X-Git-Url: http://wien.tomnetworks.com/gitweb/?a=blobdiff_plain;f=doc%2Ffaq;h=d404ba4d62a42fb4e6759d0f8e3f00701e89a829;hb=de6d7a5ccedda43516abba47206a2a834ad6a475;hp=fe4add813a81960ec50fb7f010770d8ebbf3c324;hpb=afb8ad5494889a7d1c8d28c277170c747c9bf5ca;p=mono.git diff --git a/doc/faq b/doc/faq index fe4add813a8..d404ba4d62a 100644 --- a/doc/faq +++ b/doc/faq @@ -1,21 +1,54 @@ +Basics
+The Ximian Role in the Mono project
+Mono and GNOME
+Building GUI applications with Mono
+Mono and Microsoft
+Mono platforms
+Mono and the Portable.NET Project
+Web Services
+Mono and ASP.NET
+Mono and ADO.NET
+MonoDoc
+Development Tools and Issues
+Mono and Java
+Extending Mono
+Portability
+Reusing Existing Code
+Mono and GCC
+Performance
+Licensing
+Patents
+Miscellaneous Questions
+Mono Common Problems
+ +A Spanish +translation is also available + + ** Basics -Q: Is Mono the same as Microsoft's .NET initiative? - -A: It is not. +Q: What is Mono exactly? + +A: The Mono Project is an open development initiative sponsored by + Ximian that is working to develop an open source, Unix + version of the Microsoft .NET development platform. Its objective + is to enable Unix developers to build and + deploy cross-platform .NET Applications. The project will + implement various technologies developed by Microsoft that have now + been submitted to the ECMA for standardization. - .NET is a company-wide initiative at Microsoft that - encompasses many different areas. The .NET development framework, - Passport, Biztalk, new server products, and anything that is - remotely connected to .NET gets the ".NET-stamping" treatment. - Some components of Microsoft's .NET initiative have been announced - and some others are in the works. +Q: What is the difference between Mono and the .NET Initiative? - Mono is a project to implement several technologies developed by - Microsoft that have now been submitted to the ECMA Standards Body. +A: The ".NET Initiative" is a somewhat nebulous company-wide effort by + Microsoft, one part of which is a cross-platform development + framework. Mono is an implementation of the development framework, + but not an implementation of anything else related to the .NET + Initiative, such as Passport, software-as-a-service, or + corporate re-branding. Q: What technologies are included in Mono? - + A: Mono contains a number of components useful for building new software: @@ -30,20 +63,18 @@ A: Mono contains a number of components useful for building new * A compiler for the C# language. In the future we might work on other compilers that target the Common Language Runtime. - - Windows has compilers that target the - virtual machine from - href="http://msdn.microsoft.com/net/thirdparty/default.asp#lang">a - number of languages: Managed C++, Java Script, - Eiffel, Component Pascal, APL, Cobol, Oberon, Perl, - Python, Scheme, Smalltalk, Standard ML, Haskell, - Mercury and Oberon. + + Windows has compilers that target the virtual machine from a + number of languages: Managed C++, Java Script, Eiffel, + Component Pascal, APL, Cobol, Perl, Python, Scheme, + Smalltalk, Standard ML, Haskell, Mercury and Oberon. + The CLR and the Common Type System (CTS) enables applications and - libraries to be written in a number of languages. Classes and - methods created in one language can be used from a different - language. + libraries to be written in a collection of different languages that + target the byte code This means for example that if you define a class to do algebraic manipulation in C#, that class can be reused from any other @@ -54,54 +85,83 @@ A: Mono contains a number of components useful for building new garbage collection system can be shared across all these languages. Q: Where can I find the specification for these technologies? - -A: You can find the work-in-progress documentation from the T3G ECMA - group here: + +A: You can find the information here: - http://www.dotnetexperts.com + + C# http://www.ecma.ch/ecma1/STAND/ecma-334.htm + + CLI http://www.ecma.ch/ecma1/STAND/ecma-335.htm Q: Will you implement the .NET Framework SDK class libraries? - + A: Yes, we will be implementing the APIs of the .NET Framework SDK class libraries. -Q: What does Mono stand for? - -A: Mono is the word for `Monkey' in Spanish. We like monkeys. +Q: Will you offer an ECMA-compliant set of class libraries? + +A: Eventually we will. Our current focus is on inter-operating + with the Microsoft SDK, but we will also offer an ECMA compliant + set of libraries. + +Q: What does the name "Mono" mean? + +A: Mono is the word for `monkey' in Spanish. We like monkeys. + +Q: Is Mono usable? + +A: The JIT engine is usable on Intel x86 machines. An interpreter + can be used on other non-Intel x86 machines. + + The class libraries are mature enough to run some real applications + (the compiler for instance, and every day more and more applications + are natively developed with Mono). Q: When will you ship it? -A: We do not know when the code will be shipped. The more - contributions we get to the project, the sooner it will ship. +A: Different parts of Mono will achieve usability at different stages, + once we are comfortable with the compiler, we will release "Mono Core", + which contains everything needed to develop applications with the base + class libraries, this will happen soon and in the meantime you can + download daily snapshots of our work. Also the full ASP.NET support is + close to completion. + + Other higher level class libraries (ASP.NET, ADO.NET, WinForms) will + be released when they become stable. - A rough estimate is that we might be able to run our C# compiler on - Linux by the end of the year. That means running the Windows - Executable generated by a Microsoft .NET compiler on the Linux - platform. +Q: What major components will you include in Mono? - We expect that doing GUI applications will require more work on the - class libraries. That could take another six months. +A: Hopefully everything that Microsoft ships on their Framework + (ADO.NET, ASP.NET, WinForms), and we encourage third party developers to + create reusable components that work on both Mono and Windows. Q: How can I contribute? A: Check the contributing section. -Q: You guys should innovate instead of copying. +Q: Aren't you just copying someone else's work? + +A: We are interested in providing the best tools for programmers to + develop applications for Free Operating Systems. We also want to help + provide the interoperability that will allow those systems to fit in + with other standards. + + For more background, read the Mono + Project white paper. + the project. + +Q: Miguel