MASM ?????

[DconfusedOne]

Well, ok, hmm, I want to use assembly language as my
first language, and I can't find MASM and not even sure
what it is called anymore or how to find it. I've
searched this website, ebay, google (etc.), chat rooms,
called stores, and rather than contact MS I figured I
would try this. Usually I get people that try and
convince me to use a different language or go a different
route, but that is not what I want to do. I have XP Pro,
P4 processor, and am not sure which version I would need,
any good books that there is on it (I have Revolutionary
Guide to Assembly Language but it says it only talks
about 16-bit, and I would like a book that is more up to
date (32-bit)). If anyone can tell me ANYTHING to help
me find out how to get the software and possibly a book,
then I would GREATLY appreciate it!!! (Also have seen
about .NET IL assembly, is this different?) Hopefully I
didn't ask too many questions here, just mainly focused
on finding the software. THANKS!!!!!!!!

[Walter Clayton]

I'll cost, although how much I'm not sure since there are variables and
rebates involved. You can get MASM as part of an MSDN Professional
subscription.
The problem is lack of documentation coupled with the fact that very little
is done in pure assembler any more. Generally things are done in C/C++ with
the occasional inline stuff when needed. Which gets back to the
documentation issue, which requires you be able to at least read interface
structures written in C++.

--
Walter Clayton - MS MVP(WinXP)
Associate Expert
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/expertzone
Any technology distinguishable from magic is insufficiently advanced.
http://www.dts-l.org
http://support.microsoft.com/servicedesks/fileversion/default.asp


"DconfusedOne" > wrote in message
...
> Well, ok, hmm, I want to use assembly language as my
> first language, and I can't find MASM and not even sure
> what it is called anymore or how to find it. I've
> searched this website, ebay, google (etc.), chat rooms,
> called stores, and rather than contact MS I figured I
> would try this. Usually I get people that try and
> convince me to use a different language or go a different
> route, but that is not what I want to do. I have XP Pro,
> P4 processor, and am not sure which version I would need,
> any good books that there is on it (I have Revolutionary
> Guide to Assembly Language but it says it only talks
> about 16-bit, and I would like a book that is more up to
> date (32-bit)). If anyone can tell me ANYTHING to help
> me find out how to get the software and possibly a book,
> then I would GREATLY appreciate it!!! (Also have seen
> about .NET IL assembly, is this different?) Hopefully I
> didn't ask too many questions here, just mainly focused
> on finding the software. THANKS!!!!!!!!

[JimC]

Since you are embarking on a self-education venture, you can reduce costs by
downloading plenty of free (or nearly free) info, specs, and even
assemblers. By learning the basics this way, you will be a wiser shopper if
and when you need better tools. Most novice programmers skip the
fundamentals that you seem eager to learn. As a result, they get stuck in
high-supply career lanes by taking the path most often traveled. In any
case, you won't regret learning the fundamentals - everyone who is now a
legend started there!

Eric Isaacson's family of Shareware Assemblers (http://eji.com/a86/),
spanning 8086 thru PIII/Athlon, should be considered if you are willing to
spend a paltry sum (the Win32 extension for Windows programming, a linker,
and a resource script compiler are bundled free). You can get plenty of
corroborating opinions if you search the web for A86, D86, A386, D386,
Issacson, etc.

One of the several good Shareware editors designed for programming is
UltraEdit (http://www.ultraedit.com/), and Funduc Search/Replace
(http://www.funduc.com/) is another Shareware tool that has Swiss-Army-Knife
attributes.

Here's a vendor site with plenty of free stuff: http://www.powerbasic.com/
In the <Downloads> section, check out the following libraries:
<Assembler>
<Documentation>
<Microsoft Tools>
<Tools & Utilities>

Other Links:
http://www.members.kconline.com/strycker/IBAMP/page4.html
http://directory.google.com/Top/Computers/Programming/Languages/Assembly/x86/Assemblers_and_Linkers/

Jim

"DconfusedOne" > wrote in message
...
> Well, ok, hmm, I want to use assembly language as my
> first language, and I can't find MASM and not even sure
> what it is called anymore or how to find it. I've
> searched this website, ebay, google (etc.), chat rooms,
> called stores, and rather than contact MS I figured I
> would try this. Usually I get people that try and
> convince me to use a different language or go a different
> route, but that is not what I want to do. I have XP Pro,
> P4 processor, and am not sure which version I would need,
> any good books that there is on it (I have Revolutionary
> Guide to Assembly Language but it says it only talks
> about 16-bit, and I would like a book that is more up to
> date (32-bit)). If anyone can tell me ANYTHING to help
> me find out how to get the software and possibly a book,
> then I would GREATLY appreciate it!!! (Also have seen
> about .NET IL assembly, is this different?) Hopefully I
> didn't ask too many questions here, just mainly focused
> on finding the software. THANKS!!!!!!!!