Frequently Asked Questions
Who is LibCL for?
LibCL aims to please a large subset of lisp users
- Users looking to use a lisp application
- Programmers looking to simplify the prerequisites for their work
- Library authors seeking broader use of their work
- Library authors seeking help with maintenance (e.g. documentation, platform ports, bitrot avoidance)
LibCL seeks to be a uniform, simple, 1-stop approach for all these groups.
Who maintains LibCL?
LibCL was created by Daniel Herring. Initial feedback was obtained in a private alpha released 2008-11-11. Now that the project has gone public, all are enouraged to participate.
Ideally, library development will continue upstream, leaving LibCL to focus on integration, portability, and distribution issues.
Why not distribute a lisp implementation and editor?
LibCL aims to provide a simple platform-independent distribution of lisp libraries. Distributing one implementation or editor would defeat the purpose. If you don't know where to start, look at the current list of tested platforms.
Why isn't library X included?
Here are the most probable reasons
- Nobody told us about it.
- We haven't gotten that far
- Overly platform-specific (e.g. implementation-specific, FFI binding, etc.) (Note: libcl-ffi is a work in progress)
- Depends on a library not in LibCL
- It feels more like an application
- Its too large or targets a (perceived to be) narrow audience
- Other included libraries are "better"
- Commercial license
In any case, feel free to search and ask on the mailing lists if you have questions.
How can I use other versions of the included libraries?
This is easy since ASDF uses asdf:*central-registry* and symlinks to organize things. There are two basic strategies
- (recommended) Put your version of the library ahead of LibCL in
asdf:*central-registry* - Install LibCL's .asd files and replace the appropriate symlinks with ones pointing to your version (before calling compile-libcl.lisp)
Why isn't there a LibCL wiki?
Cliki.net already provides a good wiki for lisp-related topics. No need to compete.
Where can I get more help?
Support for using LibCL can be found on the mailing lists.
If you have off-topic questions or prefer another means of communication, we recommend
- a local user group
- LispForum online bulletin board
- #lisp in irc.freenode.net (try not to flood them with noise)
- comp.lang.lisp on usenet (remember, its usenet)
- lispdoc search engine
