

                   Welcome, beta tester, to GNU Pascal,

                    the free 32/64-bit Pascal compiler.

        
	This directory contains the beta release gpc-19990118 of the
	GNU Pascal compiler (GPC) on its way from version 2.0 to 2.1.

	All parts of the compiler are copyrighted (C) 1987, 1989,
	1992-1999 by the Free Software Foundation, Inc. (FSF).


        GNU Pascal is free software; you can redistribute it and/or
        modify it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as
        published by the Free Software Foundation; either version 2, or
        (at your option) any later version.

        The GNU Pascal run time system is a free library; you can
        redistribute it and/or modify it under the terms of the GNU
        Library General Public license as published by the Free Software
        Foundation; either version 2, or (at your option) any later
        version.

        GNU Pascal is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
        but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
        MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the
        GNU General Public License for more details.

        You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public
        License and of the GNU Library General Public License along with
        GNU Pascal; see the files `COPYING' and `COPYING.LIB'.  If not,
        write to the Free Software Foundation, 59 Temple Place - Suite
        330, Boston, MA 02111-1307, USA.


        GNU Pascal is part of the GNU compiler family, GNU CC or GCC.
        It combines a Pascal front-end with the proven GNU C back-end
	for code generation and optimization.  Unlike utilities such
	as p2c, this is a true compiler, not just a converter.

	This version of GPC corresponds to GCC version 2.8.1 or EGCS
	version 1.1.1 or 1.1.2.

        The purpose of the GNU Pascal project is to produce a Pascal
	compiler which:

        1) combines the clarity of Pascal with powerful tools suitable
           for real-life programming,

        2) supports both the Pascal standard and the Extended Pascal
           standard as defined by ISO, ANSI and IEEE. (ISO 7185:1990,
	   ISO/IEC 10206:1991, ANSI/IEEE 770X3.160-1989)

        3) supports other Pascal standards (UCSD Pascal, Borland Pascal,
           Pascal-SC) in so far as this serves the goal of clarity and
           usability,

        4) can generate code for and run on any computer for which the
           GNU C compiler can generate code and run on.

	The current release 2.0 implements Standard Pascal (ISO 7185,
	level 1), a large subset of Extended Pascal (ISO 10206), and
	Borland Pascal.

	The upcoming release 2.1 features better conformance to the
	various Pascal standards, and of course bug fixes.


        This is the source code distribution of GNU Pascal.  We prefer
        this form of distributing GNU Pascal because it gives you the
        possibility to customize, improve, and maintain the compiler by
        yourself (or to hire a programmer to do it for you).  However
        we provide binary distributions for some platforms; check the
        place where you downloaded the source for a subdirectory `binary'.

	See the file `INSTALL' for installation instructions.

	Compilation of GNU Pascal requires the GNU CC sources, not just an
	installed copy of GCC.

	Installing this package will create various files in subdirectories
	of `/usr/local/lib', which are passes used by the compiler and
	libraries named `libgcc.a' and `libgpc.a'.  It will also create
	`/usr/local/bin/gpc', which is the user-level command to do a
	 compilation.


        The file `FAQ' contains the inofficial GNU Pascal FAQ
        (Frequently Asked Questions) list.  It should answer most
        of the questions you might have about GNU Pascal.

        In the directory `doc' you can find the GNU Pascal documentation
        in GNU Texinfo format.  See `doc/README' for more about that.

        The directory `units' contains the GNU Pascal standard units,
	some of which being portable replacements for Borland Pascal
	standard units of the same name.

        The directory `demos' contains demo programs illustrating some
	of GNU Pascal's capabilities.

        `ChangeLog' contains an edit history.

        The directories `test' and `testsuite' contain programs to test
	the compiler during its development and installation.

	Everything else belongs to GNU Pascal's source code.


	GNU Pascal has a home site in the World Wide Web,

	    http://home.pages.de/~GNU-Pascal/

        The most current GNU Pascal beta version can always be found at
 
            ftp://agnes.dida.physik.uni-essen.de/gnu-pascal/beta/

	The last official distribution can always be found at

	    ftp://kampi.hut.fi/jtv/gnu-pascal/
	    ftp://agnes.dida.physik.uni-essen.de/gnu-pascal/


	Please send comments, suggestions, and bug reports to the
	GNU Pascal mailing list, `gpc@hut.fi'.  See the FAQ for details.


        Enjoy,

          The GNU Pascal Development Team
