed the project to a larger one, since matlab used by technical people like electrical engineers.
on the other hand there is a very expensive product "MathCode C++" which convert mathematica functions to c++ code http://www.mathcore.com/products/mathcode/mathcodec++.php
indeed it is the only product i have'nt seen a pirated copy on the torrent sites, and it is very expensive (more than $2000 ) ie more than mathematica itself.
there is the problem of converting the graphics code, which i think can be directed to the free gnuplot instead of the original matlab ways.

[Petr Schreiber]

Hi Zak,

thank you very much for the idea, but the fact is my knowledge of MatLAB is very surfacial, not speaking of C!

Friends on University use MatLAB for prototyping in cases, where I use ThinBASIC - elemental number crunching, simulations and visualisations.
In the end the output is just few number handling functions, without too much language specific code.

For anything more complex, I think the translator from/to language is not good idea, and in such a cases I am all for often recommended approach of understanding the "source" code, and rewriting it to "destination" source shape using all resources the "destination" language provides.

Will see, soon I will leave school and will have to make living, maybe this could be one of the possibilities, but I guess better to go into areas I understand more in depth :)


Thanks!,
Petr

[Lionheart008]

hi petr, many thanks for this interesting code examples with tokenizer module! :)

perhaps this basically idea could be also good for translation design form from c++ to thinbasic ? ;)

in general: what's


%lbWarning (listbox)

good for ? I see I haven't noticed because this listbox was out of my screen resolution size. :oops:

my version has smaller screen solution / changed only _dialog_main.tbasic.


' Main dialog

' -- Dialog controls
Begin ControlID
%bLoadFrom
%bSaveTo

%tbFrom
%tbTo

%cbTranslators
%bTranslate

%lbWarning
End ControlID

Sub dialog_Main_Show() As DWord

Local hDlg As DWord

Dialog Font "Courier New", 9
Dialog New 0, $g_TITLE,-1,-1, 580, 420, _ '630, 470, _
%WS_POPUP Or %WS_VISIBLE Or %WS_CAPTION Or %WS_SYSMENU Or %WS_MINIMIZEBOX To hDlg


' -- Place controls here
Control Add Button, hDlg, %bLoadFrom, "Load", 5, 5, 60, 14
Control Add Textbox hDlg, %tbFrom, "", 5, 25, 270, 360, %ES_AUTOHSCROLL Or %ES_LEFT Or %WS_BORDER Or %WS_TABSTOP Or %ES_MULTILINE Or %ES_WANTRETURN Or %WS_VSCROLL, %WS_EX_CLIENTEDGE Or %WS_EX_LEFT

Control Add Button, hDlg, %bSaveTo, "Save", 510, 5, 60, 14
Control Add Textbox hDlg, %tbTo , "", 300, 25, 270, 360, %ES_AUTOHSCROLL Or %ES_LEFT Or %WS_BORDER Or %WS_TABSTOP Or %ES_MULTILINE Or %ES_WANTRETURN Or %WS_VSCROLL, %WS_EX_CLIENTEDGE Or %WS_EX_LEFT

Control Add COMBOBOX hDlg, %cbTranslators, , 150, 5, 100, 200, %CBS_DROPDOWNLIST
COMBOBOX Add hDlg, %cbTranslators, Translador_GetTranslators() Using ","
COMBOBOX Select hDlg, %cbTranslators, 1

Control Add Button, hDlg, %bTranslate, "Translate", 255, 5, 60, 14

'Control Add LISTBOX, hDlg, %lbWarning, , 5, 430, 630, 35, %LBS_NOINTEGRALHEIGHT Or %WS_BORDER Or %WS_VSCROLL
'Control Add Button, hDlg, %bClose, "Click to close", 95, 100, 60, 14

Dialog Show Modal hDlg, Call dialog_Main_Callback

End Sub

' -- Callback for dialog
CallBack Function dialog_Main_Callback()
Static sFile As String
Static sExtension As String
Static sContent As String
Static sContentNew As String
Static sType As String
Static position As Long