said once that Mono was being implemented in COBOL. Is that true?. + +A: No. It was a joke. -A: - We have decided that we should spend our limited resources towards - implementing an existing specification instead of designing and - implementing our own. - Designing and implementing our own would be possible, but it doesn't make - sense to do that just because the specification comes from a - proprietary vendor. + -** Ximian +** The Ximian Role in the Mono Project Q: Why is Ximian working on .NET? - -A: We are interested in providing the best tools for programmers to + +A: Ximian is interested in providing the best tools for programmers to develop applications for Free Operating Systems. For more information, read the project contribute to this effort. +A: Of course not. Ximian a supporter of the Mono project, but the only way + to implement something of this size is for the entire free software + community to get involved. Visit the contributing + page if you'd like to help out. Q: What pieces will Ximian be working on? -A: We will focus on building a development and execution - environment. +A: We will devote most of our resources to work on the pieces which are + on the critical path to release a development and execution + environment. Once the project is at a stage where it is useful in + the real world, it will achieve a critical mass of developers to + improve it further. - The idea is to get Mono to a state of that would allow - third parties to actually be able to use it real-world development. +Q: Will Ximian offer Mono commercially? -** Mono and .NET +A: When Mono is ready to be shipped Ximian will offer a commercial + support and services for Mono. + +Q: Does Ximian provide consulting services around Mono? + +A: Yes, Ximian does provide consulting services around Mono to + make it suitable to your needs. Porting the runtime engine, + customizing it, working on specific classes or tuning the code + for your particular needs. + +Q: Will you wait until Mono is finished? + +A: Mono will ship on various stages as they mature. Some people + require only a subset of the technologies, those will ship first. + + More advanced features will take more time to develop. A support + time line will be available in June 2002. + + +** Mono and GNOME + +Q: How is Mono related to GNOME? + +A: In a number of ways. This project was born out of the need of + providing improved tools for the GNOME community, and will use + existing components that have been developed for GNOME when they + are available. For example, we plan to use Gtk+ and Libart to + implement Winforms and the Drawing2D API and are considering + GObject support. + +Q: Has the GNOME Foundation or the GNOME team adopted Mono? + +A: Mono is too new to be adopted by those groups. We hope that the + tools that we will provide will be adopted by free software + programmers including the GNOME Foundation members and the GNOME + project generally. + +Q: Should GNOME programmers switch over to Mono now? + +A: It is still far to early for discussions of "switching over." No + pieces of Mono will be ready within the next six months, and a + complete implementation is roughly one year away. + + We encourage GNOME developers to continue using the existing tools, + libraries and components. Improvements made to GNOME will have an + impact on Mono, as they would be the "back-end" for various classes. + +Q: Will Mono include compatibility with Bonobo components? What is the + relationship between Mono and Bonobo? + +A: Yes, we will provide a set of classes for implementing and using + Bonobo components from within Mono. Mono should allow you to write + Bonobo components more easily, just like .NET on Windows allows you + to export .NET components to COM. + +Q: Does Mono depend on GNOME? + +A: No, Mono does not depend on GNOME. We use a few packages produced by + the GNOME team like the `glib' library. + +Q: But will I be able to build GNOME applications? + +A: Yes, we will enable people to write GNOME applications using Mono. + +Q: Do you have C# bindings for GNOME?. + +A: Yes, we currently bind libgnome, libgnomecanvas, and libgnomeui -- + although I dare say I have no idea how functional the bindings are + outside of what I tested in the sample app. I imagine other libraries + under the GNOME framework will be added on an as-needed (and as-requested) + basis...although a truly good bonobo binding will have to wait on the CORBA + remoting support which has been started recently. + + +** GUI applications + +Q: Will Mono enable GUI applications to be authored? + +A: Yes, you will be able to build GUI applications. Indeed, that is our + main focus. We will provide both the Windows.Forms API and the Gtk# API. + +Q: What is the difference between Gtk# and System.Windows.Forms? + +A: Gtk# is a set of bindings for the Gtk+ toolkit for C# (and other + CIL-enabled languages). System.Windows.Forms is an API defined + by Microsoft to build GUI applications. + +Q: Why not implement System.Windows.Forms on top of Gtk# or Qt#? + +A: There are several reasons for this. + + First of all, Gtk+ and Qt are standard toolkits on Linux, and their + proponents want to use their favorite toolkits when writing + applications. + + Related to this is the idea that System.Windows.Forms is + brain-dead in certain areas, such as internationalization. + System.Windows.Forms uses explicit sizes for all controls, as opposed + to Gtk+ and Qt which use a box/packing model, which can better deal with + the different string lengths different languages will have. + + Next is compatibility. It is not possible to implement + System.Windows.Forms on top of Gtk+/Qt and have 100% compatibility, + because System.Windows.Forms exposes lots of Win32-isms, such as the + Win32 message loop. In order to maintain compatibility, Wine must be used, + and this is being done; see the + System.Windows.Forms effort page. + + Additionally, Wine apps don't currently fit in -- visually -- with + Gtk+ or Qt apps. + +Q: Will I be able to run my smart clients on systems powered by Mono? + +A: As long as your applications are 100% .NET and do not make use + of P/Invoke to call Win32 functions, your smart client applications + will run on Mono platforms. + +Q: Where can I learn more about Gtk#? + +A: The following +** Mono and Microsoft + +Q: Is Microsoft helping Ximian with this project? + +A: There is no high level communication between Ximian and Microsoft + at this point, but engineers who work on .NET or the ECMA groups + have been very friendly, and very nice to answer our questions, or + clarify part of the specification for us. + + Microsoft