GNU M4

GNU M4 is an implementation of the traditional Unix macro processor. It is mostly SVR4 compatible although it has some extensions (for example, handling more than 9 positional parameters to macros). GNU m4 also has built-in functions for including files, running shell commands, doing arithmetic, etc.

GNU M4 is a macro processor in the sense that it copies its input to the output expanding macros as it goes. Macros are either builtin or user-defined and can take any number of arguments. Besides just doing macro expansion m4 has builtin functions for including named files, running UNIX commands, doing integer arithmetic, manipulating text in various ways, recursion etc... m4 can be used either as a front-end to a compiler or as a macro processor in its own right.

The latest stable version is 1.4.7, available from ftp.gnu.org/gnu/m4 or one of the mirrors. The stable branch can also be checked out from CVS, using:

cvs -z3 -d:pserver:anonymous@cvs.sv.gnu.org:/sources/m4 co -r
branch-1_4 m4

GNU M4 is being actively developed, and version 2.0 will have many new features, such as better input control, multiple precision arithmetic and loadable modules. Information about the future of GNU M4 is at http://savannah.gnu.org/projects/m4/. You can track development in CVS, using:

cvs -z3 -d:pserver:anonymous@cvs.sv.gnu.org:/sources/m4 co m4

GNU M4 is maintained by Gary V. Vaughan. Report bugs to bug-m4@gnu.org.

Online Manual is available at http://www.gnu.org/software/m4/manual/index.html

Please send FSF & GNU inquiries & questions to gnu@gnu.org. There are also other ways to contact the FSF.

Please send comments on these web pages to webmasters@www.gnu.org, send other questions to gnu@gnu.org.

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Verbatim copying and distribution of this entire article is permitted in any medium, provided this notice is preserved.

Updated: $Date: 2006/09/25 12:29:41 $ $Author: ericb $