This document applies to Allegro CL 5.0 and 5.0.1 (see information on old FAQs for availability of older Allegro CL FAQs). This is a list of frequently asked questions on Allegro Common Lisp (ACL). ACL 5.0 runs on UNIX (including Linux), Windows 95/98 and Windows NT 4.0 (Intel). Allegro CL 5.0.1 runs also on UNIX FreeBSD on Intel-based machines, on MkLinux and linuxppc on powerpc based machines, and on Windows on DEC (now part of Compaq) machines that are not Intel based. Please read this document before sending mail to bugs@franz.com or allegro-cl@cs.berkeley.edu. Periodically, also, items from this list will be incorporated into our documentation (and dropped from here).
Because most items were modified, at least in part, we do not indicate material changed between 5.0 and 5.0.1 in the FAQ. Each item listed here has a date indicating the last significant modification. (A modification is significant if new or different information is provided. A modification that simply fixes trivial and obvious errors, such as spelling errors, is not significant.) All dates are September 1, 1999 (the date we changed the FAQ for 5.0.1) or later. Click here to view the document changes.htm which lists recent modifications..
This FAQ comprises a number of HTML files. Each topic has it own file containing all questions specifically related to that topic.
Click here if you want to download the FAQ. (We recommend that you look at the FAQ on the Franz Inc. website since it is always the most up to date, while a downloaded FAQ may go out of date. The title above -- Allegro CL 5.0/5.0.1 Frequently Asked Questions with Answers -- is a link to the FAQ on the Franz Inc. website, useful if you are looking at a downloaded version and want to see the latest version.)
A copy of the current ACL documentation (HTML files only, not the several Windows Help files such as cgide.hlp) is also on our website (see http://www.franz.com/support/documentation/5.0.1/readme.htm and http://www.franz.com/support/documentation/5.0.1/doc/cl/introduction.htm) and there are links from FAQ pages to that documentation. Note that the ACL HTML documentation (and the Windows Help files) will be periodically updated to correct errors and to provide new information based on customer questions. This document is linked to the latest update of the documentation. After updates are available, unless you update the Allegro CL documentation by downloading the updated version, the information you see on a page referred to by a FAQ document may be different from the corresponding page of your version of the ACL documentation. Instructions for updating the documentation will be provided when the first update is available.
Your comments, additions and fixes to this list are welcome: please send them to bugs@franz.com.
Each numbered heading N.M is a link to a separate HTML file in the faq-entries/ subdirectory and names faqN-M.htm (e.g. the file faq-entries/faq1-1.htm contains answers to the question about 1.1 ACL current version info).
Q1.1-1) What is the current version of ACL? (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
1.2. ACL-related communication
Q 1.2-1) How should I report bugs? (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
Q 1.2-2) dribble-bug output seems to lag behind Lisp I/O. (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
Q 1.2-3) Sometimes CL output is not logged in the dribble-bug file. What do I do about this? (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
Q 1.2-4) Is there a mailing list for Allegro CL? How do I sign up? (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
Q 1.3-1) Is there a public patch directory you maintain for incremental patches to ACL? If so, how do I get to it? (Created or last modified 10/5/99)
Q 1.3-2) Can I find the IP adress of ftp.franz.com? (Last modified 4/18/00)
Q 1.3-3) Why are there patches on the ftp site with date stamps that are still in the future? (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
Q 1.3-4) [Windows only] Why am I getting an undefined function (function MoveFileEx) error when I use sys:update-allegro? (Created on 11/4/99, title changed to make searching easier 2/3/00, content unchanged)
Q 1.3-5) Is there a list of available patches for ACL 5.0.1? (Created or last modified on 11/4/99)
Q 1.4-1) What is the relationship between this FAQ and ACL documentation? (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
Q 1.4-2) Is the ACL documentation available on-line? (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
Q 1-4.3) Is the ACL documentation updated between releases, and if so, where can I get the update? (created 10/19/99)
Q 1.5-1) [Windows only] Setup.exe won't accept my license key, though it seems valid. Why not? (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
Q 1.5-2) [Windows only] How do I clean out a previous installation if I deleted the files without using the proper uninstall method? (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
Q 1.5-3) [Windows only] If I run cleanreg.exe (see Q 1.5-2) before installing ACL 5.0/5.0.1, can I continue to use ACL 4.3.2? (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
Q 2.1-1) Can shared libraries linked with a Solaris thread library be loaded into Allegro CL 5.0/5.0.1? (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