is interested in other implementations of .NET and are + willing to help make the ECMA spec more accurate for this purpose. + + Ximian was also invited to participate in the ECMA committee + meetings for C# and the CLI. + +Q: Is Microsoft or Corel paying Ximian to do this? + +A: No. + +Q: Do you fear that Microsoft will change the spec and render Mono + useless? + +A: No. Microsoft proved with the CLI and the C# language that it was + possible to create a powerful foundation for many languages to + inter-operate. We will always have that. + + Even if changes happened in the platform which were undocumented, + the existing platform would a value on its own. + +Q: Are you writing Mono from the ECMA specs? + +A: Yes, we are writing them from the ECMA specs and the published + materials in print about .NET. + +Q: If my applications use Mono, will I have to pay a service fee? -Q: If applications use Mono, does that mean that I have to pay a service fee? - A: No. Mono is not related to Microsoft's initiative of - software-as-a-service. + software-as-a-service. -Q: If you implement .NET, will I depend on Microsoft Passport to run my software? +Q: Is the Mono Project is related to the Microsoft Hailstorm effort? Is + Ximian endorsing Hailstorm? -A: No. The .NET Framework is a runtime infrastructure and collection - of class libraries. Passport may be required to access certain web - services written for that framework, but only if the programmer - chooses Passport as the authentication mechanism. +A: No. The Mono Project is focused on providing a compatible set of + tools for the Microsoft .NET development platform. It does not + address, require, or otherwise endorse the MS Passport-based + Hailstorm single sign-on system that is part of Windows XP and + other services. -Q: Is .NET just a bunch of marketing slogans? - -A: Although the `.NET initiative' is still quite nebulous, The .NET Framework - has been available for some time. Mono is not an implementation of the .NET - initiative, just the development framework. +Q: Will Mono or .NET applications depend on Microsoft Passport? -** Passport +A: No. MS Passport is unrelated to running .NET compatible applications + produced with the Mono tools. The only thing you will need is a + just-in-time compiler (JIT). -Q: Is this a free implementation of Passport? - -A: No. Passport is part of Microsoft's Hailstorm initiative. Mono - is just a runtime, a compiler and a set of class libraries. +Q: What is a 100% .NET application? + +A: A `100% .NET application' is one that only uses the APIs defined + under the System namespace and does not use PInvoke. These + applications would in theory run unmodified on Windows, Linux, + HP-UX, Solaris, MacOS X and others. + +Q: If Microsoft will release a port of their .NET platform under the + `Shared Source' license, why should I bother with anything else? -Q: Will the System.Web.Security.PassportIdentity class, mean +A: The Shared Source implementation will be expensive and its uses + will be tightly restricted, especially for commercial use. We are + working towards an implementation that will grant a number of + important rights to recipients: use for any purpose, + redistribution, modification, and redistribution of modifications. + + This is what we call Free Software + +Q: Is Mono a free implementation of Passport? + +A: No. Mono is just a runtime, a compiler and a set of class + libraries. + +Q: Will the System.Web.Security.PassportIdentity class mean that my software will depend on Passport? -A: No. That just means that applications might use that API to - contact a Passport site. +A: No. Applications may use that API to contact a Passport site, but + are not required to do so. As long as your application does not use Passport, you will not need Passport. - It might even be possible to implement that class with - a set of dummy functions, or use an alternate Passport implementation. +Q: Will Mono running on Linux make Passport available for Linux? - We do not know at this time whether the Passport protocol is - documented and whether we will be able to talk to - passport.com +A: No. However, the Passport toolkit for Linux-based web servers is + available from Microsoft. -** GNOME +Q: Will Mono allow me to run Microsoft Office on Linux? -Q: How is this related to GNOME? - -A: In a number of ways: +A: No, it will not. Microsoft Office is a Windows application. To + learn more about running Windows applications on Intel Unix systems + refer to the Wine Project. - * Mono will use existing - components that have been developed for GNOME (Gtk+, Libart, - Gnome-DB and maybe others). +Q: Will I be able to compile a Microsoft VB.NET application and execute + the resultant MSIL file under MONO on Linux without converting to C# + and recompiling? - * This project was born out of the need of providing improved - tools for the GNOME community. +A: Once we have a complete VisualBasic runtime, yes. - * We would like to add support to our CLR implementation to - deal with GObjects (in GNOME 1.x, they are called - GtkObjects), and allow Mono developers to provide GObjects - or use and extend existing GObjects. +Q: Can mono run the WebMatrix? -Q: Has the GNOME Foundation or the GNOME team adopted Mono? +A: No. That requires System.Windows.Forms support which is not + currently implemented. -A: Mono is too new to be adopted by those groups. We hope that the - tools that we will provide will be adopted by free software - programmers including the GNOME Foundation members and the GNOME - project generally. +Q: Does mono have something like Passport? + Will mono have a server side Passport/Similar framework for XSP as well as client classes? -Q: Should GNOME programmers switch over to Mono? +A: Not yet, but the client side API for authentication is not the problem. + We will likely have a lot of other authentication APIs, like the Liberty + Alliance APIs. The problem is people on the web provider end that might use + this for authentication. -A: Mono will not be ready even within the next six months, and a - complete implementation is probably one year away. + +** Mono Platforms - We encourage GNOME developers to continue using the existing tools, - libraries and components. Improvements made to GNOME will have an - impact on Mono, as they will provide the "backend" for various - classes. +Q: What operating systems does Mono run on? + +A: Mono is known to run on Linux, Unix and Windows systems. + +Q: What architectures does Mono support? + +A: Mono today ships with a Just-in-Time compiler for x86-based + systems. It is tested regularly on Linux, FreeBSD and