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 19 March 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 Typically, a new program that does a completely new job advances
57 the GNU project, and the free software community, more than an
58 improvement to an existing program.
60 Typically, new features or new programs advance the free software
61 community more, in the long run, than porting existing programs. One
62 reason is that portable new features and programs benefit people on many
63 platforms, not just one. At the same time, there tend to be many
64 volunteers for porting---so your help will be more valuable in other
65 areas, where volunteers are more scarce.
67 Typically, it is more useful to extend a program in functionality than
68 to improve performance. Users who use the new functionality will
69 appreciate it very much, if they use it; but even when they benefit from
70 a performance improvement, they may not consider it very important.
73 @chapter Documentation
75 We very urgently need documentation for some parts of the system
76 that already exist or will exist very soon:
80 Completion of the documentation for CC-mode, a new Emacs mode for
81 C, C++ and other languages.
84 A C reference manual. (RMS made a try at one, which you could start
88 A manual for Ghostscript.
95 A manual for PIC (the graphics formatting language).
101 A book on how GCC works and why various machine descriptions
102 are written as they are.
105 A manual for programming X-window applications.
108 Manuals for various X window managers.
111 Reference cards for those manuals that don't have them: C
112 Compiler, Make, Texinfo, Termcap, and maybe the C Library.
115 Many utilities need documentation, including @code{grep} and others.
118 @node Unix-Related Projects
119 @chapter Unix-Related Projects
123 An improved version of the POSIX utility @code{pax}. There is one on
124 Usenet, but it is said to be poorly written. Talk with
125 @code{mib@@gnu.ai.mit.edu} about this project.
129 Modify the GNU @code{dc} program to use the math routines of GNU
134 A @code{grap} preprocessor program for @code{troff}.
137 Various other libraries.
140 An emulation of SCCS that works using RCS.
143 Less urgent: @code{diction}, @code{explain}, and @code{style}, or
144 something to do the same kind of job. Compatibility with Unix is not
145 especially important for these programs.
148 @node Kernel Projects
149 @chapter Kernel-Related Projects
153 An over-the-ethernet debugger stub that will allow the kernel to be
154 debugged from GDB running on another machine.
156 This stub needs its own self-contained implementation of all protocols
157 to be used, since the GNU system will use user processes to implement
158 all but the lowest levels, and the stub won't be able to use those
159 processes. If a simple self-contained implementation of IP and TCP is
160 impractical, it might be necessary to design a new, simple protocol
161 based directly on ethernet. It's not crucial to support high speed or
162 communicating across gateways.
164 It might be possible to use the Mach ethernet driver code, but it would
168 A shared memory X11 server to run under MACH is very desirable. The
169 machine specific parts should be kept well separated.
172 An implementation of CIFS, the ``Common Internet File System,'' for the
173 HURD. This protocol is an offshoot of SMB.
177 @chapter Extensions to Existing GNU Software
181 Enhance GCC. See files @file{PROJECTS} and @file{PROBLEMS} in the GCC
185 Rewrite GNU @code{sed} completely, to make it cleaner.
188 Rewrite Automake and Deja-GNU in Scheme, so they can run in Guile.
189 Right now they are written in Perl and TCL, respectively. There are
190 also other programs, not terribly long, which we would also like
191 to have rewritten in Scheme.
194 Finish the partially-implemented C interpreter project.
197 Help with the development of GNUStep, a GNU implementation of the
198 OpenStep specification.
201 Add features to GNU Make to record the precise rule with which each file
202 was last recompiled; then recompile any file if its rule in the makefile
206 Add a few features to GNU @code{diff}, such as handling large input
207 files without reading entire files into core.
210 An @code{nroff} macro package to simplify @code{texi2roff}.
213 A queueing system for the mailer Smail that groups pending work by
214 destination rather than by original message. This makes it possible
215 to schedule retries coherently for each destination. Talk to
216 @code{tron@@veritas.com} about this.
218 Smail also needs a new chief maintainer.
221 Enhanced cross-reference browsing tools. (We now have something at
222 about the level of @code{cxref}.) We also could use something like
223 @code{ctrace}. (Some people are now working on this project.)
226 @node X Windows Projects
227 @chapter X Windows Projects
231 An emulator for Macintosh graphics calls on top of X Windows.
234 A music playing and editing system.
237 High-quality music compression software.
238 (Talk with phr@@netcom.com for relevant suggestions.)
241 A program to play sound distributed in ``Real Audio'' format.
244 A program to generate ``Real Audio'' format from audio input.
247 A program to edit dance notation (such as labanotation) and display
248 dancers moving on the screen.
251 Port the Vibrant toolkit to work on X without using Motif.
254 A program to display and edit Hypercard stacks.
257 A paint program, supporting both bitmap-oriented operations and
258 component-oriented operations. @code{xpaint} exists, but isn't very
262 A vector-based drawing program in the spirit of Adobe Illustrator
266 An interactive 3D modeling utility with rendering/raytracing capabilities.
269 A program for graphic morphing of scanned photographs.
273 @chapter Other Projects
275 If you think of others that should be added, please
276 send them to @code{gnu@@prep.ai.mit.edu}.