2.2. SGI
[no entries at this time]
2.3. IBM RS6000
[no entries at this time]
2.4. HP
[no entries at this time]
2.5. DEC
[no entries at this time]
Q 2.6-1) The reported file position on Windows seems wrong. Why? (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
Q 2.6-2) How do I get the functionality of the ~/time/ and ~/date/ format directives available in 3.0.2 in 5.0/5.0.1? (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
Q 2.6-3) Why can't I use `dir' with run-shell-command? (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
Q 2.6-4) How do I get the functionality of the 3.0.2 function allegro:read-lisp-line? (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
Q 2.6-5) In Allegro CL 5.0, update.bat (the program for creating patched images) doesn't work on Windows 98. Why not? (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
Q 2.6-6) Can I deliver the directory created by generate-application? (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
Q 2.6-7) How do I control the stack size on Windows? (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
Q 2.7-1) On which x86 Linux distributions does Allegro CL work? (Created or last modified 9/3/99)
Q 3.1-1) I'm left with running Lisp processes after I exit my Emacs/xterm. What do I do to avoid this? (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
Q 3.1-2) Why doesn't make-pathname merge the given :directory component with the directory component in :defaults argument? (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
Q 3.1-3) I am getting stack overflows and occasional Lisp failure when I sort on large arrays. Why and what can I do? (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
Q 3.1-4) I have set the stack cushion to a reasonable value, but the soft stack limit is not being detected, and I get a lisp death instead. Why is that? (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
Q 3.1-5) How can I use run-shell-command in a multiprocessing friendly way? (Created or last modified 9/9/99)
Q 3.1-6) How can I encode and decode floats quickly, accurately, and without consing, for the purpose of sending them to a separate process? (Created 11/12/99)
Q 3.1-7) Why does it take so long to load a file that interns several thousand symbols in a package? (Created 11/15/99)
Q 3.1-8) Can I have the debugging evalmode allowing local evaluation (:evalmode :context t) on all the time? (Created 4/18/00)
3.2. Garbage collector
No entries at this time.
Q 3.3-1) Why do boolean specifications not work as arguments in ff calls? (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
3.4: Time issues in Allegro CL
No entries at this time.
3.5: Lisp as a shared library (or DLL)
Q 3.5-1) How do I make Lisp a DLL on Windows? (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
Q 3.5-2) How do I make a Lisp based shared library on the Unix ACL 5.0/5.0.1 versions? (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
Q 3.6-1) Can I use CL-HTTP with Allegro CL? (Last modified 11/15/99)
Q 3.7-1) The step macro does not step through compiled code, but only sees interpreted functions. How can I step through compiled functions? (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
Q 3.8-1) I get an error when I try to build an image with excl:build-lisp-image (and also with excl:generate-application) but the build process simply quits. How can I debug this error? (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
Q 3.8-2) [UNIX only] Why does generate-application make hard links to the files it copies, and is there a way to change this? (Created 11/19/99)
Q 3.9-1) Sometimes Allegro CL, particularly large images, run out of memory or fail totally with a bus error or a segv. Why might this be happening? (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
Q 3.9-2) How is heap placement determined and what can go wrong? (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
Q 3.9-3) What do I need to know about heap placement and how do I figure out the sizes and placements of my Lisp and C heaps, especially when I will be shipping my large application to my customers who have many various machine configurations? (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
Q 3.9-4) How does Lisp start up, in terms of shared-library linking and loading? (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
Q 3.9-5) What is the "Old Sun4" problem? (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
Q 3.9-6) I downloaded the "heap placement patch" on my Sparc, and now I get a big warning message whenever I start my Lisp. Why is this? (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
Q 3.9-7) What would happen if I ignore the warning message and do not rebuild the .dxl? (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
Q 3.9-8) How do I rebuild my images so they contain the heap-placement-patch? (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
Q 3.9-9) How can I tell what addresses are being used in my process space? (Created or last modified 7/17/00)
Q 3-9.10) [Windows only] How do I move DLL in memory so that it doesn't conflict with the Lisp heap? (Created or last modified 7/17/00)
