CHEAQS Next

Blogs


The design of the new 64-bits version

28 February 2020


Why a new version? Since some time, there are two versions of CHEAQS Next available on the website, the regular version and a ‘research version’. Let me tell you why I decided to write a new version.
A few years ago, I realized that the version I was working on would sooner or later be outdated, because it was a 32-bits program. Upgrading the source to 64-bits was not as straightforward as it might look, because the compiler I used (Powerbasic) is not available in a 64-bits version and may never be. So I had to re-write or convert the program anyway. I took that opportunity to think about features I had not implemented yet. Then I made a list of new functionalities I wanted the new program to have. Let me share this list with you. First of all, some technical issues.

For the calculation options I formulated the following requirements.

Finally, a new interface for the main menu was needed.

With this wish list I started the design and planning of the new version, in 2017. Since then, I worked on building the new version and implementing these features. I am not there yet but I make progress.