Chez Scheme Version 8 is a complete implementation of the language of the Revised6 Report on Scheme (R6RS), with numerous extensions. It sports a fast compiler that generates efficient native code for each processor upon which it runs. It is extensively tested and actively maintained and supported.
Chez Scheme is a well-documented system. The documentation includes this book, which is a companion to The Scheme Programming Language, 4th Edition and whose summary of forms and index contain entries for (and for the on-line versions, links into) both books. Additional documentation includes release notes, a manual page, and a number of published papers and articles that describe various aspects of Chez Scheme's design and implementation.
In addition to supporting the wealth of new R6RS features, Chez Scheme Version 8 also supports several new extensions, including direct support for non-blocking I/O, new file and directory primitives, and a more efficient interactive top-level environment.
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 slightly faster for single-threaded 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 but unlike most shells also supports multiline expressions.
Chez Scheme Version 8 has been a long time coming. Adapting the system to support R6RS has been challenging, given our desire to maintain as much backward compatibility as possible, maintain or increase functionality, and maintain or increase reliability and performance. I hope that the result is worth the wait.
Thank you for using Chez Scheme.
Kent Dybvig
Bloomington, Indiana
R. Kent Dybvig /
Copyright © 2009 R. Kent Dybvig
Revised December 2009 for Chez Scheme Version 7.9.4
Cadence Research Systems / www.scheme.com
Cover illustration © 2009 Jean-Pierre Hébert
ISBN: 978-0-966-71392-3
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