Windows + (with the XP/NT core). -Q: Will Mono include compatibility with Bonobo components? + There is also an interpreter, which is slower that runs on the + s390, SPARC and PowerPC architectures. + +Q: Can Mono run on Windows 9x, or ME editions? + +A: Mono requires Unicode versions of Win32 APIs to run, + and only a handful of *W functions is supported under Win9x. + + There is Microsoft Layer for Unicode that provides implementation + of these APIs on 9x systems. + + Unfortunately it uses linker trick for delayed load that is not + supported by ld, so some sort of adapter is necessary. -A: Yes, we will provide a set of classes for implementing and using - Bonobo components from within Mono. + You will need MSLU and one of the following libs to link Mono to + unicows.dll http://mono.eurosoft.od.ua/files/unimono.zip + or alternatively search the net for "libunicows". -** Mono and the Web + No changes to Mono source code required, the only thing is to make + sure that linker will resolve imports to adapter library instead of + Win32 libs. This is achieved by inserting -lunimono before + -lkerner32/user32 in the linker's specs file. -Q: Is Mono a way of running Java applets? -A: No. + +** Mono and Portable.NET + +Q: What are the differences between Mono and Portable.NET? + +A: Most of Mono is being written using C#, with only + a few parts written in C (The JIT engine, the runtime, the + interfaces to the garbage collection system). + + It is easier to describe what is unique about Mono: + + + ** Web Services -Q: Is Mono just a new way of writing Web Services? - -A: No. +Q: How is Mono related to Web Services? -Q: If this implements the SDK classes, will I be able to write and - execute .NET Web Services with this? - -A: Yes, you will. +A: Mono is only related to Web Services in that it will implement the + same set of classes that have been authored in the .NET Framework + to simplify and streamline the process of building Web Services. + + But most importantly, Mono is an Open Source implementation of the + .NET Framework. - When the project is finished, you will be able to use the same - technologies that are available through the .NET Framework SDK on - Windows to write Web Services. +Q: Can I author Web Services with Mono? -Q: What about Soup? +A: You will be able to write Web Services on .NET that run on Mono and + vice-versa. -A: Soup is a library for GNOME applications to create SOAP server and - SOAP clients. You can browse GNOME's Bonsai. Q: Can I use CORBA? @@ -237,43 +585,271 @@ A: Yes. The CLI contains enough information about a class that exposing it to other RPC systems (like CORBA) is really simple, and does not even require support from an object. - We will be implementing CORBA interoperation as an extension to the - Mono classes so that we can integrate with Bonobo, just like - Microsoft provides COM interoperation classes and support - mechanisms. + Remoting.CORBA is + a CORBA implementation that is gaining momentum. + + Building an implementation of the Bonobo interfaces once this is ready + should be relatively simple. Q: Can I serialize my objects to other things other than XML? A: Yes, although the serializing tools have not yet been planned, and -you would probably have to implement them yourself. + you would probably have to implement them yourself. + +Q: Will Mono use ORBit? -** Development Tools +A: There are a few advantages in using ORBit, like reusing existing code + and leveraging all the work done on it. Michael Meeks has posted + a few reasons, + as well as some ideas + that could be used to reuse ORBit. -Q: Will it be possible to use the CLI features without using bytecodes + Most users are likely to choose a native .NET solution, like Remoting.CORBA + + + +** MonoDoc + +Q: What is MonoDoc? + +A: MonoDoc is a graphical documentation browser for the Mono class + libraries. Currently, monodoc consists of a Gtk# application and is + in heavy development. + + +** Development Tools and Issues + +Q: I am having trouble compiling a new version of Mono from CVS, it + complains about my runtime being out of sync. + +A: Jonathan Pryor has provided the following answer: + + To upgrade your class libraries and compiler, see the See + README.building in the MCS directory. + + The single biggest source of confusion seems to be the "Your + runtime is out of sync" messages. Realize that this is *normal* + while BUILDING. Think about it: you're building a new class + library with the old runtime. If the new class library references + a function that the old runtime knows nothing about, the runtime + system issues this warning. + + Basically what needs to happen is for a new mono runtime to be + compiled, then the corlib class library be compiled, and once this + is done, install the new runtime, followed by corlib. + + Once this is done, you can continue building your entire + environment. + +Q: Will it be possible to use the CLI features without using byte codes or the JIT? A: Yes. The CLI engine will be made available as a shared library. The garbage collection engine, the threading abstraction, the object system, the dynamic type code system and the JIT will be - available for C developers to integreate with their applications if + available for C developers to integrate with their applications if they wish to do so. Q: Will you have new development tools? -A: Hopefully Free Software enthusiasts will contribute tools to +A: With any luck, Free Software enthusiasts will contribute tools to improve the developer environment. These tools could be developed - initially using Microsoft implementation of the CLI and then + initially using the Microsoft implementation of the CLI and then executed later with Mono. +Q: What kind of rules make the Common Intermediate Language useful for + JITers? + +A: The main rule is that the stack in the CLI is not a general purpose + stack. You are not allowed to use it for other purposes than + computing values and passing arguments to functions or return + values. + + At any given call or return instruction, the types on the stack + have to be the same independently of the flow of execution of your + code. + +Q: Is it true that the CIL is ideal for JITing and not efficient for + interpreters? + +A: The CIL is better suited to be JITed than JVM byte codes, but you + can interpret them as trivially as you can interpret JVM byte + codes. + +Q: Isn't it a little bit confusing to have the name of "XSP" (the same + as in the Apache Project) for the ASP.NET support in Mono?. + +A: In Mono, xsp is just the name of the C# code generator for ASP.NET + pages. In the Apache Project, it is