Nu-Mega Announces BOUNDS-CHECKER32/NT, the First Automated Debugging Tool
for Windows NT Programming

Nashua, NH (September 19, 1994)--Nu-Mega Technologies, Inc. today announced
that it has begun shipping BOUNDS-CHECKER32/NT, Version 1.0, the first
automated debugging tool available to programmers building Microsoft
Windows NT applications. BOUNDSCHECKER32/NT detects the most common
Windows NT bugs, including multi-threading bugs, API compliance errors,
API parameter validation, and API failures. It also pops up on invalid
memory accesses, and memory and resource leaks. In addition,
BOUNDS-CHECKER32/NT includes TVIEW, an event logger that allows developers
to track the flow of events leading up to an error.

Multi-threading bugs

One of the benefits of developing under Windows NT is the ability to create
threads, independent flows of execution within a single program. Debugging
multi-threaded applications, however, presents special challenges because
errors are often timing-dependent and difficult to reproduce.
BOUNDS-CHECKER32/NT is the only automated debugging tool with the ability
to debug multi-threaded applications. As a multi-threaded program runs,
BOUNDS-CHECKER32/NT traps strategic events, such as messages and API
calls, and logs them to a trace file. The trace file provides a quick
overview of the thread switches within a program, making it easy to
evaluate bugs in multi-threaded applications.

"With more than 500,000 copies of Windows NT in use, we have begun to see a
surge of interest in Windows NT development tools," said Jim Moskun,
chairman of Nu-Mega Technologies. "Developers need a debugging tool that
can automatically handle the complex errors that occur under Windows NT,
including multi-threading bugs and API compliance errors.
BOUNDSCHECKER32/NT is the only Windows NT debugging tool that meets these
criteria."

API Compliance Errors

Unlike the Win 16 API of Windows 3.1, which has a single API, the Win32 API
of Windows NT includes three API subsets: Win32s; Win32c (the
implementation of Win32 for "Chicago"); and the Win32NT API
BOUNDS-CHECKER32/NT is the only debugging tool that tracks API calls by
subset, allowing developers to identify easily which API subsets a program
uses.

API Parameter Validation and API Failures

While most Windows NT API functions require parameters of a specific type,
neither the Windows NT kernel nor the Windows NT API checks for API
failures. BOUNDSCHECKER32/NT checks API functions, validates parameters,
and tests return codes for all API functions contained in the major
Windows NT API dynamic link libraries (DLLs). BOUNDSCHECKER32/NT detects
errors before the API function is called, giving developers the
information needed to fix the bug. In addition, BOUNDS-CHECKER32/NT
detects both expected and unexpected API failures, providing developers
with the option of checking expected or repeat API failures.

TVIEW: Event Logger for BOUNDS-CHECKER32/NT

TVIEW, a message and event logger that is included in the
BOUNDS-CHECKER32/NT package, offers trace viewing functionality. Working
seamlessly with TVIEW, BOUNDS-CHECKER32/NT logs events such as API calls
and API returns. TVIEW presents these events in a tree structure, allowing
developers to follow the flow of a program leading up to an error.

Detects Memory Errors

Because Windows NT dynamically allocates memory for the programmer,
detecting bugs involving dynamically allocated memory is especially
difficult. BOUNDS-CHECKER32/NT automatically catches invalid memory
accesses, including uninitialized pointers and overwrites past the end of
a structure. BOUNDS-CHECKER32/NT also detects memory leakage, informing
the developer of every block of memory that a program has allocated, but
not freed. In addition, it tracks resource leakage, notifying developers
of critical resources that were created, but not destroyed. By catching
memory errors during the development process, BOUNDSCHECKER32/NT helps
ensure that the shipping product will be free from memory problems.

Unlike traditional debuggers, BOUNDS-CHECKER32/NT automatically sets
breakpoints, watches variables, and steps through code, dramatically
reducing the time required by the debugging process. BOUNDS-CHECKER32/NT
waits in the background as your program runs. When it encounters a bug, it
pops up a dialog box and freezes execution. BOUNDSCHECKER32/NT presents
the information needed to fix the problem, allowing developers to
investigate bugs as they appear.

Nu-Mega Technologies, Inc. is an international supplier of award-winning
software development tools and utilities for MS-DOS, Microsoft Windows,
the Microsoft Win32s environment, and Novell NetWare 3.x platforms. In
1987, Nu-Mega introduced Soft-ICE for DOS, the industry's first
software-based alternative to the hardware-based ICE. In 1989, Nu-Mega
released BOUNDS-CHECKER for DOS, the first automated debugging tool.
Nu-Mega Technologies has extended its family of products to include
Soft-ICE/W, Version 1.5 for Windows 3.1 and Win32s, and versions of
BOUNDS-CHECKER for Windows 3.1, Win32s, and Windows NT.

BOUNDS-CHECKER32/NT, Version 1.0 is available from Nu-Mega for $249.
Corporate licenses are also available.

Nu-Mega Technologies, Inc.
P.O. Box 7780
Nashua, NH 03060-7780
(603) 889-2386,   Fax: (603) 889-1135

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