Q 3-9.11) What does the "Temporarily scaling back lisp reserved region from XXX to YYY bytes." mean? (Created or last modified 7/17/00)
Q 4.1-1) How do I print to the emacs-lisp interface created *common-lisp* buffer when I run my application in its own Lisp image? (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
Q 4.1-2) Can I connect a UNIX emacs to a Windows Lisp? (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
Q 4.1-3) Can I run Emacs on Windows and Lisp on UNIX? (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
Q 4.1-4) Why doesn't the emacs-lisp interface startup when I don't have a network connection? (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
4.2. Lisp-Editor Protocol (LEP)
Q 4.2-1) How can I open a stream to an emacs buffer? (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
Q 4.2-2) How can another stream be used for background output instead of creating the *background-interaction* buffer? (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
Q 4.2-3) How can arbitrary elisp code be run from lisp? (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
Q 4.2-4) Is there a way to programmatically determine if the emacs-lisp interface connect has been established? (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
Q 4.2-5) How can I tell if lep had a problem? (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
Q 4.3-1) How do I provide scrollable popup menus in Allegro CLIM 2.x? (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
Q 4.3-2) Why do I need an XNLSPATH environment variable? (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
Q 4.3-3) What should I do to avoid getting palette-full error messages? (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
Q 4.3-4) Why can't I get the :scroll-bar option to the list-pane gadget to work? (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
Q 4.3-5) Why does my 5.0 CLIM application fail to load "sys:user32.dll"? (Created or last modified 9/3/99)
4.4. Common Graphics and the Integrated Development Environment [Windows only]
Q 4.4-1) Do I need the project system? I already have a way of organizing (eg, using tools such as defsystem) my source files for compiling and loading. Is there any reason for me to switch to using the project system? (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
Q 4.4-2) Why can't I create Common Graphics windows from my *common-lisp* buffer in Emacs? (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
Q 4.4-3) How do I not save prefs.cl when I exit the ide? (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
Q 4.4-4) Sometimes when I run my project, I get mysterious redefinition warnings. Why and should I worry about them? (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
Q 4.4-5) I have developed my application in the IDE, and when I test it there it runs fine. But when I try to run the application as generated by File | Build Project Distribution, it starts and the application window appears, but it then immediately exits. (Created or last modified 9/3/99)
4.5. Runtime
[no entries at this time]
4.6 Allegro CL LITE and Allegro CL Trial
(The LITE version is a restricted version of Allegro CL on Windows available at no cost.
The TRIAL edition, available for Linux and FreeBSD is also a restricted version, though
the restrictions are different. See the Franz Inc. home page (www.franz.com) for
more information on these products.)
Q 4.6-1) What about patches for an ACL Lite Lisp image? (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
Q 4.6-2) How do I use the code/ patches in ACL Lite? (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
Q 4.6-3) Why doesn't unzip work on Linux Redhat 6 system? [Allegro CL Trial Edition only.] (Created 11/19/99)
Q 4.6-4) Why doesn't unzip work on FreeBSD 3.x system? [Allegro CL Trial Edition only.] (Created 11/19/99)
Q 4.6-5) I try doing a Full Compile on the IDE tutorial (chapter 4, step 7) and I get an error. Why and what should I do? (Created 3/2/00)
4.7 OLE [Windows only]
Q 4.7-1) Why does OLE sample06 fail in version 5.0? (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
Q 4.8-1) How do I set up an Excel spreadsheet for use with AODBC? (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
Q 4.9-1) Why does composer:start-composer sometimes warn that "fcntl failed"? (Created or last modified 9/1/99)
Q 4.10-1) Is there a problem with storage and retrieval of raw arrays in AllegroStore? (Created or last modified 9/3/99)
Q 4.10-2) My Windows AllegroStore application that creates many lightweight processes using the ACL multiprocessing functionality grinds to a halt at some point, locking my computer. (Created 11/16/99)
You can download the entire FAQ (as a Windows zip file ftp://ftp.franz.com/pub/acl5/acl501faq.zip or a UNIX compressed tar file ftp://ftp.franz.com/pub/acl5/acl501faq.tar.gz) but this is not recommended because this FAQ will be updated from time to time and so a downloaded version will quickly go out of date. We instead recommend you bookmark this page on our website. If you download the FAQ, place it in <Allegro directory>/doc/cl/faq/ (creating the faq/ subdirectory if necessary) for links to work with your copy of the ACL documentation.
$Revision: 1.1.2.61 $
© Copyright 1999, Franz Inc., Berkeley, CA. All rights reserved.