doc/FAQ

   1 Frequently Asked Questions about Bison:
   2
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   4
   5 Q1.  Is Bison Y2K compliant?
   6
   7 A1.  If you're looking for a guarantee or certification, I can't
   8      provide it.  With a little thought you can answer this one for
   9      yourself, though.  (Hint: does a parser generator rely on the
  10      date or time for anything?)  If you're still confused, see
  11      http://www.gnu.org/software/year2000.html for more information.
  12
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  14
  15 Q2.  I'm having trouble using Bison.  Where can I find help?
  16
  17 A2.  First, read the fine manual which comes with bison.  Beyond that,
  18      you can send mail to <help-bison@gnu.org>.  This mailing list is
  19      intended to be populated with people who are willing to answer
  20      questions about using and installing Bison.  Please keep in mind
  21      that (most of) the people on the list have aspects of their lives
  22      which are not related to Bison (!), so you may not receive an
  23      answer to your question right away.  This can be frustrating, but
  24      please try not to honk them off; remember that any help they
  25      provide is purely voluntary and out of the kindness of their
  26      hearts.
  27
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  29
  30 Q3.  I found a bug.  What should I include in the bug report?
  31
  32 A3.  Before you send a bug report, make sure you are using the latest
  33      version.  Check ftp://ftp.gnu.org/pub/gnu/bison/ or one of its
  34      mirrors.  Be sure to include the version number in your bug
  35      report.  If the bug is present in the latest version but not in a
  36      previous version, try to determine the most recent version which
  37      did not contain the bug.
  38
  39      If the bug is parser-related, you should include the smallest
  40      grammar you can which demonstrates the bug.  The grammar file
  41      should also be complete (i.e., I should be able to run it through
  42      Bison without having to edit or add anything).  The smaller and
  43      simpler the grammar, the easier it will be to fix the bug.
  44
  45      Include information about your compilation environment, including
  46      your operating system's name and version and your compiler's name
  47      and version.  If you have trouble compiling, you should also
  48      include a transcript of the build session, starting with the
  49      invocation of `configure'.  Depending on the nature of the bug,
  50      you may be asked to send additional files as well (such as
  51      `config.h' or `config.cache').
  52
  53      Patches are most welcome, but not required.  That is, do not
  54      hesitate to send a bug report just because you can not provide a
  55      fix.
  56
  57      Send bug reports to <bug-bison@gnu.org>.
  58
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  60
  61 Q4.  Will Bison ever have C++ support?
  62
  63 A4.  Yes, it's in the works.  I will need beta testers, however (and
  64      people haven't exactly been lining up for the task).  When this
  65      feature is ready to be tested, it will be announced on the
  66      bug-bison mailing list.  If you're interested in testing C++
  67      support when it becomes available, please consider subscribing to
  68      the list, especially if you are willing to beta test other
  69      releases as well.
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  72
  73 Q5.  What is involved in being a beta tester?
  74
  75 A5.  It's not terribly involved.  Basically, you would download a test
  76      release, compile it, and use it to build and run a parser or two.
  77      After that, you would submit either a bug report or a message
  78      saying that everything is okay.  It is important to report
  79      successes as well as failures because test releases eventually
  80      become mainstream releases, but only if they are adequately
  81      tested.  If no one tests, development is essentially halted.
  82
  83      Beta testers are particularly needed for operating systems to
  84      which I do not have access.  I currently have easy access to
  85      Linux (x86 glibc 2.1), Solaris (SPARC) 2.6 and 2.7, and HP-UX
  86      10.20.  Reports about other operating systems are especially
  87      welcome.
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  90
  91 Q6.  How do I join the help-bison and bug-bison mailing lists?
  92
  93 A6.  See http://www.gnu.org/ (the section about "GNU mailing lists")
  94      for more information.
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