a term for the "eXtensible Server + Pages" technology so as they are very different things, they don't + conflict. + +Q: What about using something like Jabber instead of the System.Messaging + namespace?. + +A: In short, MSMQ is not something like Jabber, but asynchronous messaging + through queues. Useful queues do more than serialize messages, they are + also platform bridges. + +Q: Are you supporting XMLDocument and relatives?. + +A: Currently, we aren't implementing them yet. It would require updates to + most of the XmlNode derivatives so it's not a trivial task. We are + currently focusing on getting XPath support working. + +Q: Is there any plan to develop an aspx server for Mono?. + +A: The web server turned out to be very simple compared to the rest of the + work. Gonzalo has got the page generator mostly done (a module called + xsp, who has nothing to do with the XSP term used in the Apache Project). + Patrik has done a lot of the work to get the ProcessRequest to work. + You can try to help in the final touches to the System.Web classes and + writing regression tests for the widgets we have. + +Q: Is there any way I can develop the class libraries using Linux yet? + +A: Yes. Some class libraries can be developed on Linux. Search for + Paolo's post (he lists which classes can be compiled fine now). + +Q: Is there any way I can install a known working copy of mono in /usr, + and an experimental copy somewhere else, and have both copies use + their own libraries? (I'm still not very good at library paths in + Linux) + +A: Yes. Just use two installation prefixes. + +Q: How should I write tests or a tests suite? + +A: If you do a test suite for C#, you might want to keep it + independent of the Mono C# compiler, so that other compiler + implementations can later use it. + +Q: Would it be too terrible to have another corlib signed as mscorlib? + +A: We rename corlib to mscorlib also when saving the PE files, in fact, + the runtime can execute program created by mono just fine. + +Q: Is there a relatively straightforward way to repeat the steps taken + by Paolo to get Mono completely self-hosted on Linux? + +A: To build the compiler and class libraries in Linux, run: + + + If you want to produce and distribute a monocharge tarball, run: + make -f makefile.gnu dist + Of course you have to run these in the top level mcs directory. + +Q: Is it possible to build a C# file to some sort of intermediate format which + can linked into a final module, like the traditional .c -> .o -> .so path? + +A: You could do: mcs /target:module file1.cs, mcs /target:module file2.cs, + mcs /target:exe file1.dll file2.dll /out:mybin.exe + +Q: Is there any plans for implementing remoting in the near future?, When will + work in System.Runtime.Remoting.dll start? + +A: The remoting infrastructure is in place. Some of the channels and + formatters are not. + +Q: I'm wondering if there are any plans to start using nant to build the + class lib + test lib. i think that every project need/should use an + automated build process and nant + a couple of tools enables this. is + the problem that the compiler can't run nant yet? + +A: Maybe well be doing some sort of automated build process + testing when + the summer finish. + +Q: My C code uses the __stdcall which is not availble on Linux, how can I + make the code portable Windows/Unix across platforms? + +A: Replace the __stdcall attribute with the STDCALL macro, and include this + in your C code for newer gcc versions: + + #ifndef STDCALL + #define STDCALL __attribute__((stdcall)) + #endif + + +** Mono and ASP.NET + +Q: Does Mono support ASP.NET? + +A: Yes. + + Mono supports ASP.NET, we have shown an unmodified IBuySpy + installation running on Mono as well as various other programs. You can + try it yourself downloading the XSP server. + +Q: Do I need install cygwin to work on ASP.NET in mono or Linux is enough since + it is self host right now. + +A: Linux is enough. + +Q: How can I run ASP.NET-based applications with Mono? + +A: You need the Mono runtime and a hosting web server. Currently we distribute a + small web server called `xsp' which is used to debug applications, or you can choose + to use Daniel's Apache 2 module. + +Q: Any plan to make ASP.NET in mono works with Apache in Linux?. + +A: Daniel has authored an Apache2 Module for Mono that hosts the ASP.NET runtime + and is available here: http://apacheworld.org/modmono/ + +Q: Will you support Apache 1? + +A: Modules developed for Apache 2 are not compatible with Apache 1.3 + Daniel plans to support Apache 1.3 in the future but the current focus is on + Apache 2, because of the better support for threading and Windows. + +Q: Can I run Apache 1 and Apache 2 on the same machine? + + You can always keep a copy of Apache 2 running in paralell with your Apache + 1.3 (either different port or using a reverse proxy). + + You can also bind the two servers to different IP addresses on the + same physical machine. + + +** Mono and ADO.NET + +Q: What is the status of ADO.NET support?. Could I start migrating + applications from MS.NET to Mono?. + +A: You could start right now using the ADO.NET support in mono, of course, + if you want to help filling the missing gaps while you develop your app + :-) Well, what I mean is that we're not that far to having full ADO.NET + support in Mono, and we've got a lot of working things, so if we could + get more help, we'd finish it really soon :-) + +Q: In developing the data architecture for the application are there and + objects I should stay away from in order to insure the smoothest possible + transition (minimum code rewrite) to Mono's ADO.NET implementation? (For + example, strongly typed datasets versus untyped datasets, etc...) + +A: We are implementing all the classes in Microsoft .NET's System.Data, so + you can be sure that things will work the same in Mono as with the Microsoft + implementation. + +Q: Does Mono can to connect to Sybase by using Mono.Data.