411 lines
12 KiB
HTML
411 lines
12 KiB
HTML
<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.01 Transitional//EN">
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<HTML>
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<HEAD>
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<TITLE>Lua 5.2 readme</TITLE>
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<LINK REL="stylesheet" TYPE="text/css" HREF="lua.css">
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<META HTTP-EQUIV="content-type" CONTENT="text/html; charset=iso-8859-1">
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<STYLE TYPE="text/css">
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blockquote, .display {
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.display {
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dl.display dd {
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tt, kbd, code {
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font-size: 12pt ;
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}
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</STYLE>
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</HEAD>
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<BODY>
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<HR>
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<H1>
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<A HREF="http://www.lua.org/"><IMG SRC="logo.gif" ALT="Lua" BORDER=0></A>
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Welcome to Lua 5.2
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</H1>
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<P>
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<A HREF="#about">about</A>
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·
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<A HREF="#install">installation</A>
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·
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<A HREF="#changes">changes</A>
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·
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<A HREF="#license">license</A>
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·
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<A HREF="contents.html">reference manual</A>
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<H2><A NAME="about">About Lua</A></H2>
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<P>
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Lua is a powerful, fast, lightweight, embeddable scripting language
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developed by a
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<A HREF="http://www.lua.org/authors.html">team</A>
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at
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<A HREF="http://www.puc-rio.br/">PUC-Rio</A>,
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the Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro in Brazil.
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Lua is
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<A HREF="#license">free software</A>
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used in many products and projects around the world.
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<P>
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Lua's
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<A HREF="http://www.lua.org/">official web site</A>
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provides complete information
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about Lua,
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including
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an
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<A HREF="http://www.lua.org/about.html">executive summary</A>
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and
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updated
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<A HREF="http://www.lua.org/docs.html">documentation</A>,
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especially the
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<A HREF="http://www.lua.org/manual/5.2/">reference manual</A>,
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which may differ slightly from the
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<A HREF="contents.html">local copy</A>
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distributed in this package.
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<H2><A NAME="install">Installing Lua</A></H2>
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<P>
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Lua is distributed in
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<A HREF="http://www.lua.org/ftp/">source</A>
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form.
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You need to build it before using it.
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Building Lua should be straightforward
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because
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Lua is implemented in pure ANSI C and compiles unmodified in all known
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platforms that have an ANSI C compiler.
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Lua also compiles unmodified as C++.
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The instructions given below for building Lua are for Unix-like platforms.
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See also
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<A HREF="#other">instructions for other systems</A>
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and
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<A HREF="#customization">customization options</A>.
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<P>
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If you don't have the time or the inclination to compile Lua yourself,
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get a binary from
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<A HREF="http://lua-users.org/wiki/LuaBinaries">LuaBinaries</A>.
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Try also
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<A HREF="http://luaforwindows.luaforge.net/">Lua for Windows</A>,
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an easy-to-use distribution of Lua that includes many useful libraries.
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<H3>Building Lua</H3>
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<P>
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In most Unix-like platforms, simply do "<KBD>make</KBD>" with a suitable target.
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Here are the details.
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<OL>
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<LI>
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Open a terminal window and move to
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the top-level directory, which is named <TT>lua-5.2.1</TT>.
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The Makefile there controls both the build process and the installation process.
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<P>
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<LI>
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Do "<KBD>make</KBD>" and see if your platform is listed.
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The platforms currently supported are:
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<P>
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<P CLASS="display">
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aix ansi bsd freebsd generic linux macosx mingw posix solaris
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</P>
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<P>
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If your platform is listed, just do "<KBD>make xxx</KBD>", where xxx
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is your platform name.
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<P>
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If your platform is not listed, try the closest one or posix, generic,
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ansi, in this order.
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<P>
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<LI>
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The compilation takes only a few moments
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and produces three files in the <TT>src</TT> directory:
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lua (the interpreter),
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luac (the compiler),
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and liblua.a (the library).
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<P>
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<LI>
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To check that Lua has been built correctly, do "<KBD>make test</KBD>"
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after building Lua. This will run the interpreter and print its version string.
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</OL>
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<P>
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If you're running Linux and get compilation errors,
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make sure you have installed the <TT>readline</TT> development package.
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<H3>Installing Lua</H3>
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<P>
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Once you have built Lua, you may want to install it in an official
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place in your system. In this case, do "<KBD>make install</KBD>". The official
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place and the way to install files are defined in the Makefile. You'll
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probably need the right permissions to install files.
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<P>
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To build and install Lua in one step, do "<KBD>make xxx install</KBD>",
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where xxx is your platform name.
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<P>
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To install Lua locally, do "<KBD>make local</KBD>".
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This will create a directory <TT>install</TT> with subdirectories
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<TT>bin</TT>, <TT>include</TT>, <TT>lib</TT>, <TT>man</TT>,
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and install Lua as listed below.
