# The Isabelle System Distribution

## Version information

This is Isabelle2005: October 2005. See the `NEWS` file in the distribution for details on user-relevant changes.

## System requirements

Isabelle requires a regular Unix platform (e.g. GNU Linux) with the following additional software:

- A full Standard ML Compiler (e.g. Poly/ML 4.1.x, SML/NJ 110.x).
- The GNU bash shell (version 2.x).
- Perl (version 5.x).
- XEmacs (version 21.4.x) -- for the ProofGeneral interface.
- A complete LaTeX installation (e.g. teTeX 1.0) -- for document preparation.

## Installation

Binary packages are available for Isabelle/HOL and ZF for several platforms from the Isabelle web page. The system may be easily built from scratch as well, taking the traditional tar.gz source distribution. See file `INSTALL` as distributed with Isabelle for more information.

Further background information may be found in the Isabelle System Manual, distributed with the sources (directory `doc`).

## User interface

The canonical Isabelle user interface is Proof General by David Aspinall and others. It is a generic (X)Emacs interface for proof assistants, including Isabelle (both for the classic and Isar version). Proof General is suitable for use by pacifists and Emacs militants alike. Its most prominent feature is script management, providing a metaphor of live proof script editing. Proof General has recently gained a rather large following of both beginning and expert users of Isabelle.

Proof General is distributed together with the XEmacs X-Symbol package, which provides a nice way to get proper mathematical symbols displayed on screen.

## Other sources of information

### The Isabelle Page

The Isabelle home page may be accessed both from Cambridge and Munich:

- http://www.cl.cam.ac.uk/Research/HVG/Isabelle/
- http://isabelle.in.tum.de

### Mailing list

The electronic mailing list `isabelle-users@cl.cam.ac.uk` provides a forum for Isabelle users to discuss problems and exchange information. To join, send a message to isabelle-users-request@cl.cam.ac.uk.

### Personal mail

Lawrence C Paulson
Computer Laboratory
University of Cambridge
JJ Thomson Avenue
Cambridge CB3 0FD
England
E-mail: lcp@cl.cam.ac.uk
Phone: +44-223-763500
Fax: +44-223-334748

or

Tobias Nipkow
Institut für Informatik
Technische Universität München
Boltzmannstr. 3
D-85748 Garching
Germany
E-mail: nipkow@in.tum.de
Phone: +49-89-289-17302
Fax: +49-89-289-17307

Please report any problems you encounter. While we shall try to be helpful, we can accept no responsibility for the deficiencies of Isabelle and their consequences.