@setfilename tasks.info
@settitle GNU Task List
@c This date is automagically updated when you save this file:
-@set lastupdate November 25, 1998
+@set lastupdate May 19, 1999
@c %**end of header
@setchapternewpage off
@end ifinfo
@menu
-* Intro::
-* Highest Priority::
-* Documentation::
-* Unix-Related Projects::
-* Kernel Projects::
-* Extensions::
-* X Windows Projects::
-* Encryption Projects::
-* Other Projects::
-* Languages::
-* Games and Recreations::
+* Intro::
+* Highest Priority::
+* Documentation::
+* Unix-Related Projects::
+* Kernel Projects::
+* Extensions::
+* X Windows Projects::
+* Network Projects::
+* Encryption Projects::
+* Other Projects::
+* Languages::
+* Games and Recreations::
@end menu
-@node Intro
+@node Intro, Highest Priority, Top, Top
@chapter About the GNU Task List
If you did not obtain this file directly from the GNU project and
appreciate it very much, if they use it; but even when they benefit from
a performance improvement, they may not consider it very important.
-@node Highest Priority
+@node Highest Priority, Documentation, Intro, Top
@chapter Highest Priority
This task list mentions a large number of tasks that would be more or
at the URL @uref{http://www.gnu.org/software/guile/guile.html}
and then contact the Guile developers at @email{guile@@gnu.org}.
+@item
+A package to convert programs written using MS Access into Scheme,
+making use of a free data base system and the GTK toolkit.
+
@item
Help develop XmHTML. See @uref{http://www.xs4all.nl/~ripley/XmHTML/}.
and which has no comparable free equivalent now.
@end itemize
-@node Documentation
+@node Documentation, Unix-Related Projects, Highest Priority, Top
@chapter Documentation
We very urgently need documentation for many existing parts of the
@item
A manual for writing Hurd servers.
-@item
-A C reference manual. (RMS made a try at one, which you could start
-with).
-
@item
Reference manuals for C++, Objective C, Pascal, Fortran 77, and Java.
@item
A tutorial manual for the C++ STL (standard template library).
+@item
+A tutorial manual for Gforth.
+
@item
GNU Objective-C Runtime Library Manual; this would be a reference manual
for the runtime library functions, structures, and classes. Some work
Many utilities need documentation, including @code{grep} and others.
@end itemize
-@node Unix-Related Projects
+@node Unix-Related Projects, Kernel Projects, Documentation, Top
@chapter Unix-Related Projects
@itemize @bullet
with Unix is not especially important for this programs.
@end itemize
-@node Kernel Projects
+@node Kernel Projects, Extensions, Unix-Related Projects, Top
@chapter Kernel-Related Projects
@itemize @bullet
@item
An implementation of CIFS, the ``Common Internet File System,'' for the
HURD. This protocol is an offshoot of SMB.
+
+@item
+Support (in Linux?) for dumping the non-textual contents of an SVGA
+console.
@end itemize
-@node Extensions
+@node Extensions, X Windows Projects, Kernel Projects, Top
@chapter Extensions to Existing GNU Software
@itemize @bullet
@code{ctrace}. (Some people are now working on this project.)
@end itemize
-@node X Windows Projects
+@node X Windows Projects, Network Projects, Extensions, Top
@chapter X Windows Projects
@itemize @bullet
Software for designing and printing business cards.
@end itemize
-@node Encryption Projects
+@node Network Projects, Encryption Projects, X Windows Projects, Top
+@chapter Network Projects
+
+@itemize @bullet
+@ignore
+@c www.openh323.org is doing this. Craig Southeren <craigs@equival.com.au>
+@item
+A teleconferencing program which does the job of CU-SeeMe (which is,
+alas, not free software).
+@end ignore
+
+@item
+A free ICQ-compatible server program. (The ICQ server itself is not
+free software.)
+@end itemize
+
+@node Encryption Projects, Other Projects, Network Projects, Top
@chapter Encryption Projects
These projects need to be written outside the US by people who are not
The projects to provide free replacements for PGP and SSH are no longer
listed here, because projects to do those jobs are well under way.
-@node Other Projects
+@node Other Projects, Languages, Encryption Projects, Top
@chapter Other Projects
If you think of others that should be added, please
send them to @email{gnu@@gnu.org}.
