These instructions are for systems, like Apple M1 or M2 computers, where we do not have native-code compilation. In this case we take a huge efficiency hit because we have to interpret a virtual machine. So if you have a system for which we have native code compilation, such as GNU/Linux or an old Apple MAC OSX, do not use this installation.
The mechanics system has several parts:
One part is the MIT/GNU Scheme system.
The other part is Scmutils, the numerical and algebraic packages, written in Scheme, that we will use for the mechanics work. The installation will install a script named mechanics.sh in /usr/local/bin that invokes the Scheme system that runs the mechanics system.
Installation instructions:
Be sure you are logged in with root privileges. If your system does not have a directory /usr/local, you will need to create one.
Download the current stable relase (currently 12.1) of MIT/GNU Scheme from here.
Follow the instructions here. You may need to use root privileges (sudo) to do this installation.
Download the current Scmutils installation from here. The 20230902 part of the name is the date this installation was created. This is a gzipped tar archive file.
Expand this gzipped tar archive by executing tar xzf scmutils-20230902.tar.gz. This will make a directory named scmutils-20230902.
Enter the directory with cd scmutils-20230902. In the directory you will find installation instructions in the file INSTALL. It will tell you to execute the installation script install.sh. Do it. This installs Scmutils into your MIT/GNU Scheme system's library.
The directory scmutils-20230902 has all
of the source files for your scmutils distribution. It also has
the script mechanics.sh, which is used to start the
system. That script should be put in a directory on your search
path. Traditionally that script goes
into /usr/local/bin. You may give that script any name
you please, but if you keep it as mechanics.sh
in /usr/local/bin the command line to start the Scheme
mechanics system is
/usr/local/bin/mechanics
(If /usr/local/bin is on your search path you need not
specify the whole path.)
The system starts with the MIT/GNU Scheme prompt. One way to use it is from the Edwin editor, an EMACS18 which is implemented in Scheme, and which is integrated with the Scheme debugger. This is how I (GJS) tend to use the system. To start Edwin type (edit) at the Scheme read-eval-print loop. It is also possible to run our system under the standard GNU EMACS.
If everything seems to work you can now remove the tarball.
Full information about MIT/GNU Scheme is available here.
Useful documents are included in the /usr/local/scmutils/manual/ subdirectory that will be unpacked with the tar file. Scheme sources for the entire system are included in the /usr/local/scmutils/src/ subdirectory.
The main interface to the system is edwin, an Emacs18 implemented in Scheme. If you are not familiar with Emacs you SHOULD run the tutorial, which can be accessed in edwin by holding down the control key and typing h, then, releasing the control key, type t. (C-h t)
Note that this is all free software, as defined by the GNU General Public License. Also, this is all software developed for education and research at MIT. This code is not carefully tested so it may have errors. We hope that it can help you, but we make no warranty.
Copyright © 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005,
2006, 2008, 2010, 2012, 2014, 2016, 2019 by the Massachusetts
Institute of Technology. All rights reserved.
Last modified: 31 August 2019 by GJS.