2.1 Starting the environment

Assuming that you have the location of the supplied LispWorks executable in your path, just type its name in any xterm or command shell window and the LispWorks IDE starts automatically. This name is lispworks-8-0-0-amd64-linux or lispworks-8-0-0-x86-freebsd or similar depending on which product you are running. Under KDE or Gnome, you might want to set up a system menu item to start LispWorks.

CL-USER 1 >

Type the following Lisp form at the prompt to start the LispWorks IDE:

(env:start-environment)

You should see a splash screen, followed by the Podium window. The Podium is shown in The Podium. A Listener window will also appear if your image is configured to start one.

The Podium window is automatically displayed whenever you start the LispWorks IDE. Its menu bar gives you access to various commands, as well as all the other tools in the environment. Its toolbar gives you quick access to some of the more convenient menu commands.

Like many other applications, the menu bar contains File, Tools, Windows and Help menus and a LispWorks-specific menu named Works. The Works menu contains commands that apply to the current window and also contains menus that allow navigation between tools in the LispWorks environment.

The File menu allows you to open a file in an Editor, or print a file, regardless of which window is active. When the Editor or Listener tool is active, the File menu contains other commands for miscellaneous operations on the file displayed. The Tools menu gives you access to all of the LispWorks IDE tools. The Windows menu lists all the active LispWorks windows you have running.

Note: If you wish to exit the Lisp image during this tutorial or at any other time, choose Works > Exit > LispWorks.

2.1.1 The Lisp Monitor in the deprecated Motif IDE

In the deprecated Motif IDE only, a Lisp Monitor window also appears when you start the LispWorks IDE. This is actually a separate process which shows you the state of the Lisp image, and monitors any garbage collection activity which occurs. For the most part you can ignore this window, although you may sometimes find the buttons on it useful for breaking into the Lisp process if you run source code which crashes Lisp for any reason. If you wish, you may close the Lisp Monitor window.