I am pleased to announce the first development release of GNU Classpath,
a project to create a free software replacement for Sun's proprietary
Java class libraries.  The project is initially providing class library
support for the Japhar JVM.

Here are the answers to some questions you might have about this project 
and this release.

1).  Where can I get it?

GNU Classpath 0.00 can be downloaded from:

ftp://alpha.gnu.ai.mit.edu/pub/gnu/classpath-0.00.tar.gz

2).  What is included?

The following java packages are supported:
   -- java.beans
   -- java.io
   -- java.lang
   -- java.lang.reflect
   -- java.math
   -- java.net
   -- java.security (partial and non-functioning)
   -- java.security.acl
   -- java.security.interfaces
   -- java.util

This is enough to run many non-awt programs.  Not all classes and methods
are implemented in this release, but most are.  The major missing piece
of core functionality is java.text.  Many of the implemented classes are
already up to the Java 1.2 spec.

3).  What is required to build/install/run?

GNU Classpath requires that Japhar 0.07 be installed.  Information on
obtaining Japhar is available from http://www.japhar.org/.  A working
C compiler is also required.  You will need the Sun JDK installed if you
elect to recompile the Java classes.

4).  What platforms are supported?

GNU/Linux is the only platform that has been tested.  We plan to 
eventually support many others.

5).  Who should use this software?

This is a development release only.  You should only install it if you
are interested in Classpath development or reporting bugs.  We appreciate
both.  You might also be interested if you enjoy installing random alpha
software.

6).  Where do I go for more information?

The project has a web page at 

http://www.classpath.org/

and

http://www.gnu.org/software/classpath/classpath.html

Information on our mailing list is available at the web site.

