News
****

0.12.4
======

   * Support building without GNU MP, `--without-gmp' option to
     configure. Use `long long' for non-fixnum integers (promote to
     floats when out of range); no exact rationals. There's also an
     option to disable continuations/threading
     (`--disable-continuations')

   * Sanitized function inlining:

        - Use `(declare (inline NAMES...))' to tell the compiler that
          it might be useful to inline the named functions

        - Don't even think about inlining across module/file boundaries
          (for now anyway)

   * Cleaned up the `gaol' module. Interface is essentially:
     `gaol-define', `gaol-define-special', `gaol-define-file-handler'.
     Added `gaol-open' to import complete modules. Still supports old
     interface

   * Be a lot more efficient when printing quoted strings and symbol
     names (for some streams there used to be a system-call per
     character!)  Also, when quoting weird symbol names, be more
     intelligent

   * Removed code to autoload from modules (which didn't really work
     anyway)

   * Be more intelligent about deciding when to flush the module cache

   * Build fixes for IRIX (David Kaelbling)

   * Other miscellaneous bug-fixes and performance tweaks


0.12.3
======

   * New function `thread-join', waits for a specified thread to exit,
     then returns the value of the last form it evaluated

   * Added a rudimentary profiler (`,profile FORM' command in repl)

   * Reorganized `ring' module, sanitized the interface (preserving
     compatibility with old functions), also added a `ring->list'
     function

   * `rplaca' and `rplacd' (but not `setcar' and `setcdr') functions
     now return the cell being modified, not the value being stored
     into it, for compatibility with CL (Karl Hegbloom)

   * `unwind-protect', `catch', `condition-case': these special forms
     are now macros

   * When signalling `bad-arg' or `missing-arg' errors, try to include
     the function as the first element of the error data

   * `load' function now _only_ loads files without suffixes if
     NO-SUFFIX arg is non-`nil' (prevents picking up un-suffixed files
     by mistake, e.g. from the current directory)

   * Fixed some bugs when reading rationals

   * Fixed bug of `gettext' module not redefining `_' binding in `rep'
     module

   * Fixed bug when building `rep-config' script (Mark Hewitt, Dan
     Winship)

   * Fixed bug of `rep_INTERN_SPECIAL' macro not looking for default
     values of special variables

   * Fixed interpreted versions of `min' and `max' when operating on
     non-numeric values

   * If unable to allocate heap space, just print an error and
     terminate the program (the low-memory handling doesn't currently
     work properly)

   * Fixed bug when extracting doc strings from `define' forms

   * Fixed bug when compiling structure definitions in non-top-level
     environments

   * Fixed bug of being unable to `load' empty files

   * When recursively macro-expanding, dereference identifiers in the
     correct module


0.12.2
======

   * The tar file-handler now caches the unpacked archive (wins big
     when loading sawfish themes)

   * The `gaol' module can now create multiple gaols, each with it's
     own namespace

   * More performance tweaks

   * Miscellaneous bug-fixes (more vm stack smashing, `defconst' never
     evaluates its constant)


0.12.1
======

   * Some virtual machine performance tweaks

   * Fixed nasty stack smashing bug (when using compiler declarations)

   * Some 64-bit cleanups (George Lebl)

   * Fixed non-ANSI C syntax (Sam Falkner)


0.12
====

   * Added a basic module system.

     Modelled after the Scheme48 system, but simpler. At its simplest,
     include a `define-structure' form in each file representing a
     module:

          (define-structure NAME INTERFACE CONFIG BODY...)

     The external definitions of this module can then be imported by
     other modules through their CONFIG statements, e.g. `(open
     NAMES...)'. Most modules will open `rep' to get the standard
     language definitions.

     `foo#bar' reads as `(structure-ref foo bar)'

     The `timers', `tables', `sdbm', `gdbm', `readline', `gettext',
     `ring', `mutex', `memoize', `lisp-doc', `disassembler', `compiler',
     `date', `cgi-get', `gaol' features are all now modules (this is
     backwards compatible, since modules may be imported using
     `require')

     See the "Modules" section of the manual for more details.

