+++ /dev/null
- The Glasgow Haskell Compiler
- ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
-
-We are happy to announce the first full release of the Glasgow Haskell
-Compiler (GHC, version 0.10). It is freely available by FTP; details
-appear below.
-
-To run this release, you need a Sun4, probably with 16+MB memory, and
-GNU C (gcc), version 2.1 or greater, and "perl". If building from
-source, you will need Chalmers HBC, version 0.998.x.
-
-We hope you enjoy this system, and we look forward to hearing about
-your successes with it! Please report bugs to
-glasgow-haskell-bugs@dcs.glasgow.ac.uk and direct general queries to
-glasgow-haskell-request@<same>.
-
-Simon Peyton Jones
-(and his GRASPing colleagues)
-
-Why a Haskell programmer might want to use GHC
-~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
-* Almost all of Haskell is implemented. In particular, the full range
- of data types is supported: arbitrary precision integers, rationals,
- double-precision floats, and "real" arrays with O(1) access time.
- (The release notes list all unimplemented language features.)
-
-* An extensible I/O system is provided, based on a "monad" [1]. (The
- standard Haskell I/O system is built on this foundation.)
-
-* A number of significant language extensions are implemented:
- - Fully fledged unboxed data types [2].
- - Ability to write arbitrary in-line C-language code, using
- the I/O monad to retain referential transparency.
- - Incrementally-updatable arrays, also embedded in a monad.
- - Mutable reference types.
-
-* By default, the system uses a generational garbage collector which
- lets you run programs whose live data is significantly larger than
- the physical memory size before thrashing occurs. (Conventional
- 2-space GC starts thrashing when the live data gets to about half
- the physical memory size.)
-
-* A new profiling system is supplied, which enables you to find out which
- bits of your program are eating both *time* and the *space* [3].
-
-* Good error messages. Well, fairly good error messages. Line
- numbers are pretty accurate, and during type checking you get
- several (accurate) error reports rather than just one.
-
-* Performance: programs compiled with GHC "usually" beat
- Chalmers-HBC-compiled ones. If you find programs where HBC wins,
- send them to us :-).
-
-* We have a pretty good test suite, and this version passes
- practically all of it. (Yes, it can compile itself, too.) We hope
- you will find the system to be robust.
-
-Why a functional-language implementor might want to use GHC
-~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
-* We have tried very hard to write the compiler in a modular and
- well-documented way, so that other researchers can modify and extend
- it. One of our goals is specifically to provide a framework to
- support others' work. Several people are already using it in this
- way.
-
-* Highly configurable runtime system. Heavy use of C macros means
- that you can modify much of the storage representation without
- telling the compiler. For example, the system comes with 4
- different garbage collectors! (all working)
-
-* Internals: extensive use of the second-order lambda calculus as an
- intermediate code; the Spineless Tagless G-machine as evaluation
- model [4].
-
-* Various performance-measurement hooks.
-
-Main shortcomings
-~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
-* No interactive system. This is a batch compiler only. (Any
- volunteers?)
-
-* Compiler is greedy on resources. Going via C doesn't help here.
-
-* This system should run on any Unix box. We haven't had time to do
- any non-Sun4 ports. Help or prodding welcome.
-
-References
-~~~~~~~~~~
-All these papers come with the distribution [in ghc/docs/papers].
-
-[1] "Imperative functional programming", Peyton Jones & Wadler, POPL '93
-
-[2] "Unboxed data types as first-class citizens", Peyton Jones &
- Launchbury, FPCA '91
-
-[3] "Profiling lazy functional languages", Sansom & Peyton Jones,
- Glasgow workshop '92
-
-[4] "Implementing lazy functional languages on stock hardware", Peyton
- Jones, Journal of Functional Programming, Apr 1992
-
-How to get it
-~~~~~~~~~~~~~
-This release is available, in whole or in part, from the usual Haskell
-anonymous FTP sites, in the directory pub/haskell/glasgow:
-
- nebula.cs.yale.edu (128.36.13.1)
- ftp.dcs.glasgow.ac.uk (130.209.240.50)
- animal.cs.chalmers.se (129.16.225.66)
-
-(Beleaguered NIFTP users within the UK can get the same files from
-Glasgow by using a <FP>/haskell/glasgow prefix, instead of
-pub/haskell/glasgow. Also, we are mirrored by src.doc.ic.ac.uk, in
-languages/haskell/glasgow, and you can get files from there by every
-means known to humanity.)
-
-These are the available files:
-
-ghc-0.10-src.tar.Z The basic source distribution; assumes you
- will compile it with Chalmers HBC, version
- 0.998.n, on a Sun4, for which you have GNU C
- (gcc) version 2.1 or greater. About 3MB.
-
-ghc-0.10-bin-sun4.tar.Z A binary distribution -- avoid compiling
- altogether! For SunOS 4.1.x; assumes you
- have GNU C (gcc) version 2.x around...
-
-ghc-0.10-patch-* Patches to the original distribution. There
- are none to start with, of course, but there
- might be by the time you grab the files.
- Please check for them.
-
-Once you have the distribution, please follow the pointers in the
-ghc/README file to find all of the documentation in and about this
-release.
projects / ghc-hetmet.git / blobdiff