XEmacs now uses GMP

[Jerry James]

Kevin Ryde <user42 at zip.com.au> writes:
> Jerry James <james at xemacs.org> writes:
>>
>> It makes XEmacs 21.5 (current CVS only until the next beta release)
>
> If I was to quote a version number (well, prospective version just
> yet) having this stuff, it'd be 21.5 would it?

The next beta will be 21.5.18.  I do not yet know when it will be
released.  Currently, bignum support is available only in the 21.5 tree
in CVS.

>> use GMP to support Lisp bignums, ratios, and bigfloats, or BSD MP to
>> support Lisp bignums.
>
> Bignums are optional are they?  And then there's a choice between gmp
> and bsd mp?

Yes, they are optional.  This is an experimental feature at the moment.
If we find it useful enough, we may make it required at some time in the
future, but that is not likely to happen for at least some years.

There is a choice between GMP and BSD MP, but you only get bignums with
BSD MP.  From an implementor's perspective, it sure was a lot easier to
put the GMP support together than it was the BSD MP support.  The BSD
interface does not seem to have been thought out very well.

But I'm preaching to the choir here, aren't I? :-)
-- 
Jerry James
http://www.ittc.ku.edu/~james/