- The Glasgow Haskell Compiler -- version 2.04
+ The Glasgow Haskell Compiler -- version 4.02
==============================================
We are pleased to announce a new release of the Glasgow Haskell
-Compiler (GHC), version 2.04. Source distribution is freely available
-via the World-Wide Web and anon. FTP; details below.
+Compiler (GHC), version 4.02. The source distribution is freely
+available via the World-Wide Web and through anon. FTP; details below.
Haskell is "the" standard lazy functional programming language; the
-current language version is 1.4, agreed in April, 1997. Haskell
-related information is available from the Haskell home page at:
+current language version is Haskell 98, agreed in December 1998.
+Haskell related information is available from the Haskell home page at
http://haskell.org/
+GHC has a new Web page; point your browser at
+
+ http://research.microsoft.com/users/t-simonm/ghc/
+ What's new
=============
-Release 2.04 represent work done through May '97; highlights include:
-
- * Data constructors can now have polymophic fields, and ordinary
- functions can have polymoprhic arguments. Details on
+GHC 4.02 fixes several bugs in 4.01 and adds the following major features:
- http://www.cse.ogi.edu/~simonpj/quantification.html
+ * Full Haskell 98 language support,
- Existential types coming, but not done yet.
+ * Scoped type variables,
- * Pattern guards implemented, see
-
- http://www.cse.ogi.edu/~simonpj/guards.html
+ * Better warnings for unused variables,
- * Compiler can now compile itself (i.e., no real dependence on
- the Haskell 1.2 compiler anymore (version 0.29)).
+ * A new generational garbage collector.
- * Faster compilation
- Compilation speeds has improved since 2.02, although it still slower
- than GHC-0.29, the Good Old Compiler. (the gap is narrowing, though!)
-
- * Code quality is better, the simplifier and inlining machinery has been
- refurbished. Not sure how much better.
+The following things have not been fixed yet:
- * powerpc-ibm-aix is now a supported GHC platform, due to the
- Heroic Efforts of Andr\'e Santos <alms@di.ufpe.br>.
+ * The native code generator is still flaky, and is turned off by
+ default for the time being.
- * It has been tested against a large suite of (mostly) Haskell 1.2
- programs (the NoFib suite). Bunch of bugs related to new
- Haskell 1.4 has been weeded out.
+ * The profiler is still flaky.
- * A couple of Haskell 1.4 features are still incompletely supported,
- notably polymorphic strictness annotations, and Unicode.
+See the release notes for full details:
-Please see the release notes for a complete discussion of What's New.
+ http://research.microsoft.com/users/t-simonm/ghc/Docs/latest/users_guide/users_guide-1.html#ss1.4
+A source distribution and binaries for common architectures are
+available from the web page.
+ Mailing lists
================
Relevant URLs on the World-Wide Web:
-GHC home page http://www.dcs.gla.ac.uk/fp/software/ghc/
+GHC home page http://research.microsoft.com/users/t-simonm/ghc/
Haskell home page http://haskell.org/
-Glasgow FP group page http://www.dcs.gla.ac.uk/fp/
comp.lang.functional FAQ http://www.cs.nott.ac.uk/Department/Staff/mpj/faq.html
+ How to get it
================
-The easy way is to go to the WWW GHC distribution page, which should
-be self-explanatory:
+The easy way is to go to the WWW page, which should be
+self-explanatory:
- ftp://ftp.dcs.gla.ac.uk/pub/haskell/glasgow/README.html
+ http://research.microsoft.com/users/t-simonm/ghc/
Once you have the distribution, please follow the pointers in the
README file to find all of the documentation about this release. NB:
+ System requirements
======================
-To compile up this source-only release, you need a machine with 16+MB
-memory, GNU C (`gcc'), `perl' plus a version of GHC installed (either
-version 0.29 or 2.02/2.03). We have seen GHC work on these platforms:
+To compile up this source-only release, you need a machine with 32+MB
+memory, GNU C (`gcc'), `perl' plus a version of GHC installed (version
+2.10 at least, 3.02 recommended). This release is known to work on
+the following platforms:
- * alpha-dec-osf2
- * hppa1.1-hp-hpux{9,10}
+ * i386-unknown-{linux,solaris2,freebsd,cygwin32}
* sparc-sun-{sunos4,solaris2}
+
+Ports to the following platforms should be relatively easy, but
+haven't been tested due to lack of time/hardware:
+
+ * alpha-dec-osf{2,3}
+ * hppa1.1-hp-hpux{9,10}
* mips-sgi-irix{5,6}
- * i386-unknown-{linux,solaris2,freebsd,cygwin32}.
- * powerpc-ibm-aix
+ * {rs6000,powerpc}-ibm-aix
-Similar platforms should work with minimal hacking effort. The installer's
-guide included in distribution gives a complete run-down of what-ports-work.
+The installer's guide included in distribution gives a complete
+run-down of what-ports-work; an on-line version can be found at
+ http://research.microsoft.com/users/t-simonm/ghc/Docs/latest/installation_guide/installing.html
projects / ghc-hetmet.git / blobdiff