[TUHS] Bell Laboratories COBOL Syntax Checker?

[Marc Donner]

Aside: by 1982 there was a COBOL compiler for the PC from Microsoft:
https://archive.org/details/ibmpccobol

I bet it was cheaper than the COBOL "lint" you mention :-)
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On Sat, Sep 7, 2024 at 12:50 AM segaloco via TUHS <tuhs at tuhs.org> wrote:

> So I was flipping through a System V software catalog from Fall 1984 and
> among
> the many AT&T Bell Laboratories items is the "COBOL Syntax Checker".
>
> From the text:
>
> ---QUOTE---
>
> The COBOL Syntax Checker allows programmers to edit and check the syntax
> of COBOL
> programs before they are transmitted to mainframes for compilation and
> execution.
> The software increases the chances of a 'clean' compilation and execution
> and
> reduces the chance of a program being rejected due to syntax and simple
> semantic
> errors.  As a result, expensive mainframe CPU time is reduced.
>
> The COBOL Syntax Checker processes a COBOL source program and produces
> three
> listings:
>
> 1. a diagnostic listing,
>
> 2. a cross-reference listing,
>
> 3. a source listing.
>
> ---END QUOTE---
>
> There are two distributions listed, a C binary distribution for SVR2 for
> the
> 3B20 for $2000 and a C source distribution for SVR2 for the VAX 11/780 for
> $7500,
> both listed as released 2Q84.
>
> Some quick Googling only offers up additional catalog and magazine
> mentions.
> To me this sounds like a linter with some extra bits.  Does anyone have any
> recollections of this software or know if there's much likelihood of the
> software
> itself or any documentation surviving?
>
> Thanks for any insights!
>
> - Matt G.
>
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