You are here:About>Computing & Technology>C / C++ / C#> C> C Tutorials> How to Download and Install Watcom C/C++ Compiler
About.comC / C++ / C#

How to Download and Install the Open Watcom C/C++ Compiler

From David Bolton,
Your Guide to C / C++ / C#.
FREE Newsletter. Sign Up Now!

Download the Watcom C/C++ Compiler

Previous | Next >>

Watcom has been around a long time. I wrote applications with it in 1995, so the hardware/software requirements (listed below) to use it should not prove difficult.

  1. IBM PC compatible
  2. An 80386 or higher processor
  3. 8 MB of memory
  4. Hard disk with enough space available to install the components you require.
  5. A CD-ROM disk drive

Download Watcom

The download page is on this page. Note this is an Open Source system and if you wish to donate anything to pay for hosting, development etc, it is possible to do so here. However it is optional.

The download page holds multiple files with a date and size but no easy way to guess which you require. The file we need is open-watcom-c-win32-X.Y.exe where X is 1, possibly 2 or higher and Y is anything from 1 to 9. At the time of preparation the current version was 1.5 dated April 26 2006 and is 60MB in size. Newer versions may appear. Look down the list until you see F77 (Fortran 77 ) files. The file you want should be the one before the first F77 file.

[ ] open-watcom-c-win32-..> 07-Apr-2006 03:47 59.2M
[ ] open-watcom-c-win32-..> 13-Apr-2006 02:19 59.2M
[ ] open-watcom-c-win32-..> 21-Apr-2006 02:01 59.3M
[ ] open-watcom-c-win32-..> 26-Apr-2006 19:47 59.3M <--- This one
[ ] open-watcom-f77-os2-..> 18-Nov-2005 22:28 42.7M

There is a documentation website for this product in the form of a Wiki at here.

On the next page Learn how to install the Watcom options.

  1. Download the Watcom C/C++ Compiler
  2. How to Install the Open Watcom C/C++ Development System
  3. Open the Watcom IDE
  4. Open a Sample Application
  5. Load, Compile and Run a Sample Application

Previous | Next >>

 All Topics | Email Article | Print this Page | |
Advertising Info | News & Events | Work at About | SiteMap | Reprints | HelpOur Story | Be a Guide
User Agreement | Ethics Policy | Patent Info. | Privacy Policy©2008 About, Inc., A part of The New York Times Company. All rights reserved.