1 \input texinfo @c -*-texinfo-*-
3 @setfilename tasks.info
4 @settitle GNU Task List
5 @c UPDATE THIS DATE WHENEVER YOU MAKE CHANGES!
6 @set lastupdate 1 February 1997
13 @author Free Software Foundation
14 @author last updated @value{lastupdate}
18 @node Top, Preface, (dir), (dir)
21 This file is updated automatically from @file{tasks.texi}, which was
22 last updated on @value{lastupdate}.
28 * Unix-Related Projects::
31 * X Windows Projects::
34 * Games and Recreations::
37 @node Preface, Documentation, Top, Top
38 @chapter About the GNU Task List
40 Check with @code{gnu@@prep.ai.mit.edu}, for a possibly more current
41 copy. You can also ftp it from a GNU FTP host in directory
42 @file{/pub/gnu/tasks} - These files in different formats are available:
43 @file{tasks.text}, @file{tasks.texi}, @file{tasks.info}, and
44 @file{tasks.dvi}. It is also available on the GNU World Wide Web
45 server: @file{http://www.gnu.ai.mit.edu}.
47 If you start working steadily on a project, please let @code{gnu@@prep}
48 know. We might have information that could help you; we'd also like to
49 send you the GNU coding standards.
51 Because of the natural tendency for most volunteers to write programming
52 tools or programming languages, we have a comparative shortage of
53 applications useful for non-programmer users. Therefore, we ask you to
54 consider writing such a program.
56 In general, a new program that does a completely new job advances the
57 GNU project more than an improvement to an existing program.
60 @chapter Documentation
62 We very urgently need documentation for some parts of the system
63 that already exist or will exist very soon:
67 Completion of the documentation for CC-mode, a new Emacs mode for
68 C, C++ and other languages.
71 A C reference manual. (RMS made a try at one, which you could start
75 A manual for Ghostscript.
82 A manual for PIC (the graphics formatting language).
88 A book on how GCC works and why various machine descriptions
89 are written as they are.
92 A manual for programming X-window applications.
95 Manuals for various X window managers.
98 Reference cards for those manuals that don't have them: C
99 Compiler, Make, Texinfo, Termcap, and maybe the C Library.
102 Many utilities need documentation, including @code{grep} and others.
105 @node Unix-Related Projects
106 @chapter Unix-Related Projects
110 An improved version of the POSIX utility @code{pax}. There is one on
111 Usenet, but it is said to be poorly written. Talk with
112 @code{mib@@gnu.ai.mit.edu} about this project.
116 Modify the GNU @code{dc} program to use the math routines of GNU
121 A @code{grap} preprocessor program for @code{troff}.
124 Various other libraries.
127 An emulation of SCCS that works using RCS.
130 Less urgent: @code{diction}, @code{explain}, and @code{style}, or
131 something to do the same kind of job. Compatibility with Unix is not
132 especially important for these programs.
135 @node Kernel Projects
136 @chapter Kernel-Related Projects
140 An over-the-ethernet debugger stub that will allow the kernel to be
141 debugged from GDB running on another machine.
143 This stub needs its own self-contained implementation of all protocols
144 to be used, since the GNU system will use user processes to implement
145 all but the lowest levels, and the stub won't be able to use those
146 processes. If a simple self-contained implementation of IP and TCP is
147 impractical, it might be necessary to design a new, simple protocol
148 based directly on ethernet. It's not crucial to support high speed or
149 communicating across gateways.
151 It might be possible to use the Mach ethernet driver code, but it would
155 A shared memory X11 server to run under MACH is very desirable. The
156 machine specific parts should be kept well separated.
159 An implementation of CIFS, the ``Common Internet File System,'' for the
160 HURD. This protocol is an offshoot of SMB.
164 @chapter Extensions to Existing GNU Software
168 Enhance GCC. See files @file{PROJECTS} and @file{PROBLEMS} in the GCC
172 Rewrite GNU @code{sed} completely, to make it cleaner.
175 Rewrite Automake and Deja-GNU in Scheme, so they can run in Guile.
176 Right now they are written in Perl and TCL, respectively. There are
177 also other programs, not terribly long, which we would also like
178 to have rewritten in Scheme.
181 Finish the partially-implemented C interpreter project.
184 Help with the development of GNUStep, a GNU implementation of the
185 OpenStep specification.
188 Add features to GNU Make to record the precise rule with which each file
189 was last recompiled; then recompile any file if its rule in the makefile
193 Add a few features to GNU @code{diff}, such as handling large input
194 files without reading entire files into core.
197 An @code{nroff} macro package to simplify @code{texi2roff}.
200 A queueing system for the mailer Smail that groups pending work by
201 destination rather than by original message. This makes it possible
202 to schedule retries coherently for each destination. Talk to
203 @code{tron@@veritas.com} about this.
205 Smail also needs a new chief maintainer.
208 Enhanced cross-reference browsing tools. (We now have something at
209 about the level of @code{cxref}.) We also could use something like
210 @code{ctrace}. (Some people are now working on this project.)
