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Chapel Compiler Release: README
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This is the 1.11.0 release of the Chapel compiler, intended to give
potential users a look at what we're doing and the opportunity to
provide us with feedback.  See the LICENSE file for the release's
licensing terms.


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Quick Start
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The following instructions are designed to get you up and running with
Chapel with a minimum of fuss.  Note that building and using Chapel in
this mode disables enhanced runtime options and optional language
capabilities in the interest of a simple and clean build.

0) See doc/README.prereqs for more information about packages you
   might need to have installed for Chapel to work.

1) Make sure that your shell is in the directory containing this
   README file.  For example:

        cd ~/chapel-1.11.0


2) Set up your environment to use Chapel in "Quick Start" mode.

   If you use...                         then type...

   ...a bash-compatible shell (bash/zsh) source util/quickstart/setchplenv.bash
   ...a csh-compatible shell (csh/tcsh)  source util/quickstart/setchplenv.csh
   ...the fish shell (fish)              . util/quickstart/setchplenv.fish
   ...the Bourne shell (sh)              . util/quickstart/setchplenv.sh

   You must be in the top-level Chapel directory for these command
   scripts to work properly.  Note that there is no requirement to use
   these scripts long-term, they are merely designed to get new users
   up and running quickly.  See doc/README.chplenv for a complete
   description of Chapel's environment variables and their options.

   If you use a shell other than the ones listed above and are able to
   create an equivalent util/quickstart/setchplenv.* script for it,
   please consider contributing a copy of it back to the project for
   inclusion in the next release.


3) Build the compiler and runtime libraries using:

        gmake

   or if your default make is GNU make compatible (as on Mac OS X or
   Cygwin), use:

        make

   Parallel build execution (e.g. `gmake -j`) is supported.

4) csh/tcsh users only: Update your shell's path cache using:

        rehash


5) To ensure you have installed Chapel properly, you can optionally
   run an automatic sanity check using a few example programs:

        gmake check

   or:

        make check


6) Compile an example program using:

        chpl -o hello examples/hello.chpl


7) Execute the resulting executable:

        ./hello


8) Experiment with Chapel in Quick Start mode to your heart's content.

   Once you are comfortable with Chapel and interested in using a
   full-featured version in the preferred configuration:

   a) Open up a new shell to avoid inheriting the previous environment
      settings.

   b) Repeat steps 1-7 above, but in Step 2, use util/setchplenv.*
      instead of util/quickstart/setchplenv.*

   This will set up your environment to use Chapel in the preferred
   configuration.  Making this configuration will involve building one
   or more third-party packages which will increase the overall build
   time.  If you run into any portability issues, please let us know
   at [email protected].


9) If you plan to do performance studies of Chapel programs, be sure
   to (a) use the full-featured version and (b) read the PERFORMANCE
   file in this directory to avoid common pitfalls.


------------
What's next?
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For more detailed information about...      refer to...

  ...changes since the last release          ... CHANGES
  ...implementation status                   ... STATUS
  ...performance status                      ... PERFORMANCE
  ...Chapel's file and directory structure   ... README.files
  ...prerequisites for using this release    ... doc/README.prereqs
  ...setting Chapel environment variables    ... doc/README.chplenv
  ...building the compiler                   ... doc/README.building
  ...using the compiler                      ... doc/README.compiling
  ...executing Chapel programs               ... doc/README.executing
  ...reporting bugs                          ... doc/README.bugs

  ...Chapel modes for emacs and vim          ... etc/README

  ...example Chapel programs                 ... examples/README
  ...a quick reference for Chapel syntax     ... doc/quickReference.pdf
  ...the Chapel language specification       ... doc/chapelLanguageSpec.pdf

  ...executing programs on multiple locales  ... doc/README.multilocale
  ...how Chapel tasks are mapped to threads  ... doc/README.tasks

  ...using Chapel on a specific platform...
     ...a Cray system                        ... doc/platforms/README.cray
     ...Cygwin over Windows                  ... doc/platforms/README.cygwin
     ...an IBM system                        ... doc/platforms/README.ibm
     ...an SGI Altix system                  ... doc/platforms/README.sgi

  ...calling C code from Chapel              ... doc/technotes/README.extern
  ...other user and technical notes          ... doc/README

  ...third-party software that we use        ... third-party/README