@itemize @bullet
+@ignore OpenBIOS is doing this
@item
A simple PC BIOS. On most new PCs, the BIOS is stored in writable
memory (misleadingly known as ``flash ROM''). In order to have a wholly
diagnostics that an ordinary BIOS does (though it would be useful to do
some of them). However, there may be a need to configure certain data
in the computer in a way that is specific to each model of computer.
+@end ignore
@item
A free program that can transfer files on a serial line
A general ledger program, including support for accounts payable,
account receivables, payroll, inventory control, order processing, etc.
-@item
-A teleconferencing program which does the job of CU-SeeMe (which is,
-alas, not free software).
-
@item
A free replacement for Glimpse, which is not free software.
-@item
-Software for making "slide" presentations. It need not be compatible
-with the popular proprietary software to do this job, but it should do
-the same job.
-
@item
Software for desktop publishing. We are extending Emacs into a WYSIWYG
word processor, to handle primarily linear text; what this item proposes
is software focused on page layout.
+@ignore It looks like TruePrint will fill this gap
@item
A program to typeset C code for printing, to make it easier to read on
paper. For ideas on what to do, see the book,
@end display
But you don't have to do exactly what they propose.
+@end ignore
@item
A program to reformat HTML source to make it easier to read as HTML.
@item
High-quality music compression software.
(Talk with @email{phr@@netcom.com} for relevant suggestions.)
+Unfortunately we cannot implement the popular MP3 format
+due to patents, so this job includes working out some other
+non-patented format and compression method.
@item
A program to play sound distributed in ``Real Audio'' format.
@item
An MPEG III audio encoder/decoder (but it is necessary to check, first,
whether patents make this impossible).
-@end ignore
+@c Chris Hofstader is working on this.
@item
Speech-generation programs (there is a program from Brown U that you
could improve).
+@c We have a project now.
@item
Speech-recognition programs (single-speaker, disconnected speech is sufficient).
+@end ignore
+
+@item
+A braille translation and formatting system which can convert marked up
+documents into braille. This should let the user customize the braille
+translation rules; it would be good to divide it into a
+device-independent part plus drivers. Contact Jason White,
+@email{jasonw@@ariel.ucs.unimelb.EDU.AU}.
@ignore Being done
@item
@item
Software to replace card catalogues in libraries.
+@item
+A simulator for heating and air conditioning systems for buildings.
+
+@item
+A package for editing genealogical records conveniently.
+This could perhaps be done as a Gnome program, or perhaps
+as an Emacs extentsion.
+
@item
A project-scheduling package that accepts a list of project sub-tasks
with their interdependencies, and generates Gantt charts and Pert charts
Grammar and style checking programs.
@item
-A program to calculate nutritional information from recipes.
+A fast emulator for the i386, which would make it possible
+to emulate x86 code on other CPUs, and also to more easily
+debug kernels such as Linux more conveniently.
-There is a free (unambiguously public domain) database of nutritional
-information compiled by the USDA at
-@url{http://www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/foodcomp}.
-
-@item
-A fast emulator for the i386 which works by translating
-machine instructions into the machine language of the host machine.
-(Support for emulation of other machines would enhance the program
-but might make it much more difficult.)
-
-@item
-A map display or geographic information system.
+To make this faster, it could work by translating machine instructions
+into the machine language of the host machine.
@item
Optical character recognition programs; especially if suitable for
reverse-engineering of communication protocols.
@end itemize
-@node Languages
+@node Languages, Games and Recreations, Other Projects, Top
@chapter Programming Languages
Volunteers are needed to write parsers/front ends for languages such as
-Algol 60, Algol 68, PL/I, Cobol, Fortran 90, or whatever, to be
-used with the code generation phases of the GNU C compiler.
+Algol 60, Algol 68, PL/I, Cobol, Fortran 90, Delphi, Modula 2, Modula 3,
+RPG, and any other languages designed for compilation, to be used with
+the code generation phases of the GNU C compiler.
@c Fortran status is here so gnu@gnu.org and the volunteer coordinators
@c don't have to answer the question -len
We would like to have an implementation of Clipper, perhaps a GCC front
end, and perhaps a translator into Scheme.
-@node Games and Recreations
+@node Games and Recreations, , Languages, Top
@chapter Games and Recreations
Video-oriented games that work with the X window system.