213 @node X Windows Projects
214 @chapter X Windows Projects
218 An emulator for Macintosh graphics calls on top of X Windows.
221 A music playing and editing system.
224 A program to edit dance notation (such as labanotation) and display
225 dancers moving on the screen.
228 Port the Vibrant toolkit to work on X without using Motif.
231 A program to display and edit Hypercard stacks.
234 A paint program, supporting both bitmap-oriented operations and
235 component-oriented operations. @code{xpaint} exists, but isn't very
239 A vector-based drawing program in the spirit of Adobe Illustrator
243 An interactive 3D modeling utility with rendering/raytracing capabilities.
246 A program for graphic morphing of scanned photographs.
250 @chapter Other Projects
252 If you think of others that should be added, please
253 send them to @code{gnu@@prep.ai.mit.edu}.
257 A free program for public-key encryption.
259 This program should use the Diffie-Helman algorithm for public key
260 encryption, not the RSA algorithm, because the Diffie-Helman patent in
261 the US will expire in 1997. It should use triple-DES, not IDEA, for
262 block encryption because IDEA is patented in many countries and the
263 patents will not expire soon. In other respects, it should be like PGP.
265 This program needs to be written by someone who is not a US citizen,
266 outside the US, to avoid problems with US export control law.
268 Many people believe that PGP is free software, but that is not actually
269 true. The distribution terms set by the copyright holders do not allow
270 everyone to use and redistribute it.
273 A program to convert compiled programs represented in OSF ANDF
274 (``Architecture Neutral Distribution Format'') into ANSI C.
277 An imitation of Page Maker or Ventura Publisher.
280 An imitation of @code{dbase2} or @code{dbase3} (How dbased!)
283 A program to reformat Fortran programs in a way that is pretty.
286 A bulletin board system. There are a few free ones, but they don't have
287 all the features that people want in such systems. It would make sense
288 to start with an existing one and add the other features.
291 A general ledger program, including support for accounts payable,
292 account receivables, payroll, inventory control, order processing, etc.
295 A teleconferencing program which does the job of CU-SeeMe (which is,
296 alas, not free software).
299 A program to typeset C code for printing.
300 For ideas on what to do, see the book,
303 Human Factors and Typography for More Readable Programs,
304 Ronald M. Baecker and Aaron Marcus,
305 Addison-Wesley, ISBN 0-201-10745-7
308 (I don't quite agree with a few of the details they propose.)
311 Speech-generation programs (there is a program from Brown U that you
315 Speech-recognition programs (single-speaker, disconnected speech is sufficient).
318 A program to play sound distributed in ``Real Audio'' format.
321 A program to generate ``Real Audio'' format from audio input.
324 More scientific mathematical subroutines.
325 (A clone of SPSS is being written already.)
331 Software to replace card catalogues in libraries.
334 Grammar and style checking programs.
337 An implementation of the S language (an interpreted language used for
341 A translator from Scheme to C.
344 Optical character recognition programs; especially if suitable for
345 scanning documents with multiple fonts and capturing font info as well
346 as character codes. Work is being done on this, but more help is needed.
349 A program to scan a line drawing and convert it to Postscript.
352 A program to recognize handwriting.
355 A pen based interface.
358 CAD software, such as a vague imitation of Autocad.
361 Software for comparing DNA sequences, and finding matches and
366 @chapter Compilers for Other Batch Languages
368 Volunteers are needed to write parsers/front ends for languages such as
369 Algol 60, Algol 68, PL/I, Cobol, Fortran 90, or whatever, to be used
370 with the code generation phases of the GNU C compiler. (C, C++, and
371 Objective-C are done; Fortran 77 is mostly done; Ada, Pascal, and Java
372 are being worked on.)
374 @c Fortran status is here so gnu@prep and the volunteer coordinators
375 @c don't have to answer the question -len
376 You can get the status of the Fortran front end with this command:
379 finger -l fortran@@gnu.ai.mit.edu
382 @node Games and Recreations
383 @chapter Games and Recreations
385 Video-oriented games that work with the X window system.
389 A Doom-compatible display game engine, for running the many free
390 levels people have written for Doom.
393 Empire (there is a free version but it needs upgrading)
396 An ``empire builder'' system that makes it easy to write various kinds of
400 Improve GnuGo, which is not yet very sophisticated.
403 Imitations of popular video games:
407 Space war, Asteroids, Pong, Columns.
409 Defending cities from missiles.
411 Plane shoots at lots of other planes, tanks, etc.
413 Wizard fights fanciful monster.
417 Program a robot by sticking building blocks together,
418 then watch it explore a world.
420 Biomorph evolution (as in Scientific American).
422 A program to display effects of moving at relativistic speeds.
426 Intriguing screen-saver programs to make interesting pictures.
427 Other such programs that are simply entertaining to watch.
428 For example, an aquarium.
431 We do not need @code{rogue}, as we have @code{hack}.