*? + +A: Yes. use Mono.Data.SybaseClient. First of all you have to create a + SybaseConnection, and then, from it, use it as any other + IDbConnection-based class. + + ** Mono and Java -Q: What about using Java? After all there are many languages that +Q: Why don't you use Java? After all, there are many languages that target the Java VM. - + A: You can get very good tools for doing Java development on free systems right now. Red Hat has contributed a GCC frontend for Java that can take + href="http://gcc.gnu.org/java">front-end for Java that can take Java sources or Java byte codes and generate native executables; Transvirtual has implemented Kaffe a JIT engine for Java; @@ -286,18 +862,66 @@ A: You can get very good tools for doing Java development on free wide variety of programming languages, and has a set of rules designed to be optimal for JITers. -Q: What kind of rules make the Common Intermediate Language useful for - JITers? +Q: Could Java target the CLI? -A: The main rule is that the stack in the CLI is not a general purpose - stack. You are not allowed to use it for other purposes than - computing values and passing arguments to functions or return - values. +A: Yes, Java could target the CLI, Microsoft's J# compiler does that. - At any given call or return instruction, the types on the stack - have to be the same independently of the flow of execution of your - code. + The IKVM project builds a + Java runtime that works on top of .NET and on top of Mono. IKVM is + essentially a JIT compiler that translates from JVM bytecodes into + CIL instructions, and then lets the native JIT engine take over. + +Q: Is it possible to write a JVM byte code to CIL converter? + +A: Yes, it is possible. Here are a few starting point: + + + + See also the IKVM project + +Q: Could mono become a hybrid CIL/java platform? + +A: No. It is quite far from the philosophy of the project. The idea of Mono + is, to have only _one_ VM, on which all can run. And if there existing a + binary-converter from Java-.class to IL and if there existing something + like J-Sharp on Mono, you can write programs in Java, which than can run + on Mono. You do not need two bindings (like your example: GTK-Sharp _and_ + Java-Gnome). You need only _one_ of it (GTK-Sharp). Thats the idea of Mono. + An other point is, that there are no people, who use Open Source-JVMs. They + all prefer Suns original. But for Unix there don't exist a .NET-Framework. + So it is possible, that in the future Mono is the standard .NET for Unixes. + +Q: Do you plan to implement a Javascript compiler? + +A: Yes. The beginnings of the JScript compiler can be found on CVS. + Cesar coordinates this effort. + +Q: Can Mono or .NET share system classes (loaded from mscore.dll and other + libs) or will it behave like Sun's Java VM? +A: What you can do with mono is to load different applications in their own + application domain: this is a feature of the CLR that allows sandboxing + applications inside a single process space. This is usualy exploited to + compartmentalize different parts of the same app, but it can also be + effectively used to reduce the startup and memory overhead. + Using different appdomains the runtime representation of types and + methods is shared across applications. + + ** Extending Mono Q: Would you allow other classes other than those in the @@ -306,12 +930,44 @@ Q: Would you allow other classes other than those in the A: Yes. The Microsoft class collection is very big, but it is by no means complete. It would be nice to have a port of `Camel' (the Mail API used by Evolution inspired by Java Mail) for Mono - applications. + applications. + + You might also want to look into implementing CORBA for Mono. Not + only because it would be useful, but because it sounds like a fun + thing to do, given the fact that the CLI is such a type rich + system. For more information on extending Mono, see our ideas page. -** Mono and portability +Q: Do you plan to Embrace and Extend .NET? + +A: Embracing a good technology is good. Extending technologies in + incompatible ways is bad for the users, so we do not plan on + extending the technologies. + + If you have innovative ideas, and want to create new classes, we + encourage you to make those classes operate correctly well in both + Mono and .NET. + + Today Mono ships with a number of extra libraries that were + developed either by members of the Mono community, or other + groups. + +Q: Is there any way I can develop the class libraries using Linux yet? + +A: Yes. Mono has been selfhosting since March 2002. + +Q: Is there any way I can install a known working copy of mono in /usr, + and an experimental copy somewhere else, and have both copies use + their own libraries? (I'm still not very good at library paths in + Linux) + +A: Yes. Just use two installation prefixes. + + + +** Portability Q: Will Mono only work on Linux? @@ -319,62 +975,367 @@ A: Currently, we are doing our work on Linux-based systems and Windows. We do not expect many Linux-isms in the code, so it should be easy to port Mono to other UNIX variants. -Q: What about Mono on non X-based systems? +Q: What about Mono on non Linux-based systems? A: Our main intention at Ximian is to be able to develop GNOME applications with Mono, but if you are interested in providing a - port of the Winform classes to other platforms (frame buffer or + port of the Winforms classes to other platforms (frame buffer or MacOS X for example), we would gladly integrate them, as long - they are under a Free Software License. + they are under an open source license. + +Q: What operating systems/CPUs do you support + +A: Mono currently runs on Linux, Windows, Solaris and FreeBSD. + There is a JIT engine available for x86 processors that can + generate code and optimizations tailored for a particular CPU. + + Interpreters exist for the SPARC, PowerPC and StrongARM CPUs. + +Q: Does Mono run on Windows? + +A: Yes. You can get pre-compiled + binaries from http://www.go-mono.com/download.html + +Q: Does Mono run on Linux? + +A: Yes. You can get pre-compiled + binaries from http://www.go-mono.com/download.html + +Q: Will I require Cygwin to run mono? + +A: No. Cygwin is only required to build Mono. -** Reusing existing Code +Q: Will Mono depend on GNOME? + +A: It will depend only if you are using a particular assembly (for + example, for doing GUI applications). If you are just interested + in Mono for implementing a `Hello World Enterprise P2P Web + Service', you will not need any GNOME components. + +Q: Is anyone working on porting Mono to IA-64? + +A: Nobody is working on such port. + +Q: If I were about to start a Mono port to IA-64,would the same lburg code + generator work for IA-64 also? or anything else need to be used for code + generation(as the processor architecture is totally different from IA32) + +A: The lburg approach can be use for any processor architecture. But you might + think in another better approach. + +Q: Do you plan to port Rhino to C#?. + +A: Eto Demerzal has started a Rhino port to C#. + +Q: Has anyone succeeded in building a Mac version of the C# environment. + If so can you explain how? + +A: You could try to check with the Darwin people, or the Fink people. + Mono/C# is self hosting on Linux/PPC which is the hard