Subj : Re: which was the first linker ?when was the linker concept brought into the programming?
To   : comp.programming
From : jg.campbell.ng
Date : Thu Jul 14 2005 07:25 am



ypjofficial@indiatimes.com wrote:
> Hello All,
> I read lot about history of programming.
> Lastly I was searching for "when the concept of linker was brought into
> the programming" .
> As in earlier days(unstructured programming days)the compilation unit
> was a monolithik file but the modulariazation (structured
> programming)brought the concept of the separate compilation units.

Separate compilation units came long before 'structured programming'
and before 'modularisation', unless you define 'modularisation' as
'using separate compilation units'.

>
> But nowhere I found when was the concept of linker introduced.
> Will someone please give me insight into the history of linkers?
>

See mention of linkers in context of FORTRAN II (1958) at:

http://www.ibiblio.org/pub/languages/fortran/ch1-1.html

That must mean that in earlier FORTRANs one had to include any
libraries (and other compilation units) as source code?

But I'd reckon there were linkers before 1958.

Best regards,

Jon C.

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