README for GNU `indent' version 1.8

Read the file RELEASE-NOTES for more information, especially to see what's
different from the last version, and what future versions may do.  If
you are installing indent on VMS, see the file VMS-README.


SIMPLE INSTALLATION

  Once you have unpacked the tar file, simply type "make" in the source
  directory to produce an executable copy of `indent' in that directory.
  If you then type "make install", the program will be installed by
  default as /usr/local/bin/indent and the on-line help will be
  installed as /usr/local/info/indent.info (see DOCUMENTATION, below).

  It is possible to change these default installation paths.  To change
  the place where `indent' is installed, you may specify the prefix
  directory as an argument to make like so:

    make prefix=/usr/gnu

  This will install `indent' as /usr/gnu/bin/indent and the info node as
  /usr/gnu/info/indent.info.

  To specify separate executable and info directories, specify them
  like this:

    make prefix=/doc exec_prefix=/usr

  This will install `indent' as /usr/bin/indent and the info node as
  /doc/info/indent.info.


SEPARATE CONFIGURATION

  Like most GNU software, `indent' uses the program `configure' to
  determine certain system-dependent parameters and construct the
  makefile.  In the example above, the master makefile passes its
  arguments (if any) to the configure program, and then calls `make'
  recursively to build `indent'.  Thus the last example is equivalent
  to:

    configure --prefix=/doc --exec-prefix=/usr
    make

  With `configure', it is also possible to build the program in a
  separate directory from the source by running `configure' in that
  separate directory with the source directory as the "--srcdir"
  argument to `configure'.
  
  For example, if the `indent' source is located in the directory
  /SYSTEM_A/src/indent and you want to build a copy in /SYSTEM_B/test/,
  you can do the following:
    
    cd /SYSTEM_B/test
    /SYSTEM_A/src/indent/configure --srcdir=/SYSTEM_A/src/indent
    make

  which will produce the the executable file /SYSTEM_B/test/indent.  For
  more information on `configure', see the included file CONF-README.


DOCUMENTATION

  GNU uses a language called "texinfo" for its documentation which
  produces both an on-line, interactive version and a hardcopy version
  for printing.  The on-line version, `indent.info', is installed along
  with the executable by typing "make install".  Refer to the Texinfo
  manual for more information on this system.

  The hardcopy version is produced from the source file `indent.texinfo'
  in as either a DVI or Postscript format file.  To produce the DVI
  version, type:

    make indent.dvi

  To produce the Postscript version, type:

    make indent.ps

  Note that you must have the TeX typographical system installed for
  this to work.

  While a Unix-style "man" page is also provided in the file
  `indent.1', it was provided by a user and is unsupported.  It
  is likely to be several versions behind the program, and thus there
  is no provision for its installation.


INDENT BUGS

  The "-troff" option is not supported and is strongly deprecated.  A
  good thing for someone to do is to rewrite `indent' to generate TeX
  source as a hardcopy output option, amoung other things.  See the
  `Projects' file for more things to do.


BUG REPORTS

  Please address bug-reports and suggestions or comments to:

    bug-gnu-utils@prep.ai.mit.edu


FUTURE OF INDENT

  While there is a long list of features to be added to indent, and
  likely a longer list of undiscovered bugs, I maintain `indent' on a
  volunteer basis.  Thus it is not certain whether or how efficiently I
  will continue to do this.  If you or your company find `indent' useful
  and are interested in supporting it, either through funding or taking
  over its maintenance, please send me mail.

  Joseph Arceneaux
  Independent Consultant
  jla@ai.mit.edu
  +1 415 285 9088
