Virtual Pascal - Features

Features

The compiler is compatible with Turbo Pascal, Borland Delphi, and Free Pascal, although language- and RTL-compatibility is limited for features introduced after Delphi v2 and FPC 1.0.x.

VP was primarily useful for the following purposes:

  • Easily port existing 16-bit Turbo Pascal programs to 32 bits
  • Port existing 16-bit OWL programs to 32-bit Windows (in theory)
  • Write console (text-mode) programs for several platforms
  • Pascal development using the 32-bit Windows API (the classic development, no COM!)
  • Learn object-oriented programming

Significant features of Virtual Pascal include:

  • Text-mode IDE
  • Debugger is integrated directly into the IDE and is reminiscent of Turbo Debugger
  • Fast compilation
  • Tool-chain written mostly in Intel assembly

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