Ada Home
July 28, 1997
Magnus Kempe
Editor, Ada Home
To have your own printed copies of the Reference Manual and Rationale for Ada 95, you don't have to print or xerox these important reference works yourself.
Both books have been published as (softcover) volumes in the Lecture Notes in Computer Science series from Springer-Verlag, with ISBN numbers of their own. Thus from now on the Ada 95 Reference Manual and the Ada 95 Rationale can be easily bought (and ordered) in bookstores anywhere in the world, as befits an internationally standardized programming language.
These two publications by Springer-Verlag will help increase the visibility of Ada 95 by making two major language reference works easily accessible to the general public. They are also useful complements to the versions already available in electronic formats (hypertext, postscript, ASCII), and to the printed copies that can be ordered directly from several U.S. government sources. (See the resources below, for information on alternative source and forms of the Ada 95 reference works.)
The price tag (US$ 104.90 for both books) may seem to be somewhat high, but high-quality paper and a sturdy binding (judging by appearance -- not yet by years of use) have been used.
The publisher has used acid-free paper; this guarantees that the paper supporting your favorite Ada references will not disintegrate too early.
From the book covers:
Ada 95 Reference ManualThis Ada 95 Reference Manual is essentially identical to the International Standard ISO/IEC 8652:1995(E) approved by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) in 1995 as the new standard for the programming language Ada. The new standard replaces the former standard ISO 8652:1987 for Ada 83.
The thorough technical revisions and extensions documented in this manual are built on broad participation from the international Ada community and generous support by leading institutions. More than 750 submitted revision requests were evaluated, and the resulting enhancements make Ada 95 an outstanding language. Generally speaking, the flexibility of languages such as C++, modern features such as object orientation, and improved interfacing capabilities have been added to the reliable software engineering capabilities provided and proven by the predecessor version Ada 83 for over a decade; furthermore, upward compatibility from Ada 83 to Ada 95 has been achieved within the constraints set by other requirements.
The Ada 95 Reference Manual completely documents the Ada 95 standard in a user-friendly way and thus is an indispensable working companion for anybody using Ada professionally or learning the language systematically.
Ada 95 RationaleAda 95, the enhanced version of the Ada programming language, is now in place and has attracted much attention in the community since the International Standard ISO/IEC 8652:1995(E) was approved in 1995. The new language standard is publicly available and also published in the Ada 95 Reference Manual. This Ada 95 Rationale is the companion to the reference manual and language standard; it introduces Ada 95 and its attractive new features and explains the rationale behind them.
The Ada 95 Rationale comes in four parts. The introductory part is a general discussion of the scope and objectives of Ada 95 and its major technical features. The second part contains a more detailed step by step account of the core language. The third part consists of several annexes addressing the predefined environment and specialized application areas. Finally, the three appendices of the fourth part are devoted to the upward compatibility with Ada 83, a few changes since the drafts of the standard were made public, and a summary of requirements.
The Ada 95 Rationale should be studied in parallel with the Ada 95 Reference Manual or the language standard document. It will be of special value for anybody dealing seriously with Ada in a professional, academic, or educational environment.
Both books can be bought from the Ada Home Bookshop, general Ada section, or ordered at your local bookstore with the following references (note that the prices quoted in DEM and CHF seem more appealing, as of June/July 1997):
Ada 95 Reference Manual:
Language and Standard Libraries,
International Standard ISO/IEC 8652:1995(E).
S. Tucker Taft, Robert A. Duff (eds)
Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol 1246.
Springer-Verlag, 1997, softcover 548 pp.
ISBN 3-540-63144-5
list price: US$ 54.95, DEM 78.00, CHF 69.-
Ada 95 Rationale:
The Language, The Standard Libraries.
John Barnes (ed.)
Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol 1247.
Springer-Verlag, 1997, softcover 474 pp.
ISBN 3-540-63143-7
list price: US$ 49.95, DEM 68, CHF 60.-
Finally, in case it is difficult or inconvenient for you to obtain a copy by regular means (e.g. through a local bookstore or the Ada Home online bookshop), orders can also be placed by email directly with Springer-Verlag: orders@springer.de (Europe, S&H DEM 5) or orders@springer-ny.com (USA, S&H US$ 3)
| These books can be ordered on-line from the Ada Home Bookshop, in the General Ada section. |
Page last modified: 1997-12-14