141 lines
5.7 KiB
Plaintext
141 lines
5.7 KiB
Plaintext
OVERVIEW:
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Objective Caml is an implementation of the ML language, based on
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the Caml Light dialect extended with a complete class-based object system
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and a powerful module system in the style of Standard ML.
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Objective Caml comprises two compilers. One generates bytecode
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which is then interpreted by a C program. This compiler runs quickly,
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generates compact code with moderate memory requirements, and is
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portable to essentially any 32 or 64 bit Unix platform. Performance of
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generated programs is quite good for a bytecoded implementation:
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almost twice as fast as Caml Light 0.7. This compiler can be used
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either as a standalone, batch-oriented compiler that produces
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standalone programs, or as an interactive, toplevel-based system.
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The other compiler generates high-performance native code for a number
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of processors. Compilation takes longer and generates bigger code, but
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the generated programs deliver excellent performance (better than
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Standard ML of New Jersey 1.09 on our tests), while retaining the
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moderate memory requirements of the bytecode compiler. The native-code
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compiler currently runs on the following platforms:
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Alpha processors: all Digital Alpha machines under Digital Unix or Linux
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Sparc processors: Sun Sparc under SunOS 4.1, Solaris 2, NetBSD, Linux
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Intel Pentium processors: PCs under Linux, NextStep, FreeBSD, Solaris 2
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Mips processors: SGI workstations and mainframes under IRIX 6
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HP PA-RISC processors: HP 9000/700 under HPUX 9 and NextStep
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PowerPC processors: IBM RS6000 and PowerPC workstations under AIX 3.2,
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PowerMacintosh under MkLinux, LinuxPPC, Rhapsody
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Motorola 680x0 processors: Sun 3 under SunOS
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Strong ARM processors: Corel Netwinder under Linux
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Other operating systems for the processors above have not been tested,
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but the compiler may work under other operating systems with little work.
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Before the introduction of objects, Objective Caml was known as Caml
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Special Light. Objective Caml is almost upwards compatible with Caml
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Special Light, except for a few additional reserved keywords that have
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forced some renamings of standard library functions.
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CONTENTS:
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Changes what's new with each release
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INSTALL instructions for installation
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INSTALL.MPW infos on the Macintosh MPW port of Objective Caml
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LICENSE license and copyright notice
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Makefile main Makefile
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README this file
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README.win32 infos on the MS Windows NT/Windows 95 port of O.Caml
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asmcomp/ native-code compiler and linker
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asmrun/ native-code runtime library
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boot/ bootstrap compiler
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bytecomp/ bytecode compiler and linker
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byterun/ bytecode interpreter and runtime system
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config/ autoconfiguration stuff
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debugger/ source-level replay debugger
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driver/ driver code for the compilers
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emacs/ Caml editing mode and debugger interface for GNU Emacs
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lex/ lexer generator
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otherlibs/ several external libraries
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parsing/ syntax analysis
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stdlib/ standard library
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tools/ various utilities
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toplevel/ interactive system
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typing/ typechecking
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utils/ utility libraries
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yacc/ parser generator
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COPYRIGHT:
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All files marked "Copyright INRIA" in this distribution are copyright
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1996, 1997, 1998, 1999 Institut National de Recherche en Informatique et
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en Automatique (INRIA) and distributed under the conditions stated in
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file LICENSE. They can be freely redistributed for non-commercial
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purposes, provided the copyright notice remains attached.
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INSTALLATION:
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See the file INSTALL for installation instructions on Unix machines.
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For MS Windows, see README.win32. For the Macintosh, see INSTALL.MPW.
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DOCUMENTATION:
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The Objective Caml manual is distributed in HTML, PDF, Postscript, and
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DVI. It can be obtained by anonymous FTP from ftp.inria.fr as
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described below. It is also available on the World Wide Web, at
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http://caml.inria.fr/ocaml/
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AVAILABILITY:
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The complete Objective Caml distribution resides on ftp.inria.fr,
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and can be accessed by anonymous FTP:
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host: ftp.inria.fr (192.93.2.54)
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directory: lang/caml-light
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or through a Web browser at ftp://ftp.inria.fr/lang/caml-light/
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KEEPING IN TOUCH WITH THE CAML COMMUNITY:
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There exists a mailing list of users of the Caml implementations
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developed at INRIA. The purpose of this list is to share
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experience, exchange ideas (and even code), and report on applications
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of the Caml language. This list is moderated; messages can be
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written in English or in French. The list has about 400 subscribers.
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Messages to the list should be sent to:
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caml-list@inria.fr
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If you wish to subscribe to this list, please send a message
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(including your email address) to:
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caml-list-request@inria.fr
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Archives of the list are available on the World Wide Web at URL
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http://caml.inria.fr/
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The Usenet news groups comp.lang.ml and comp.lang.functional
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also contains discussions about the ML family of programming languages,
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including Caml.
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BUG REPORTS AND USER FEEDBACK:
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Send your bug reports by E-mail to:
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caml-light@inria.fr
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To be effective, bug reports should include a complete program
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(preferably small) that exhibits the unexpected behavior, and the
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configuration you are using (machine type, etc).
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The mailing list caml-light@inria.fr is forwarded to
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a small group of implementors at INRIA. For general questions and
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discussions, caml-list@inria.fr is better; for bug reports
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and very specific technical questions, caml-light@inria.fr
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is preferred. We often redirect messages from one list to the other,
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anyway.
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