   * The repl now contains meta-commands for inspecting and configuring
     the module system (amongst other things)

   * Added a facility for creating new primitive types: `make-datum',
     `datum-ref', `datum-set', `has-type-p', `define-datum-printer'

   * Added an SRFI 9 compatible `define-record-type' macro for defining
     data structures (the `records' module)

   * Added fluid variables--a method of creating dynamically scoped
     bindings that fit well with lexically scoped definitions
     (`make-fluid', `fluid', `fluid-set', `with-fluids', `let-fluids')

   * Added a `queues' module providing a basic queue type

   * Added stream functions: `peek-char', `input-stream-p',
     `output-stream-p'

   * Interpreter now also eliminates tail-calls

   * Changed handling of inexact numbers to be compatible with the
     Scheme standard:

        - Many operations now produce inexact outputs if any of their
          inputs are inexact (e.g. `min', `max', `floor', `ceiling',
          `round', `truncate')

        - `eql' and `equal' no longer ignore exactness when comparing
          numbers. `=', `/=', `<', `>', `<=' and `>=' _do_ ignore
          inexactness. E.g.

               (eql 2 2.) => nil
               (= 2 2.) => t

   * Support most of Scheme's read-syntax for numbers (i.e. `#b', `#o',
     `#d', `#x' radix prefixes, and `#e', `#i' exactness prefixes).

   * Implemented Scheme's `string->number' and `number->string'
     functions

   * Included a basic R4RS Scheme implementation (module: `scheme'). Do
     `,new foo <RET> ,open scheme' to test it in the repl, use `(open
     scheme)' instead of `(open rep)' to use it within modules.

     The compiler also knows enough about Scheme to be able to compile
     it.  Also, use the `-s' or `--scheme' options to load a file of
     Scheme code.

   * The debugger works better (and can be used to walk the stack
     history somewhat)

   * Last arg of `append' and `nconc' may be a non-proper-list now

   * Implemented the Scheme `do' macro for iteration

   * `define' supports curried functions. E.g. `(define ((plus a) b) (+
     a b))', then `(plus 1)' evaluates to the function that adds one to
     its argument.

   * Many performance improvements:

        - Allocates less memory (so garbage collects less often)

        - Much faster at bytecode-to-bytecode function calling

        - Much reduced VM overhead (when compiled with GCC)

   * Compiler improvements:

        - Supports the `(declare CLAUSES...)' form. See the "Compiler
          Declarations" section of the manual for details on the actual
          declarations supported.

        - Is cleverer about detecting when to create new bindings when
          tail recursing, and when the old bindings can just be
          overwritten

        - Groks the module system, and the language of the module being
          compiled (so that it can compile both rep and Scheme code)

        - Splices bodies of top-level `progn' and `begin' forms
          themselves into the top-level (for when macros expand into
          multiple definitions)

        - Compiling already defined functions (or whole modules of
          functions) now (mostly) works

        - Coalesce and compile non-defining top-level forms

   * Many bug fixes (see ChangeLog files for details)


0.11.3
======

   * Fixed bug of throwing uninitialized errors when autoloading

   * Fixed bug of interpreting `(let () ...)' as a named let

0.11.2
======

   * Replaced many special forms by macros--`let', `let*', `function',
     `if', `and', `or', `prog2', `defmacro', `defun', `defconst',
     `define-value', `setq-default'

   * `let' now supports Scheme's named-let construct for iteration via
     tail recursion

   * Parse some standard Common Lisp and Scheme syntax: `#| ... |#'
     block comments, `#\C' or `#\NAME' characters (where NAME may be
     one of: `space', `newline', `backspace', `tab', `linefeed',
     `return', `page', `rubout'), and `#(...)' vectors

   * When comparing symbols, compare their names as strings

   * Implemented Scheme's `dynamic-wind' function

   * Fixed bug of sometimes evaluating function arguments in the
     environment of the callee not the caller

   * Fixed bug when calculating how long to sleep for when no threads
     are available

   * Fixed bugs in mutex implementation (Damon Anderson)

   * Work around bugs in Tru64 `RTLD_GLOBAL'; everything should work on
     Tru64 now (Aron Griffis)

   * Fixed bug of not saving current regexp state across continuations


0.11.1
======

   * The compiler now eliminates single-function tail calls (instead of
     leaving it to the virtual machine)

