doc/ref/preface.texi

   1 @c -*-texinfo-*-
   2 @c This is part of the GNU Guile Reference Manual.
   3 @c Copyright (C)  1996, 1997, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004
   4 @c   Free Software Foundation, Inc.
   5 @c See the file guile.texi for copying conditions.
   6
   7 @node Preface
   8 @chapter Preface
   9
  10 This manual documents version @value{VERSION} of Guile, GNU's
  11 Ubiquitous Intelligent Language for Extensions.  It describes how to
  12 use Guile in many useful and interesting ways.
  13
  14 @menu
  15 * Manual Layout::
  16 * Manual Conventions::
  17 * Contributors::
  18 * Guile License::
  19 @end menu
  20
  21
  22 @node Manual Layout
  23 @section Layout of this Manual
  24
  25 The manual is divided into the following chapters.
  26
  27 @table @strong
  28 @item Chapter 1: Introduction to Guile
  29 This part provides an overview of what Guile is and how you can use
  30 it.  A whirlwind tour shows how Guile can be used interactively and as
  31 a script interpreter, how to link Guile into your own applications,
  32 and how to write modules of interpreted and compiled code for use with
  33 Guile.  Everything introduced here is documented again and in full by
  34 the later parts of the manual.  This part also explains how to obtain
  35 and install new versions of Guile, and how to report bugs effectively.
  36
  37 @item Chapter 2: Programming in Scheme
  38 This part provides an overview of programming in Scheme with Guile.
  39 It covers how to invoke the @code{guile} program from the command-line
  40 and how to write scripts in Scheme.  It also gives an introduction
  41 into the basic ideas of Scheme itself and to the various extensions
  42 that Guile offers beyond standard Scheme.
  43
  44 @item Chapter 3: Programming in C
  45 This part provides an overview of how to use Guile in a C program.  It
  46 discusses the fundamental concepts that you need to understand to
  47 access the features of Guile, such as dynamic types and the garbage
  48 collector.  It explains in a tutorial like manner how to define new
  49 data types and functions for the use by Scheme programs.
  50
  51 @item Chapter 4: Guile API Reference
  52 This part of the manual documents the Guile @acronym{API} in
  53 functionality-based groups with the Scheme and C interfaces presented
  54 side by side.
  55
  56 @item Chapter 5: Guile Modules
  57 Describes some important modules, distributed as part of the Guile
  58 distribution, that extend the functionality provided by the Guile
  59 Scheme core.
  60
  61 @item Chapter 6: GOOPS
  62 Describes GOOPS, an object oriented extension to Guile that provides
  63 classes, multiple inheritance and generic functions.
  64
  65 @end table
  66
  67
  68 @node Manual Conventions
  69 @section Conventions used in this Manual
  70
  71 We use some conventions in this manual.
  72
  73 @itemize @bullet
  74
  75 @item
  76 For some procedures, notably type predicates, we use ``iff'' to mean
  77 ``if and only if''.  The construct is usually something like: `Return
  78 @var{val} iff @var{condition}', where @var{val} is usually
  79 ``@nicode{#t}'' or ``non-@nicode{#f}''.  This typically means that
  80 @var{val} is returned if @var{condition} holds, and that @samp{#f} is
  81 returned otherwise.  To clarify: @var{val} will @strong{only} be
  82 returned when @var{condition} is true.
  83 @cindex iff
  84
  85 @item
  86 In examples and procedure descriptions and all other places where the
  87 evaluation of Scheme expression is shown, we use some notation for
  88 denoting the output and evaluation results of expressions.
  89
  90 The symbol @samp{@result{}} is used to tell which value is returned by
  91 an evaluation:
  92
  93 @lisp
  94 (+ 1 2)
  95 @result{} 3
  96 @end lisp
  97
  98 Some procedures produce some output besides returning a value.  This
  99 is denoted by the symbol @samp{@print{}}.
 100
 101 @lisp
 102 (begin (display 1) (newline) 'hooray)
 103 @print{} 1
 104 @result{} hooray
 105 @end lisp
 106
 107 As you can see, this code prints @samp{1} (denoted by
 108 @samp{@print{}}), and returns @code{hooray} (denoted by
 109 @samp{@result{}}).  Do not confuse the two.
 110
 111 @c Add other conventions here.
 112
 113 @end itemize
 114
 115 @node Contributors
 116 @section Contributors to this Manual
 117
 118 The Guile reference and tutorial manuals were written and edited
 119 largely by Mark Galassi and Jim Blandy.  In particular, Jim wrote the
 120 original tutorial on Guile's data representation and the C API for
 121 accessing Guile objects.
 122
 123 Significant portions were contributed by Gary Houston (contributions
 124 to POSIX system calls and networking, expect, I/O internals and
 125 extensions, slib installation, error handling) and Tim Pierce
 126 (sections on script interpreter triggers, alists, function tracing).
 127
 128 Tom Lord contributed a great deal of material with early Guile
 129 snapshots; although most of this text has been rewritten, all of it
 130 was important, and some of the structure remains.
 131
 132 Aubrey Jaffer wrote the SCM Scheme implementation and manual upon
 133 which the Guile program and manual are based.  Some portions of the
 134 SCM and SLIB manuals have been included here verbatim.
 135
 136 Since Guile 1.4, Neil Jerram has been maintaining and improving the
 137 reference manual.  Among other contributions, he wrote the Basic
 138 Ideas chapter, developed the tools for keeping the manual in sync
 139 with snarfed libguile docstrings, and reorganized the structure so as
 140 to accommodate docstrings for all Guile's primitives.
 141
 142 Martin Grabmueller has made substantial contributions throughout the
 143 reference manual in preparation for the Guile 1.6 release, including
 144 filling out a lot of the documentation of Scheme data types, control
 145 mechanisms and procedures.  In addition, he wrote the documentation
 146 for Guile's SRFI modules and modules associated with the Guile REPL.
 147
 148 The chapter on GOOPS was written by Christian Lynbech, Mikael
 149 Djurfeldt and Neil Jerram.
 150
 151 @node Guile License
 152 @section The Guile License
 153 @cindex copying
 154 @cindex GPL
 155 @cindex LGPL
 156 @cindex license
 157
 158 Guile is Free Software.  Guile is copyrighted, not public domain, and
 159 there are restrictions on its distribution or redistribution, but
 160 these restrictions are designed to permit everything a cooperating
 161 person would want to do.
 162
 163 @itemize @bullet
 164 @item
 165 The Guile library (libguile) and supporting files are published under
 166 the terms of the GNU Lesser General Public License version 3 or later.
 167 See the files @file{COPYING.LESSER} and @file{COPYING}.
 168
 169 @item
 170 The Guile readline module is published under the terms of the GNU
 171 General Public License version 3 or later.  See the file @file{COPYING}.
 172
 173 @item
 174 The manual you're now reading is published under the terms of the GNU
 175 Free Documentation License (@pxref{GNU Free Documentation License}).
 176 @end itemize
 177
 178 C code linking to the Guile library is subject to terms of that
 179 library.  Basically such code may be published on any terms, provided
 180 users can re-link against a new or modified version of Guile.
 181
 182 C code linking to the Guile readline module is subject to the terms of
 183 that module.  Basically such code must be published on Free terms.
 184
 185 Scheme level code written to be run by Guile (but not derived from
 186 Guile itself) is not restricted in any way, and may be published on any
 187 terms.  We encourage authors to publish on Free terms.
 188
 189 You must be aware there is no warranty whatsoever for Guile.  This is
 190 described in full in the licenses.
 191
 192
 193 @c Local Variables:
 194 @c TeX-master: "guile.texi"
 195 @c End: