Manual

Chapter 11: Frequently Asked Questions 115
First, read this fine manual. Beyond that, you can send mail to help-bison@gnu.org.
This mailing list is intended to be populated with people who are willing to answer questions
about using and installing Bison. Please keep in mind that (most of) the people on the
list have aspects of their lives which are not related to Bison (!), so you may not receive
an answer to your question right away. This can be frustrating, but please try not to honk
them off; remember that any help they provide is purely voluntary and out of the kindness
of their hearts.
11.9 Bug Reports
I found a bug. What should I include in the bug report
Before you send a bug report, make sure you are using the latest version. Check
ftp://ftp.gnu.org/pub/gnu/bison/ or one of its mirrors. Be sure to include the version
number in your bug report. If the bug is present in the latest version but not in a
previous version, try to determine the most recent version which did not contain the bug.
If the bug is parser-related, you should include the smallest grammar you can which
demonstrates the bug. The grammar file should also be complete (i.e., I should be able to
run it through Bison without having to edit or add anything). The smaller and simpler the
grammar, the easier it will be to fix the bug.
Include information about your compilation environment, including your operating system’s
name and version and your compiler’s name and version. If you have trouble compiling,
you should also include a transcript of the build session, starting with the invocation
of ‘configure’. Depending on the nature of the bug, you may be asked to send additional
files as well (such as ‘config.h’ or ‘config.cache’).
Patches are most welcome, but not required. That is, do not hesitate to send a bug
report just because you can not provide a fix.
Send bug reports to bug-bison@gnu.org.
11.10 Other Languages
Will Bison ever have C++ support How about Java or insert your
favorite language here
C++ support is there now, and is documented. We’d love to add other languages; contributions
are welcome.
11.11 Beta Testing
What is involved in being a beta tester
It’s not terribly involved. Basically, you would download a test release, compile it, and
use it to build and run a parser or two. After that, you would submit either a bug report
or a message saying that everything is okay. It is important to report successes as well as
failures because test releases eventually become mainstream releases, but only if they are
adequately tested. If no one tests, development is essentially halted.
Beta testers are particularly needed for operating systems to which the developers do
not have easy access. They currently have easy access to recent GNU/Linux and Solaris
versions. Reports about other operating systems are especially welcome.