part, so it + should be relatively simple to get it to work on MacOS + + +** Reusing Existing Code Q: What projects will you reuse or build upon? - + A: We want to get Mono in the hands of programmers soon. We are interested in reusing existing open source software. Q: What about Intel's research JIT framework, ORP? - + A: At this time, we are investigating whether we can use elements of - ORP for Mono. + ORP for Mono. ORP is a research JIT engine that has a clearly + defined API that splits the JIT from the GC system and the actual + byte code implementation. + + We are using some pieces of ORP (Their code generation interface) + and we use it as a source of inspiration for optimizations. Paolo + and Dietmar consider ORP as being one of the best JIT engines out + there (and their research work and papers are very useful if you are + interested in JIT technology). Q: What about using GNU Lightning? -A: We are also researching GNU - Lightning. +A: We are not using GNU Lightning. Our JIT is using an instruction + selector based on tree-pattern matching, and a code generation + interface that is very tied to the current architecture. + +Q: Will I be able to use Microsoft SQL Server 2000 or will I need to switch + to a specific Open Source Database. Will I need to recode? + +A: There should not be any need to recode. + +Q: What do I need to watch out for when programming in VB.NET so that I'm + sure to be able to run those apps on Linux? + +A: Not making any PInvoke or DLL calls should and not using anything in + the Microsoft.* namespaces should suffice. Also do not use any + Methods/Classes marked as "This type/method supports the .NET Framework + infrastructure and is not intended to be used directly from your code." + even if you know what these classes/methods do. + +Q: Will built-in reporting be supported for crystal reports? This is a + heavily used part of our system. -** Ximian and Microsoft +A: Probably not. Crystal Reports are propriety. Someone may try to emulate + the behavior, but no-one has yet volunteered. -Q: Didn't Miguel de Icaza say that `Unix Sucks'? +Q: Who about writing to the registry? As I understand it, Linux does not have + a counterpart to the registry. Should I avoid relying on that feature? + +A: Try to avoid it. Although there would be a emulation for registry in + Mono too. GNOME does have a registry like mechanism for configuration. But + Even if gnome has a configuration system similar to the registry, the keys + will not be equal, so you will probably end up having to do some runtime + detection, and depending on this load an assembly that has your + platform-specific hacks. + +Q: System.Data.SqlClient with FreeTDS, will you port parts of these to C# and + use them? + +A: if their license is compatible with mono's, yes, we'd think about porting + them. If not, we'll continue with the plan of using FreeTDS. + + +** Mono and GCC + +Q: Are you working on a GCC front-end to C#? A GCC back-end that will + generate CIL images? What about making a front-end to GCC that + takes CIL images and generates native code? + +A: We are currently seeking volunteers for those projects. + Visit the contributing section if + you are interested. + +Q: But would this work around the GPL in the GCC compiler and allow + people to work on non-free front-ends? + +A: People can already do this by targeting the JVM byte codes (there + are about 130 compilers for various languages that target the JVM). + +Q: Why are you writing a JIT engine instead of a front-end to GCC? + +A: We want the JIT engine and runtime engine because they will be able + to execute CIL executables generated on Windows, and so no recompilation + will be necessary. + + +** Performance + +Q: How fast will Mono be? + +A: We can not predict the future, but a conservative estimate is that + it would be at least `as fast as other JIT engines'. + + We would like to ship various JIT engines with Mono, just like + Microsoft has done with their .NET development platform. We could + provide a faster, JIT for fast load times but lower performance, + and an and an optimizing JIT that would be slower at generating + code but produce more optimal output. + + The CIL has some advantages over the Java byte code: it is really + an intermediate representation and there are a number of + restrictions on how you can emit CIL code that simplify creating + better JIT engines. + + For example, on the CIL, the stack is not really an abstraction + available for the code generator to use at will. Rather, it is a + way of creating a postfix representation of the parsed tree. At + any given call point or return point, the contents of the stack are + expected to contain the same object types independently of how the + instruction was reached. + + +** Licensing + +Q: Will I be able to write proprietary applications that run with + Mono? + +A: Yes. The licensing scheme is planned to allow proprietary + developers to write applications with Mono. -A: Yes, he did, as a catch phrase in his opening remark on the Ottawa - Linux Symposium. His talk focused on various ways to improve Unix. +Q: What license or licenses are you using for the Mono Project? + +A: The C# Compiler is released under the terms of the GNU GPL. The runtime + libraries are under the GNU + Library GPL. And the class libraries are released + under the terms of the MIT X11 + license. + + The Mono runtime and the Mono C# Compiler are also available under + a proprietary license for those who can not use the LGPL and the + GPL in their code. + + For licensing details, contact mono-licensing@ximian.com + + +Q: I would like to contribute code to Mono under a particular + license. What licenses will you accept? + +A: We will have to evaluate the licenses for compatibility first, + but as a general rule, we will accept the code under the same + terms of the "container" module. + + +** Patents + +Q: Could patents be used to completely disable Mono (either submarine + patents filed now, or changes made by Microsoft specifically to + create patent problems)? + +A: First some background information. + + The .NET Framework is divided in two parts: the ECMA/ISO covered + technologies and the other technologies developed on top of it like + ADO.NET, ASP.NET and Windows.Forms. + + Mono implements the ECMA/ISO covered parts, as well as being a + project that aims to implement the higher level blocks like + ASP.NET, ADO.NET and Windows.Forms. + + The Mono project has gone beyond both of those components and has + developed and integrated third party class libraries, the most + important being: Debugging APIs, integration with the