[cfe-dev] Host compiler requirements: Dropping VS 2008, using C++11?

[Jeffrey Walton]

On Tue, Jul 23, 2013 at 10:17 PM, Wang Qi <wqking at outlook.com> wrote:
> ...
> I believe there are still a lot of people using VC 2008, though I can't give the data.
> VC 2008 (even the express version) is enough for a lot of development, such like game development.
>
> Most likely I myself will continue using VC 2008 for at least two or more years.
>
> Unlike other C++ compiler, **Clang is not only a compiler, but also a great open source library**. An open source library should better keep lowest compiler/platform requirements, when possible.
>
> Also, seems Microsoft's development tools have quite long life and can spread into many years. For example, VC6 is not complete dead up to today... (some time ago I read on Reddit comment that somebody still needs to maintain a code base written with VC6).
>
I've got one project still using Visual Studio 2005. It has to be used
because the resulting library was certified using a specific Microsoft
runtime library. We can't change the platform because it would require
a re-certification (the certification costs around 100K USD).

As crazy as it sounds, we can install the software on a new version of
Windows (Windows 7 or Windows 8), and the certification still applies.

Jeff