-Perl 5 README file for the Stratus VOS operating system.
-Paul Green (Paul_Green@stratus.com)
-February 3, 2000
-
-
-Introduction
-------------
-This is a port of Perl version 5, revision 005-63, to VOS. Perl
-is a scripting or macro language that is popular on many
-systems. See your local computer bookstore for a number of good
-books on Perl.
-
-Most of the Perl features should work on VOS. However, any
-attempt by perl.pm to call the following unimplemented POSIX
-functions will result in an error message and an immediate and
-fatal call to the VOS debugger. They are "dup", "fork", and
-"waitpid". The lack of these functions pretty much prevents you
-from starting VOS commands and grabbing their output in perl.
-The workaround is to run the commands outside of perl, then have
-perl process the output file.
-
-
-Compiling Perl 5 on VOS
------------------------
-Before you can build Perl 5 on VOS, you need to have or acquire the
-following additional items.
-
-1. The VOS Standard C Compiler and Runtime, or the VOS Standard C
- Cross-Compiler. This is a standard Stratus product.
-
-2. The VOS OS TCP/IP product set. While the necessary header
- files are included with VOS POSIX.1, you still need the
- appropriate object files in order to bind perl.pm. This is
- a standard Stratus product.
-
-3. The VOS POSIX.1 environment. As of this writing, this is
- available on the VOS FTP site. Login anonymously to
- ftp.stratus.com and get the file
- /pub/vos/alpha/posix.save.evf.gz in binary file-transfer
- mode. Or use the Uniform Resource Locator (URL)
- ftp://ftp.stratus.com/pub/vos/alpha/posix.save.evf.gz from
- your web browser. This is not a standard Stratus product.
-
- Instructions for unbundling this file are at
- ftp://ftp.stratus.com/pub/vos/utility/utility.html.
-
-4. You must compile this version of Perl 5 on VOS Release
- 14.1.0 or higher because some of the perl source files
- contain more than 32,767 source lines. Due to VOS
- release-compatibility rules, this port of perl may not
- execute on VOS Release 12 or earlier.
-
-To build perl 5, change to the "vos" subdirectory and type the
-command "compile_perl -processor X", where X is the processor
-type (mc68020, i80860, pa7100, pa8000) that you wish to use.
-Note that code compiled for the pa7100 processor type can
-execute on the PA7100, PA8000, and PA8500 processors, and that
-code compiled for the pa8000 processor type can execute on the
-PA8000 and PA8500 processors.
-
-
-Installing Perl 5 on VOS
-------------------------
-1. Create the directory >system>ported>command_library.
-
-2. Copy the appropriate version of the perl program module to
- this directory. For example, with your current directory
- set to the top-level directory of Perl 5, to install the
- executable program module for the Motorola 68K
- architecture, enter:
-
- !copy_file vos>obj>perl.pm >system>ported>command_library>*
-
- (If you wish to use both Perl version 4 and Perl version 5,
- you must give them different names; for example, perl.pm
- and perl5.pm).
-
-3. Create the directory >system>ported>perl>lib.
-
-4. Copy all of the files and subdirectories from the lib
- subdirectory into this new directory. For example, with
- the current directory set to the top-level directory of the
- perl distribution, enter:
-
- !copy_dir lib >system>ported>perl>lib>5.005
-
-5. While there are currently no architecture-specific
- extensions or modules distributed with perl, the following
- directories can be used to hold such files:
-
- >system>ported>perl>lib>5.005.68k
- >system>ported>perl>lib>5.005.860
- >system>ported>perl>lib>5.005.7100
- >system>ported>perl>lib>5.005.8000
-
-6. Site-specific perl extensions and modules can be installed
- in one of two places. Put architecture-independent files
- into:
-
- >system>ported>perl>lib>site>5.005
-
- Put architecture-dependent files into one of the following
- directories:
-
- >system>ported>perl>lib>site>5.005.68k
- >system>ported>perl>lib>site>5.005.860
- >system>ported>perl>lib>site>5.005.7100
- >system>ported>perl>lib>site>5.005.8000
-
-7. You can examine the @INC variable from within a perl program
- to see the order in which Perl searches these directories.
-
-
-Unimplemented Features
-----------------------
-If Perl 5 attempts to call an unimplemented VOS POSIX.1 function,
-it will print a fatal error message and enter the VOS debugger.
-This error is not recoverable. See vos_dummies.c for a list of
-the unimplemented POSIX.1 functions. To see what functions are
-unimplemented and what the error message looks like, compile and
-execute "test_vos_dummies.c".
-
-
-Restrictions
-------------
-This port of Perl version 5 to VOS prefers Unix-style,
-slash-separated pathnames over VOS-style greater-than-separated
-pathnames. VOS-style pathnames should work in most contexts, but
-if you have trouble, replace all greater-than characters by slash
-characters. Because the slash character is used as a pathname
-delimiter, Perl cannot process VOS pathnames containing a slash
-character in a directory or file name; these must be renamed.
+If you read this file _as_is_, just ignore the funny characters you
+see. It is written in the POD format (see pod/perlpod.pod) which is
+specially designed to be readable as is.
+
+=head1 NAME
+
+perlvos - Perl for Stratus OpenVOS
+
+=head1 SYNOPSIS
+
+This file contains notes for building perl on the Stratus OpenVOS
+operating system. Perl is a scripting or macro language that is
+popular on many systems. See L<perlbook> for a number of good books
+on Perl.
+
+These are instructions for building Perl from source. This version of
+Perl requires the dynamic linking support that is found in OpenVOS
+Release 17.1 and thus is not supported on OpenVOS Release 17.0 or
+earlier releases.
+
+If you are running VOS Release 14.4.1 or later, you can obtain a
+pre-compiled, supported copy of perl by purchasing the GNU Tools
+product from Stratus Technologies.
+
+=head1 BUILDING PERL FOR OPENVOS
+
+To build perl from its source code on the Stratus V Series platform
+you must have OpenVOS Release 17.1.0 or later, GNU Tools Release
+3.5 or later, and the C/POSIX Runtime Libraries.
+
+Follow the normal instructions for building perl; e.g, enter bash, run
+the Configure script, then use "gmake" to build perl.
+
+=head1 INSTALLING PERL IN OPENVOS
+
+=over 4
+
+=item 1
+
+After you have built perl using the Configure script, ensure that you
+have modify and default write permission to C<< >system>ported >> and
+all subdirectories. Then type
+
+ gmake install
+
+=item 2
+
+While there are currently no architecture-specific extensions or
+modules distributed with perl, the following directories can be
+used to hold such files (replace the string VERSION by the
+appropriate version number):
+
+ >system>ported>lib>perl5>VERSION>i786
+
+=item 3
+
+Site-specific perl extensions and modules can be installed in one of
+two places. Put architecture-independent files into:
+
+ >system>ported>lib>perl5>site_perl>VERSION
+
+Put site-specific architecture-dependent files into one of the
+following directories:
+
+ >system>ported>lib>perl5>site_perl>VERSION>i786
+
+=item 4
+
+You can examine the @INC variable from within a perl program
+to see the order in which Perl searches these directories.
+
+=back
+
+=head1 USING PERL IN OPENVOS
+
+=head2 Restrictions of Perl on OpenVOS
+
+This port of Perl version 5 prefers Unix-style, slash-separated
+pathnames over OpenVOS-style greater-than-separated pathnames.
+OpenVOS-style pathnames should work in most contexts, but if you have
+trouble, replace all greater-than characters by slash characters.
+Because the slash character is used as a pathname delimiter, Perl
+cannot process OpenVOS pathnames containing a slash character in a
+directory or file name; these must be renamed.