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To install Lua locally, but in some other directory, do
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"<KBD>make install INSTALL_TOP=xxx</KBD>", where xxx is your chosen directory.
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<DL CLASS="display">
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<DT>
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bin:
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<DD>
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lua luac
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<DT>
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include:
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<DD>
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lua.h luaconf.h lualib.h lauxlib.h lua.hpp
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<DT>
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lib:
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<DD>
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liblua.a
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<DT>
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man/man1:
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<DD>
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lua.1 luac.1
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</DL>
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<P>
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These are the only directories you need for development.
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If you only want to run Lua programs,
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you only need the files in bin and man.
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The files in include and lib are needed for
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embedding Lua in C or C++ programs.
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<H3><A NAME="customization">Customization</A></H3>
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<P>
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Three kinds of things can be customized by editing a file:
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<UL>
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<LI> Where and how to install Lua — edit <TT>Makefile</TT>.
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<LI> How to build Lua — edit <TT>src/Makefile</TT>.
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<LI> Lua features — edit <TT>src/luaconf.h</TT>.
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</UL>
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<P>
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You don't actually need to edit the Makefiles because you may set the
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relevant variables in the command line when invoking make.
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Nevertheless, it's probably best to edit and save the Makefiles to
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record the changes you need.
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<P>
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On the other hand, if you need to customize some Lua features, you'll need
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to edit <TT>src/luaconf.h</TT> before building and installing Lua.
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The edited file will be the one installed, and
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it will be used by any Lua clients that you build, to ensure consistency.
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Further customization is available to experts by editing the Lua sources.
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<P>
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We strongly recommend that you enable dynamic loading in <TT>src/luaconf.h</TT>.
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This is done automatically for all platforms listed above that have
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this feature and also for Windows.
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<H3><A NAME="other">Building Lua on other systems</A></H3>
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<P>
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If you're not using the usual Unix tools, then the instructions for
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building Lua depend on the compiler you use. You'll need to create
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projects (or whatever your compiler uses) for building the library,
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the interpreter, and the compiler, as follows:
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<DL CLASS="display">
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<DT>
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library:
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<DD>
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lapi.c lcode.c lctype.c ldebug.c ldo.c ldump.c lfunc.c lgc.c llex.c
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lmem.c lobject.c lopcodes.c lparser.c lstate.c lstring.c ltable.c
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ltm.c lundump.c lvm.c lzio.c
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lauxlib.c lbaselib.c lbitlib.c lcorolib.c ldblib.c liolib.c
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lmathlib.c loslib.c lstrlib.c ltablib.c loadlib.c linit.c
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<DT>
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interpreter:
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<DD>
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library, lua.c
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<DT>
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compiler:
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<DD>
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library, luac.c
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</DL>
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<P>
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To use Lua as a library in your own programs you'll need to know how to
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create and use libraries with your compiler. Moreover, to dynamically load
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C libraries for Lua you'll need to know how to create dynamic libraries
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and you'll need to make sure that the Lua API functions are accessible to
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those dynamic libraries — but <EM>don't</EM> link the Lua library
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into each dynamic library. For Unix, we recommend that the Lua library
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be linked statically into the host program and its symbols exported for
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dynamic linking; <TT>src/Makefile</TT> does this for the Lua interpreter.
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For Windows, we recommend that the Lua library be a DLL.
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<P>
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As mentioned above, you may edit <TT>src/luaconf.h</TT> to customize
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some features before building Lua.
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<H2><A NAME="changes">Changes since Lua 5.1</A></H2>
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<P>
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Here are the main changes introduced in Lua 5.2.
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The
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<A HREF="contents.html">reference manual</A>
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lists the
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<A HREF="manual.html#8">incompatibilities</A> that had to be introduced.