' -- Test for messages
Select Case CBMSG

Case %WM_INITDIALOG
' -- Put code to be executed after dialog creation here

Case %WM_COMMAND
' -- You can handle controls here

Select Case CBCTL

Case %bLoadFrom
If CBCTLMSG = %BN_CLICKED Then
sExtension = Translador_GetFromExtensions()
If InStr(sExtension, ",") Then
sExtension = Grab$(sExtension, "|", ",")
Else
sExtension = Parse$(sExtension, "|", 2)
End If
sFile = Dialog_OpenFile(CBHNDL, "Open file", APP_SourcePath, Translador_GetFromExtensions(), sExtension, %OFN_FILEMUSTEXIST Or %OFN_HIDEREADONLY Or %OFN_ENABLESIZING)

If Len(sFile) Then
Control Set Text CBHNDL, %tbFrom, FILE_Load(sFile)
End If

End If

Case %bSaveTo
If CBCTLMSG = %BN_CLICKED Then
sExtension = Translador_GetToExtensions()
If InStr(sExtension, ",") Then
sExtension = Grab$(sExtension, "|", ",")
Else
sExtension = Parse$(sExtension, "|", 2)
End If
sFile = Dialog_SaveFile(CBHNDL, "Save file", APP_SourcePath, Translador_GetToExtensions(), sExtension, %OFN_HIDEREADONLY Or %OFN_ENABLESIZING)

If Len(sFile) Then
Control Get Text CBHNDL, %tbTo To sContent
FILE_Save(sFile, sContent)
End If

End If

Case %bTranslate
If CBCTLMSG = %BN_CLICKED Then
LISTBOX Reset CBHNDL, %lbWarning

COMBOBOX Get Text CBHNDL, %cbTranslators To sType
Control Get Text CBHNDL, %tbFrom To sContent

Call "Translador_"+sType+"_Translate" (sContent) To sContentNew
Control Set Text CBHNDL, %tbTo, sContentNew

LISTBOX Add CBHNDL, %lbWarning, Trim$(Translador_AddWarning("", 0, 0), $CRLF) Using $CRLF ' -- The function also returns
End If

Case %lbWarning
If CBCTLMSG = %LBN_DBLCLK Then
LISTBOX Get Text CBHNDL, %lbWarning To sContent

position = Val(Parse$(sContent, "@", -1))
If InStr(sContent, "@OUT@") Then
Control Set Focus CBHNDL, %tbTo
Control Send CBHNDL, %tbTo, %EM_SETSEL, position, position
Control Send CBHNDL, %tbTo, %EM_SCROLLCARET, 0,0
Else
End If

End If


End Select


Case %WM_CLOSE
' -- Put code to be executed before dialog end here

End Select

End Function

I can remember you have done some month ago some good translations for tom lebowski from simple c++ examples to thinbasic. I found this chapter very very useful. don't find the link at the moment.

thanks, best regards, frank

[Petr Schreiber]

Hi Frank,

the listbox lists any problems the translator script finds during the translating process.
You can then click on each warning and it will show you where in the code the problem or something to check is.
Please have a look at the screenshot in the first post of this thread to get idea.

I apologize for the 1280x1024 screen lock, I will fix it during summer, but now I have to write thesis or I will be ritually executed :D Fixed


Petr

[Michael Hartlef]

Hi Petr,

thanks for it. That will become usefull for me.

Michael

[Petr Schreiber]

Hi Michael,

I hope it will serve you well, let me know.
I just uploaded new version with splitter, which runs from 640x480 and up, it is fully resizable and allows maximization.


Petr

[Lionheart008]

thanks for fixing and update, now here it's looking very nice! :)

personal question to another topic: why there isn't any new update for thinbasic ? perhaps it's useful for some users here at the board to know what's going on... a little letter from eros or other man he's involved with thinbasic development would be very grateful ;)

best regards, servus, frank