280 A free program for public-key encryption.
282 This program should use the Diffie-Helman algorithm for public key
283 encryption, not the RSA algorithm, because the Diffie-Helman patent in
284 the US will expire in 1997. It should use triple-DES, not IDEA, for
285 block encryption, because IDEA is patented in many countries and the
286 patents will not expire soon. In other respects, it should be like PGP.
288 This program needs to be written by someone who is not a US citizen,
289 outside the US, to avoid problems with US export control law.
291 Many people believe that PGP is free software, but that is not actually
292 true. The distribution terms do not allow everyone to use and
293 redistribute it. We used to think that these restrictions had been
294 imposed by the patent holders for the RSA and IDEA algorithms, and that
295 PGP could be free software if these algorithms were replaced by
296 alternatives. But we have since learned that the owners of PGP are
297 themselves unwilling to make it free software. Writing a new program is
298 the only way to get free software for this job.
301 A free secure telnet program more or less like ssh/sshd. Since this
302 requires a public key encryption algorithm, it is closely related to the
305 This program should follow the draft standard for ssh. As always, it
306 cannot implement the RSA algorithm, but must instead support the
307 alternatives that will be patent-free in late 1997. It cannot support
308 IDEA, but can use triple-DES and some other alternatives.
311 A program to convert compiled programs represented in OSF ANDF
312 (``Architecture Neutral Distribution Format'') into ANSI C.
315 An imitation of Page Maker or Ventura Publisher.
318 An imitation of @code{dbase2} or @code{dbase3} (How dbased!)
321 A program to reformat Fortran programs in a way that is pretty.
324 A bulletin board system. There are a few free ones, but they don't have
325 all the features that people want in such systems. It would make sense
326 to start with an existing one and add the other features.
329 A general ledger program, including support for accounts payable,
330 account receivables, payroll, inventory control, order processing, etc.
333 A teleconferencing program which does the job of CU-SeeMe (which is,
334 alas, not free software).
337 A program to typeset C code for printing.
338 For ideas on what to do, see the book,
341 Human Factors and Typography for More Readable Programs,
342 Ronald M. Baecker and Aaron Marcus,
343 Addison-Wesley, ISBN 0-201-10745-7
346 (I don't quite agree with a few of the details they propose.)
349 Speech-generation programs (there is a program from Brown U that you
353 Speech-recognition programs (single-speaker, disconnected speech is sufficient).
356 More scientific mathematical subroutines.
357 (A clone of SPSS is being written already.)
363 Software to replace card catalogues in libraries.
366 Grammar and style checking programs.
369 An implementation of the S language (an interpreted language used for
373 A translator from Scheme to C.
376 Optical character recognition programs; especially if suitable for
377 scanning documents with multiple fonts and capturing font info as well
378 as character codes. Work is being done on this, but more help is needed.
381 A program to scan a line drawing and convert it to Postscript.
384 A program to recognize handwriting.
387 A pen based interface.
390 CAD software, such as a vague imitation of Autocad.
393 Software for comparing DNA sequences, and finding matches and
398 @chapter Compilers for Other Batch Languages
400 Volunteers are needed to write parsers/front ends for languages such as
401 Algol 60, Algol 68, PL/I, Cobol, Fortran 90, or whatever, to be used
402 with the code generation phases of the GNU C compiler. (C, C++, and
403 Objective-C are done; Fortran 77 is mostly done; Ada, Pascal, and Java
404 are being worked on.)
406 @c Fortran status is here so gnu@prep and the volunteer coordinators
407 @c don't have to answer the question -len
408 You can get the status of the Fortran front end with this command:
411 finger -l fortran@@gnu.ai.mit.edu
414 @node Games and Recreations
415 @chapter Games and Recreations
417 Video-oriented games that work with the X window system.
421 A Doom-compatible display game engine, for running the many free
422 levels people have written for Doom.
425 Empire (there is a free version but it needs upgrading)
428 An ``empire builder'' system that makes it easy to write various kinds of
432 Improve GnuGo, which is not yet very sophisticated.
435 Imitations of popular video games:
439 Space war, Asteroids, Pong, Columns.
441 Defending cities from missiles.
443 Plane shoots at lots of other planes, tanks, etc.
445 Wizard fights fanciful monster.
449 Program a robot by sticking building blocks together,
450 then watch it explore a world.
452 Biomorph evolution (as in Scientific American).
454 A program to display effects of moving at relativistic speeds.
458 Intriguing screen-saver programs to make interesting pictures.
459 Other such programs that are simply entertaining to watch.
460 For example, an aquarium.
463 We do not need @code{rogue}, as we have @code{hack}.