Release calc version 2.10.3t5.45

help/todo

@@ -32,7 +32,9 @@ Needed enhancements
     *  Figure out how to write all variables out to a file, including
        deeply nested arrays, lists, and objects.
 
-    *  Implement pointers.
+       Add the ability to read and write a value in some binary form.
+       Clearly this is easy for non-neg integers.  The question of
+       everything else is worth pondering.
 
     *  Eliminate the need for the define keyword by doing smarter parsing.
 
@@ -42,9 +44,6 @@ Needed enhancements
     *  Add some kind of #include and #define facility.  Perhaps use
        the C pre-processor itself?
 
-    *  Allow one to undefine anything.  Allow one to test if anything
-       is defined.
-
     *  Support a more general input and output base mode other than
        just dec, hex or octal.
 
@@ -137,39 +136,6 @@ Needed enhancements
        could save the result of cmdnum() in a variable and later use
        it as an arg to the histval() or history() functions.
 
-    *  Add a builtin to determine if an object as been defined.
-       For example:
-
-	    isobjdef("surd")
-
-       would return true if one had previously defined the
-       surd object.  I.e., if "obj surd {...};" had been
-       executed.
-
-       One cannot redefine an object.  If a script defines an object,
-       one cannot reload it without getting lots of already defined
-       errors.  If two scripts needed the same object, both could
-       define it and use isobjdef() to avoid redefinition problems.
-
-    *  Add a builtin to determine if a function as been defined.
-       For example:
-
-	    isfunct("foo")
-
-       would return true if foo has been defined as a function.
-
-    *  Permit one to destroy an object.
-
-       What if one does want to redefine an object?  Consider the case
-       where one it debugging a script and wants to reload it.  If
-       that script defines an object you are doomed.  Perhaps
-       destroying a object would undefine all of its related functions
-       and values?
-
-    *  Add NAN (Not A Number) to calc.  Where is it reasonable, change
-       calc to process these values in way similar to that of the IEEE
-       floating point.
-
     *  Add a factoring builtin functions.  Provide functions that perform
        multiple polynomial quadratic sieves, elliptic curve, difference
        of two squares, N-1 factoring as so on.  Provide a easy general
@@ -202,32 +168,12 @@ Needed enhancements
        fold output.  Another option should be to append a trailing
        \ on folded lines (as some symbolic packages use).
 
-    *  Add the ability to read and write a value in some binary form.
-
-       Clearly this is easy for non-neg integers.  The question of
-       everything else is worth pondering.
-
     *  Allow one to use the READ and WRITE commands inside a function.
 
     *  Remove or increase limits on factor(), lfactor(), isprime(),
        nextprime(), and prevprime().  Currently these functions cannot
        search for factors > 2^32.
 
-    *  Make the cryrand functions, or some useful subset builtin
-       functions.  This is needed for speed reasons.
-
-       The additive 55 / shuffle generators in cryrand.cal have
-       been turned into the rand() builtin function.  The main
-       crypto / Blum-Blum-Shub generators still need to be
-       converted into builtin functions.
-
-    *  Add a builtin to generate random primes using methods suggested
-       by Ueli M. Maurer: "Fast Generation of Prime Numbers and
-       Secure Public-Key Cryptographic Parameters" 9 Sep 1991.
-       Such a builtin would be useful to generate large primes.
-
-    *  Be sure that regress.cal tests every builtin function.
-
     *  Add read -once -try "filename" which would do nothing
        if "filename" was not a readable file.
 
@@ -250,3 +196,42 @@ Needed enhancements
 	at by 'fizbin' and the HALF array pointer at by 'data' should be
 	treated as read-only.
 
+    * Blocks should have the following features:
+
+        + read/write to/from files (ala fread/fwrite)
+
+	+ misc memory functions (ala memcpy, memcmp, memset,
+	  memchr, etc.)
+
+	+ scatter and gather functions (to send every n-th octet
+	  to another block and to copy from n blocks, the 1st
+	  then 2nd then 3rd ... octets)
+
+    * Printing of blocks should be under the control of the
+      config() interface.  This should allow one to select
+      from any of the following formats:
+
+	+ as one long string
+
+	+ as a series of lines (< 80 chars wide)
+
+	+ in od command style (offset: value value value ...)
+
+	+ in hex dump style (offset: val val val val ...  3hf.Uas.c)
+
+    * In addition one should be able to control the following
+      aspects of printing blocks via the config() interface:
+
+	+ base (hex, octal, char, base 2)
+
+	+ amount of data (the first n octets or the entire block)
+
+	+ skipping printing of duplicate print lines (ala od)
+
+	+ have the ability to print the block as raw data
+
+    * It is overkill to have nearly everything wind up in libcalc.a.
+
+      One should make available a the fundimental math operations
+      on ZVALUE, NUMBER and perhaps COMPLEX (without all of the
+      other stuff) in a separate library.