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<H3>Main changes</H3>
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<UL>
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<LI> yieldable pcall and metamethods
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<LI> new lexical scheme for globals
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<LI> ephemeron tables
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<LI> new library for bitwise operations
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<LI> light C functions
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<LI> emergency garbage collector
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<LI> <CODE>goto</CODE> statement
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<LI> finalizers for tables
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</UL>
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Here are the other changes introduced in Lua 5.2:
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<H3>Language</H3>
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<UL>
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<LI> no more fenv for threads or functions
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<LI> tables honor the <CODE>__len</CODE> metamethod
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<LI> hex and <CODE>\z</CODE> escapes in strings
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<LI> support for hexadecimal floats
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<LI> order metamethods work for different types
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<LI> no more verification of opcode consistency
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<LI> hook event "tail return" replaced by "tail call"
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<LI> empty statement
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<LI> <CODE>break</CODE> statement may appear in the middle of a block
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</UL>
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<H3>Libraries</H3>
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<UL>
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<LI> arguments for function called through <CODE>xpcall</CODE>
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<LI> optional 'mode' argument to load and loadfile (to control binary x text)
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<LI> optional 'env' argument to load and loadfile (environment for loaded chunk)
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<LI> <CODE>loadlib</CODE> may load libraries with global names (RTLD_GLOBAL)
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<LI> new function <CODE>package.searchpath</CODE>
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<LI> modules receive their paths when loaded
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<LI> optional base in <CODE>math.log</CODE>
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<LI> optional separator in <CODE>string.rep</CODE>
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<LI> <CODE>file:write</CODE> returns <CODE>file</CODE>
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<LI> closing a pipe returns exit status
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<LI> <CODE>os.exit</CODE> may close state
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<LI> new metamethods <CODE>__pairs</CODE> and <CODE>__ipairs</CODE>
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<LI> new option 'isrunning' for <CODE>collectgarbage</CODE> and <CODE>lua_gc</CODE>
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<LI> frontier patterns
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<LI> <CODE>\0</CODE> in patterns
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<LI> new option <CODE>*L</CODE> for <CODE>io.read</CODE>
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<LI> options for <CODE>io.lines</CODE>
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<LI> <CODE>debug.getlocal</CODE> can access function varargs
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</UL>
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<H3>C API</H3>
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<UL>
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<LI> main thread predefined in the registry
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<LI> new functions
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<CODE>lua_absindex</CODE>,
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<CODE>lua_arith</CODE>,
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<CODE>lua_compare</CODE>,
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<CODE>lua_copy</CODE>,
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<CODE>lua_len</CODE>,
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<CODE>lua_rawgetp</CODE>,
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<CODE>lua_rawsetp</CODE>,
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<CODE>lua_upvalueid</CODE>,
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<CODE>lua_upvaluejoin</CODE>,
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<CODE>lua_version</CODE>.
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<LI> new functions
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<CODE>luaL_checkversion</CODE>,
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<CODE>luaL_setmetatable</CODE>,
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<CODE>luaL_testudata</CODE>,
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<CODE>luaL_tolstring</CODE>.
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<LI> <CODE>lua_pushstring</CODE> and <CODE>pushlstring</CODE> return string
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<LI> <CODE>nparams</CODE> and <CODE>isvararg</CODE> available in debug API
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<LI> new <CODE>lua_Unsigned</CODE>
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</UL>
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<H3>Implementation</H3>
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<UL>
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<LI> max constants per function raised to 2<SUP>26</SUP>
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<LI> generational mode for garbage collection (experimental)
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<LI> NaN trick (experimental)
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<LI> internal (immutable) version of ctypes
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<LI> simpler implementation for string buffers
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<LI> parser uses much less C-stack space (no more auto arrays)
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</UL>
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<H3>Lua standalone interpreter</H3>
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<UL>
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<LI> new <CODE>-E</CODE> option to avoid environment variables
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<LI> handling of non-string error messages
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</UL>
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<H2><A NAME="license">License</A></H2>
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<A HREF="http://www.opensource.org/docs/definition.php">
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<IMG SRC="osi-certified-72x60.png" ALIGN="right" BORDER="0" ALT="[osi certified]" STYLE="padding-left: 30px ;">
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</A>
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<P>
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Lua is free software distributed under the terms of the
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<A HREF="http://www.opensource.org/licenses/mit-license.html">MIT license</A>
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reproduced below;
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it may be used for any purpose, including commercial purposes,
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at absolutely no cost without having to ask us.
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The only requirement is that if you do use Lua,
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then you should give us credit by including the appropriate copyright notice somewhere in your product or its documentation.
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For details, see
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<A HREF="http://www.lua.org/license.html">this</A>.
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<BLOCKQUOTE STYLE="padding-bottom: 0em">
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Copyright © 1994–2012 Lua.org, PUC-Rio.
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<P>
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Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person obtaining a copy
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of this software and associated documentation files (the "Software"), to deal
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in the Software without restriction, including without limitation the rights
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to use, copy, modify, merge, publish, distribute, sublicense, and/or sell
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copies of the Software, and to permit persons to whom the Software is
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furnished to do so, subject to the following conditions:
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<P>
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The above copyright notice and this permission notice shall be included in
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all copies or substantial portions of the Software.
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<P>
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THE SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED "AS IS", WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR
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IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY,
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FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND NONINFRINGEMENT. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE
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AUTHORS OR COPYRIGHT HOLDERS BE LIABLE FOR ANY CLAIM, DAMAGES OR OTHER
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LIABILITY, WHETHER IN AN ACTION OF CONTRACT, TORT OR OTHERWISE, ARISING FROM,
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OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE SOFTWARE OR THE USE OR OTHER DEALINGS IN
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THE SOFTWARE.
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</BLOCKQUOTE>
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<P>
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<HR>
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<SMALL CLASS="footer">
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Last update:
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Tue May 29 21:57:51 BRT 2012
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</SMALL>
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<!--
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Last change: revised for Lua 5.2.1
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-->
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