Preface

Chez Scheme Version 9 is a complete implementation of the language of the Revised6 Report on Scheme (R6RS), with numerous extensions. The implementation is extensively tested and actively maintained and supported. It includes a fast compiler that generates efficient native code for each processor upon which it runs along with a run-time system that provides automatic storage management, foreign language interfaces, and an extensive run-time library.

The compiler has been rewritten for Version 9 and generates substantially faster code than the earlier compiler at the cost of additional compile time. This is the primary difference between Versions 8 and 9.

This book is a companion to The Scheme Programming Language, 4th Edition (TSPL4). While TSPL4 describes only standard R6RS features, this book describes Chez Scheme extensions. For the reader's convenience, the summary of forms and index at the back of this book contain entries from both books, with each entry from TSPL4 marked with a "t" in front of its page number. In the online version, the page numbers given in the summary of forms and index double as direct links into one of the documents or the other.

Additional documentation for Chez Scheme includes release notes, a manual page, and a number of published papers and articles that describe various aspects of the system's design and implementation.

The threaded versions of Chez Scheme support native threads, allowing Scheme programs to take advantage of multiprocessor or multiple-core systems. Nonthreaded versions are also available and are faster for single-threaded applications. Both 32-bit and 64-bit versions are available for some platforms. The 64-bit versions support larger heaps, while the 32-bit versions are faster for some applications.

Chez Scheme's interactive programming system includes an expression editor that, like many shells, supports command-line editing, a history mechanism, and command completion. Unlike most shells that support command-line editing, the expression editor properly supports multiline expressions.

Thank you for using Chez Scheme.

Chez Scheme Version 9 User's Guide
Copyright © 2017 Cisco Systems, Inc.
Licensed under the Apache License Version 2.0 (full copyright notice.).
Revised April 2017 for Chez Scheme Version 9.4.1
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