1Introduction
2============
3
4This is GNU Bash, version 4.0.  Bash is the GNU Project's Bourne
5Again SHell, a complete implementation of the POSIX.2 shell spec,
6but also with interactive command line editing, job control on
7architectures that support it, csh-like features such as history
8substitution and brace expansion, and a slew of other features. 
9For more information on the features of Bash that are new to this
10type of shell, see the file `doc/bashref.texi'.  There is also a
11large Unix-style man page.  The man page is the definitive description
12of the shell's features. 
13
14See the file POSIX for a discussion of how the Bash defaults differ
15from the POSIX.2 spec and a description of the Bash `posix mode'.
16
17There are some user-visible incompatibilities between this version
18of Bash and previous widely-distributed versions, bash-2.05b and
19bash-3.2.  For details, see the file COMPAT.  The NEWS file tersely
20lists features that are new in this release. 
21
22Bash is free software, distributed under the terms of the [GNU] General
23Public License as published by the Free Software Foundation,
24version 3 of the License (or any later version).  For more information,
25see the file COPYING. 
26
27A number of frequently-asked questions are answered in the file
28`doc/FAQ'.
29
30To compile Bash, try typing `./configure', then `make'.  Bash
31auto-configures the build process, so no further intervention
32should be necessary.  Bash builds with `gcc' by default if it is
33available.  If you want to use `cc' instead, type
34
35	CC=cc ./configure
36
37if you are using a Bourne-style shell.  If you are not, the following
38may work:
39
40	env CC=cc ./configure
41
42Read the file INSTALL in this directory for more information about how
43to customize and control the build process.  The file NOTES contains
44platform-specific installation and configuration information.
45
46If you are a csh user and wish to convert your csh aliases to Bash
47aliases, you may wish to use the script `examples/misc/alias-conv.sh'
48as a starting point.  The script `examples/misc/cshtobash' is a
49more ambitious script that attempts to do a more complete job.
50
51Reporting Bugs
52==============
53
54Bug reports for bash should be sent to:
55
56	bug-bash@gnu.org
57
58using the `bashbug' program that is built and installed at the same
59time as bash.
60
61The discussion list `bug-bash@gnu.org' often contains information
62about new ports of Bash, or discussions of new features or behavior
63changes that people would like.  This mailing list is also available
64as a usenet newsgroup: gnu.bash.bug. 
65
66When you send a bug report, please use the `bashbug' program that is
67built at the same time as bash.  If bash fails to build, try building
68bashbug directly with `make bashbug'.  If you cannot build `bashbug',
69please send mail to bug-bash@gnu.org with the following information:
70
71	* the version number and release status of Bash (e.g., 2.05a-release)
72	* the machine and OS that it is running on (you may run
73	  `bashversion -l' from the bash build directory for this information)
74	* a list of the compilation flags or the contents of `config.h', if
75	  appropriate
76	* a description of the bug
77	* a recipe for recreating the bug reliably
78	* a fix for the bug if you have one!
79
80The `bashbug' program includes much of this automatically.
81
82If you would like to contact the Bash maintainers directly, send mail
83to bash-maintainers@gnu.org.
84
85While the Bash maintainers do not promise to fix all bugs, we would
86like this shell to be the best that we can make it.
87
88Enjoy!
89
90Chet Ramey
91chet.ramey@case.edu
92