This directory contains the current release of the Objective Caml system.

Objective Caml is an implementation of the ML language, based on
the Caml Light dialect extended with class-based objects and a
powerful module system.

Objective Caml was previously known as Caml Special Light. Except for the 
new object stuff, functionality is almost the same.

Objective Caml comprises two compilers. One generates bytecode
which is then interpreted by a C program. This compiler runs quickly,
generates compact code with moderate memory requirements, and is
portable to essentially any 32 or 64 bit Unix platform. A Windows NT /
95 version is also available. Performance of generated programs is
quite good for a bytecoded implementation: almost twice as fast as
Caml Light 0.7. This compiler can be used either as a standalone,
batch-oriented compiler that produces standalone programs, or as an
interactive, toplevel-based system.

The other compiler generates high-performance native code for a number
of processors. Compilation takes longer and generates bigger code, but
the generated programs deliver excellent performance (better than
Standard ML of New Jersey 1.08 on our tests), while retaining the
moderate memory requirements of the bytecode compiler. The native-code
compiler currently runs on the following platforms:

    Alpha processors: DecStation 3000 under OSF1
    Sparc processors: Sun Sparcstation under SunOS 4.1 or Solaris 2
    Intel 386 / 486 / Pentium processors: PCs under Linux, NextStep, FreeBSD,
						Windows NT, Windows 95
    Mips processors: DecStation 3100 and 5000 under Ultrix 4
    HP PA-RISC processors: HP 9000/700 under NextStep (sorry, no HPUX yet)
    PowerPC and IBM RS/6000 processors: IBM workstations under AIX 3.2

More information on Objective Caml is available on the World Wide Web:

	http://pauillac.inria.fr/ocaml/