Best way to start on Windows : need advices

[gutzofter]

I use an Eclipse plug-in called CUSP

http://bitfauna.com/projects/cusp/

So far it is working out great.

The back-end is SBCL

[lnostdal]

When I look at projects like PLT-Scheme, there's a great multiplateform IDE, and no problems to install it: you just have to code.
Now, going to Common Lisp, you either have a choice between Emacs+Slime and you'll have to spent hours on to configure them for a newbie, and proprietary tools like Allegro or LispWorks (yes, with restricted free versions) why ?

..i don't think anyone has answered this.. the reason is that very few SBCL users and developers use Windows so things will not work as good (or at all) there as they do on Linux

..assuming you're not working on OpenGL or something like that; when Lisp/SBCL software needs to target Windows users/customers i create portable web front ends .. works great

if you don't have access to a Linux machine, you can setup a virtual one using VirtualBox:
http://www.virtualbox.org/ ..edit: apparently coLinux also works by the way

then, when you have your killer application ready; dump an executable SBCL core from it, compress the core (about ~10MB or so) and upload it to a cheap Linux VPS .. it runs for months and months; stable as a rock in my experience

[anton]

I am on Windows and do not use asdf-install too. It is not that difficult to unpack the library somewhere.
After loading asdf do:

Code: Select all

(pushnew "path/to/the/library/dir/" asdf:*central-registry* :test #'equalp)

Now the library is registered in asdf can find it.

I have a file 'setup-asdf-registry.lisp' that does it for all the installed libraries. Also it loads
asdf.

So the first line when I start coding is

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(load "c:/usr/unpacked/lisp-libs/setup-asdf-registry.lisp")

After this all the libraries are registered in asdf.

'setup-asdf-registry.lisp' contents looks approximately like this:

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;; load asdf
#+(or ecl sbcl) (require 'asdf)
#-(or ecl sbcl)
(load "/usr/unpacked/lisp-libs/asdf/asdf")

;; register all the libraries
;; provided that all them are unpacked
;; into directory "/usr/unpacked/lisp-libs/"
(flet
    ((reg (relative-path)
       (pushnew (concatenate 'string "/usr/unpacked/lisp-libs/"
                             relative-path)
                asdf:*central-registry*
                :test #'equalp)))
  (reg "alexandria/")
  (reg "anaphora-0.9.3/")
 ...
  (reg "zip/"))


As you see, this setup is not tied to particular lisp and allows to freely switch between SBCL and CLISP.

[StephenJ]

I'm also just starting the Lisp journey as well (time permitting) and have found that Cusp works as an alternate to Emacs/Slime as a front end to SBCL (v1.0.6) on Windows (XP).

Refer: to

Source: http://bitfauna.com/projects/cusp/index.html

Intro: http://www.sergeykolos.com/cusp/intro/

Installation: http://www.ibm.com/developerworks/opensource/library/os-eclipse-lispcusp/?ca=dgr-lnxw06LispCuspEclipse&S_TACT=105AGX59&S_CMP=GR

for details...

Stephen