This document collects information on a number of topics of interest to the EROS programmer, ranging from an introduction to programming under EROS to a description of the EROS runtime environments and core services. Used in conjunction with the EROS Object Reference, it should provide enough information to write programs for the EROS system.

While the object reference is starting to look fairly stable, this document remains more preliminary. We are still learning how best to describe the EROS system, and are constantly adding information for internal use. We are putting this document on the Web in spite of its preliminary state for several reasons. A number of people have wanted to get a sense of what the EROS system provides. Our working group needs the document, and the Web provides a convenient way to make it available. Writing the document helps ensure that the implementation is solid. Our usual practice is to write the appropriate chunk of the reference document before implementing the object itself.

Articles

1. The Runtime Environment Provides a look at the environment in which EROS programs execute, and the assumptions made by these environments.

2. Kernel Configuration Describes how kernel configuration works, and the input language for the kernel configuration description file.

3. Capability Support in High-Level Languages Describes C and C++ conventions for manipulating capabilities, and a support library designed to assist programs that handle large numbers of capabilities.

4. Capability IDL Describes the EROS Interface Definition Language, which is used to define capability types and object interfaces.