Tower Technology, Austin, Texas
Price: Individual licenses for Linux US$249
Disk space required: 26MB, fully installed with all class libraries precompiled
Includes: Command-line tools such as the compiler, class viewers, Eiffel-aware ports of gdb and xgdb debuggers, class libraries, Tower extensions to emacs, and several hundred pages of manuals in three-ring binders
Media: four floppy disks, compressed
A fast compiler, with a familiar interface, and good low-level debugging. The environment provided uses xemacs. Command-line tools are included to examine ancestors and suppliers, produce typeset listings and so on. The debugger can be run from xemacs, or from its own graphical front end, or from the command line.
The TowerEiffel individual non-commercial license allows you to learn, experiment, and build prototypes with Eiffel. Developers may not commercially distribute or deploy executables developed with TowerEiffel under this license. However, Tower allows non-commercial developers with individual licenses to publish their work as free software. Other types of distribution are possible by arrangement. A commercial license is available.
E-mail support was prompt and consistent.
Tower Technology is a corporate member of Linux International.
Interactive Software Engineering (ISE), Santa Barbara, California
Price: Student and individual license for Linux US$295.
Disk space: 36MB, including the compiler, development environment, class libraries, and a GUI builder.
Media: Tape (DAT) and anonymous ftp. CD-ROM available by press time.
Includes: Compiler, tools, class and runtime libraries, a custom development environment, some books, and a Motif GUI builder.
The Interactive Software Engineering EiffelBench environment offers an innovative approach to software development. Affording many different views of a project, with easy transition via drag-and-drop interface, it is user friendly without being dumb.
The extensive class library offers many re-usable components that save labor and offer examples of how to build such things. Debug support is strong in some areas, weak in others, but overall an innovative and pleasant product to use. A Motif GUI builder is provided, and the distribution comes with one book every Eiffel developer must have, and a number of other books well worth reading.
The ISE Eiffel-3 version 3.3.4 student/individual license permits publishing free software, but not selling the result of Eiffel development for profit. ISE will put free software built with Eiffel on their ftp site, and include it on their CD-ROM, at the request of the developer.
A commercial license upgrade is available for individuals who wish to produce software for sale. In any case there is no fee for the static linked runtime libraries.