   * Updated to use libtool-1.3.4

   * Miscellaneous bug fixes and minor changes

0.11
====

   * Better support for numerical computing. Now supports bignums,
     rational numbers (numerator and denominator are bignums), and
     floating point values as well as the original fixnums. Many new
     numerical functions supporting these types. Promotes and demotes
     hopefully as you'd expect (never demotes an inexact number to an
     exact number).  Tries to follow the Scheme numeric system as much
     as possible

   * Supports "guardian" objects through the `make-guardian' function
     (as described in Dybvig's paper). These are a clean mechanism for
     allowing the programmer to control when arbitrary lisp objects are
     finally deallocated. Also added a new hook: `after-gc-hook'

   * The default error handler can now be redefined. If the variable
     `error-handler-function' contains a function then it will be
     called to handle the error, with arguments `(ERROR DATA)'.

   * New special form `case', switches on a key value and sets of
     constants

   * New function `call/cc' (also available through the alias
     `call-with-current-continuation'). Provides scheme-like
     continuation functions. Special variables are now deep-bound to
     support this correctly

   * Supports "soft" preemptive threads using continuations and a
     general "barrier" mechanism (used either for restricting control
     flow, or for receiving notification when control passes across a
     barrier)

   * Parameter lists in lambda expressions now support improper lists,
     as in scheme. E.g. `(lambda (x . y) ...)'

   * Implements the scheme `define' syntax, with support for inner
     definitions

   * The `tables' plugin implements hash tables, with extensible
     hashing and comparison methods; supports both strongly and weakly
     keyed tables

   * Included a GDBM binding; DOC files are now stored in GDBM files
     (SDBM has limits on datum sizes)

   * `put' and `get' functions now use `equal' to compare property names

   * Virtual machine / compiler improvements:

        - Variable references and mutations are classified by type:
          lexical bindings use (one-dimensional) lexically addressed
          instructions, global non-special bindings have their own
          instructions, everything else uses the original instructions.
          Similar classification when creating new bindings

        - Eliminate tail-recursive function calls wherever possible in
          compiled code (when the calling function has no dynamic state)

     Compiled lisp code will need to be rebuilt to run on the modified
     virtual machine.

   * When expanding macros, bind `macro-environment' to the macro
     environment it was called with. This allows macros to reliably
     expand inner macro uses

   * New hook `before-exit-hook'. Called immediately before exiting

   * `rep-xgettext' now has an option `--c'. This makes it output
     pseudo C code containing the string constants found

   * Fixed misfeature of interpreting filenames `FOO//BAR' as `/BAR'.
     Contiguous path separators are now merged (i.e. `FOO/BAR')


0.10
====

   * Updated support for dumping (freezing) lisp definitions to handle
     lisp-1 nature with closures. Also now generates C code instead of
     assembler for portability; creates a plugin that may be loaded
     through the REP_DUMP_FILE environment variable

   * Plugin `.la' files may now contain rep-specific settings:
     `rep_open_globally=yes' and `rep_requires='FEATURES...''

   * New function `define-value'. A combination of `set' and `defvar',
     but without implying dynamic scope

   * `load' scans AFTER-LOAD-ALIST for plugins as well as lisp libraries

   * `(if t)' now evaluates to `nil' not `t'

   * Fix regexp bug in matching simple non-greedy operators (Matt Krai)

   * Borrowed guile's bouncing parentheses for readline (Ceri Storey)

   * New C functions `rep_load_environment' and `rep_top_level_exit'

   * `defvar' allows symbols to be redefined in protected environments
     if they haven't also been defined by unprotected environments

   * Detect GCC's with broken `__builtin_return_address' functions
     (George Lebl)

   * Try to use libc `gettext' implementation, but only if it looks
     like it's the GNU implementation


0.9
===

   * Support for using GNU readline (give configure the
     `--with-readline' option)

   * New functions: `letrec', `caar', ..., `cddr', `caaar', ...,
     `cdddr', `in-hook-p', `make-variable-special'

   * Changed `unless' to have the Common Lisp semantics--return `nil'
     when the condition evaluates true, not the value of the condition

   * Fixed/added some compiler optimisations

   * Fixed `rep-xgettext' script to remove duplicated strings and to
     search exhaustively

   * `add-hook' forces the hook variable to be special (in case it
     wasn't declared using `defvar')


0.8.1
=====

   Fixed some documentation bugs; fixed some build problems

0.8
===

   * Default scoping is now lexical, only variables declared using
     `defvar' are dynamically scoped.