Gnome + platform (Accessibility, Pango rendering, Gdk/Gtk, Glade, GnomeUI), + Mozilla, OpenGL, extensive database support (Microsoft only + supports a couple of providers out of the box, while Mono has + support for 11 different providers), our POSIX integration + libraries and finally the embedded API (used to add scripting to + applications and host the CLI, or for example as an embedded + runtime in Apache). + + The core of the .NET Framework, and what has been patented by + Microsoft falls under the ECMA/ISO submission. Jim Miller at + Microsoft has made a statement on the patents covering ISO/ECMA, + (he is one of the inventors listed in the patent): here. + + Basically a grant is given to anyone who want to implement those + components for free and for any purpose. + + The controversial elements are the ASP.NET, ADO.NET and + Windows.Forms subsets. Those are convenient for people who need + full compatibility with the Windows platform, but are not required + for the open source Mono platform, nor integration with today's + Mono's rich support of Linux. + + The Mono strategy for dealing with these tehcnologies is as + follows: (1) work around the patent by using a different + implementation techinque that retains the API, but changes the + mechanism; if that is not possible, we would (2) remove the pieces + of code that were covered by those patents, and also (3) find prior + art that would render the patent useless. + + Not providing a patented capability would weaken the + interoperability, but it would still provide the free software / + open source software community with good development tools, which + is the primary reason for developing Mono. + + The patents do not apply in countries where software patents are + not allowed. + + For Linux server and desktop development, we only need the ECMA + components, and things that we have developed (like Gtk#) or Apache + integration. + + +** Miscellaneous Questions + +Q: You say that the CLI allows multiple languages to execute on the + same environment. Isn't this the purpose of CORBA? + +A: The key difference between CORBA (and COM) and the CLI is that the + CLI allows "data-level interoperability" because every + language/component uses the same data layout and memory management. + + This means you can operate directly upon the data types that someone + else provides, without having to go via their interfaces. It also + means you don't have to "marshal" (convert) parameters (data + layouts are the same, so you can just pass components directly) and + you don't have to worry about memory management, because all + languages/components share the same garbage collector and address + space. This means much less copying and no need for reference + counting. + +Q: Will you support COM? + +A: The runtime will support XPCOM on Unix systems and COM on Windows. + Most of the code for dynamic trampolines exists already. + +Q: Will Ximian offer certifications on Mono or related technologies?. + +A: It's possible. But there is no plan about this. So the short answer is no. + +Q: Are there any Boehm's GC binaries? + +A: Yes. You can find RPMs here, though + if your distribution provides the correct packages, you should use those. + The suggested version of the Boehm GC is 6.1. + +Q: How can I report a bug? + +A: The best thing is to track down the bug and provide a simple test to + reproduce the bug. You can then add the bug to the + bugtracking system. + + Please provide information about what version of mono you're using + and any relevant details to be able to reproduce the bug. Note that + bugs reported on the mailing-list may be easily forgotten, so it's + better to file them in the bug tracking system. + +Q: Does mcs support the same command line options as the MS C# + compiler? + +A: The Mono C# compiler now supports the same command line + arguments as the Microsoft C# compiler does. + +Q: How about getting searchable archives on lists.ximian.com? + +A: You can perform a search on the mono-related mailing lists + here. + +Q: When using mono from cvs or from a snapshot, I get an error messaage + saying that Mono and the runtime are out of sync. How do I fix that? - There is a paper describing some ways to improve Unix at: +A: If you use mono from cvs, you need to be prepared for changes in the + runtime internals. This means that you should keep a working setup + before blindling updating (a working setup may just be the last released + tarball or a recent binary snapshot). + Usually, compiling corlib with mcs before recompiling the C runtime does + the right thing (but occasionally you may need to do it the other + way around). - - http://primates.ximian.com/~miguel/bongo-bong.html +Q: Why are you going for a GtkHtml implementation? -Q: Didn't Ximian's Miguel work for Microsoft? +A: GtkHTML is just a lightweight HTML rendering engine that does not + support CSS, so we need it to look decent for those of us that will + be using the documentation in our day-to-day work on Linux. The + Web-based interfaces lack the agility that you get from a native GUI + tool to browse your documentation. Probably later on, we will write + scripts and generate a full documentation set that is web-browsable, + but we need a command-line and GUI tools that we can use natively on + Linux when disconnected from the Web (and that has better + interactions than a web page). -A: Actually, Nat Friedman (Ximian's co-founder) did work as an - intern for Microsoft for one summer but Miguel did not. +Q: Is there a command-line tool that allows me to access .NET interactively? -Q: Did Nat and Miguel meet at Microsoft? +A: There are several but one that is free software and uses MCS is the one + Dennis Lu from Rice University is working on; a REPL C# interpreter. -A: They met online on the Linux IRC network; They met in person for - the first time in 1997. +Q: Is it possible to use Visual C++ with Mono?. -** Acronyms +A: It's possible to run VC++ generated apps under Mono, but we do not + provide a Manager C++ compiler ourselves. -Q: What is the difference between CLR (Common Language Runtime) and - CLI (Common Language Infrastructure)? + +** Mono Common Problems -A: CLI is the specification of an execution system. The Microsoft - implementation of this specification is named CLR. + If you are having problems compiling or running Mono software + or if you think that you found a bug, etc. Please visit the + Mono Common Problems document and try there. - Unless we come up with our own acronym, we could just call ours - also CLR, just because it would do exactly the same thing the - Microsoft implementation does.