[[project @ 2004-08-13 14:22:16 by simonmar]
simonmar**20040813142216
 Mention that this doc is out of date.  It's pretty huge, so I'm not
 going to update it right now.
] {
hunk ./ghc/docs/comm/the-beast/ncg.html 11
-      On x86 and sparc platforms, GHC can generate assembly code
+      On some platforms (currently x86 and PowerPC, with bitrotted
+      support for Sparc and Alpha), GHC can generate assembly code
hunk ./ghc/docs/comm/the-beast/ncg.html 15
-      horribleness of the mangler.  The NCG is enabled by default for
-      non-optimising compilation on x86 and sparc.  For most programs
-      it generates code which runs only about 1% slower than that
+      horribleness of the <a href="mangler.html">mangler</a>.  The NCG
+      is enabled by default for
+      non-optimising compilation on supported platforms.  For most programs
+      it generates code which runs only 1-3% slower
+      (depending on platform and type of code) than that
hunk ./ghc/docs/comm/the-beast/ncg.html 22
-      slowdown, and all sparc code runs about 5% slower due to
+      slowdown, and all Sparc code runs about 5% slower due to
hunk ./ghc/docs/comm/the-beast/ncg.html 25
-      In the distant past
-      the NCG could also generate Alpha code, and that machinery
-      is still there, but will need extensive refurbishment to
-      get it going again, due to underlying infrastructural changes.
-      Budding hackers thinking of doing a PowerPC port would do well
-      to use the sparc bits as a starting point.
-    <p>
hunk ./ghc/docs/comm/the-beast/ncg.html 32
-      The following details are correct as per the CVS head of end-Jan
-      2002.
+      <b>NOTE!</b> The native code generator was largely rewritten as part
+      of the C-- backend changes, around May 2004.  Unfortunately the
+      rest of this document still refers to the old version, and was written
+      with relation to the CVS head as of end-Jan 2002.  Some of it is relevant,
+      some of it isn't.
}