   * There is now only a single namespace for symbols (excepting
     property lists), this means that the `fset', `symbol-function' and
     `fboundp' functions have been removed

     This allows all elements in procedure-call forms to be evaluated
     equally (as in scheme), so things like:

          ((if t + -) 1 2)

     now work. Related to this, function names (i.e. symbols and lambda
     expressions) are no longer dereferenced by any operations taking
     functions as arguments. Only built-in subroutines and closures are
     considered functions.

     This means that where before you'd write something like:

          (mapcar '+ '(1 2 3))

     this is now illegal; the `+' function must be evaluated:

          (mapcar + '(1 2 3))

   * `lambda' is now a special form evaluating to a closure (as in
     scheme); this means that the following are exactly equivalent:

          (lambda (x) x) == (function (lambda (x) x)) == #'(lambda (x) x)

     An alternative method of enclosing a lambda expression is to use
     the `make-closure' function.

   * `gaol' module providing semi-safe environment for untrusted code
     to evaluate in

   * Support for i18n through `gettext' module; also support for `%1$s'
     type format specifiers

   * New functions `string-equal' and `string-lessp'


0.7.1
=====

   * Added `--with-rep-prefix' option to autoconf AM_PATH_REP macro

   * Fixed bug when inserting a new timer before an existing timer

   * Fix the malloc tracking code

   * Fix dlmalloc for FreeBSD

   * Use install when installing, not cp

   * Some fixes for compiling with SUN's C compiler on Solaris


0.7
===

   * Added file handler for read-only access to the contents of tar
     archives, access files like `foo.tar.gz#tar/bar'

   * `process-id' function now returns pid of lisp interpreter when
     called with zero arguments

   * Added (untested) support for loading dynamic objects via
     `shl_load' (HP-UX)

   * Added (untested) support for systems that prefix symbol names in
     dynamic objects with underscores

   * Fix bug when compiling `last' function

   * Fix bug of not closing files in the `load' function


0.6.2
=====

   * Added `autoload-verbose' variable; set it to `nil' to turn off the
     messages when autoloading

   * Fix problems when `--prefix' option has a trailing slash

   * Updated libtool files to version 1.3.3

   * Initial (incomplete) support for building under Tru64, from Aron
     Griffis


0.6.1
=====

   No new features; minor portability tweaks and build changes. Fix bug
of trying to load directories as Lisp scripts

0.6
===

   * Add `unsetenv' function

   * `system' now uses `process-environment'

   * Workaround compiler bug with GCC 2.95 on sparc

   * Fix build problem where libsdbm.la can't be located


0.5
===

   * New function `set-input-handler', registers an asynchronous input
     handler for a local file

   * Don't abort on receipt of unexpected `SIGCHLD' signals

   * Upgrade libtool to version 1.2f

   * The `rep' binary by default always loads a script named `rep', not
     named by it's `argv[0]' (this breaks under the newer libtool)


0.4
===

   * Sending a rep process a `SIGUSR2' prints all debug buffers

   * Added `--with-value-type', and `--with-malloc-alignment' configure
     options. Also added code to automatically detect the first of
     these options.

   * Fixed some 64-bit problems

   * Removed the difference between static and dynamic strings


0.3
===

   * New compiler command line option `--write-docs'


0.2
===

   * The variables `error-mode' and `interrupt-mode' control where
     errors and user-interrupts (i.e. `SIGINT' signals) are handled.
     The three possible values are: `top-level', `exit' and `nil'
     (denotes the current event loop).

   * Fixed bug where all dynamic types were erroneously `symbolp'.

   * `SIGINT', `SIGHUP' and `SIGTERM' signals should now be caught more
     successfully.

   * Added a new directory to `dl-load-path': `LIBEXECDIR/rep/ARCH' to
     contain third-party shared libraries.


0.1
===

   First public release.

