From a79b2dca806a4bf76915bd89c0864d3d2aa3c2f4 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001
From: "David E. O'Brien" <obrien@FreeBSD.org>
Date: Sat, 28 Feb 1998 23:03:41 +0000
Subject: [PATCH] Update information about ELF and running DOS binaries. Note: 
 I am pulling this out of thin air and should be reviewed by someone more
 knowledgeable about -CURRENT (M$-DOS binaries) and the ELF issue.

PR:		docs/5837
---
 FAQ/misc.sgml | 38 +++++++++++++++++++++-----------------
 1 file changed, 21 insertions(+), 17 deletions(-)

diff --git a/FAQ/misc.sgml b/FAQ/misc.sgml
index 05caef35db..30d675d0db 100644
--- a/FAQ/misc.sgml
+++ b/FAQ/misc.sgml
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-<!-- $Id: misc.sgml,v 1.1 1997-11-03 08:53:49 max Exp $ -->
+<!-- $Id: misc.sgml,v 1.2 1998-02-28 23:03:41 obrien Exp $ -->
 <!-- The FreeBSD Documentation Project -->
 
   <sect>
@@ -61,13 +61,13 @@
         name="brandelf"> for more information.
       </itemize>
 
-      <p>FreeBSD comes from the "classic" camp and uses the
-      <htmlurl url="http://www.freebsd.org/cgi/man.cgi?a.out(5)"
+      <p>FreeBSD comes from the "classic" camp and has traditionally used
+	  the <htmlurl url="http://www.freebsd.org/cgi/man.cgi?a.out(5)"
       name="a.out"> format, a technology tried and proven through
       many generations of BSD releases.  Though it has also been possible
       for some time to build and run native <tt/ELF/ binaries (and
-      kernels) on a FreeBSD system, no official "push" to switch to
-      ELF as the default format has, as yet, been made. Why?  Well,
+      kernels) on a FreeBSD system, FreeBSD initially resisted the "push"
+	  to switch to <tt/ELF/ as the default format.  Why?  Well,
       when the Linux camp made their painful transition to <tt/ELF/, it
       was not so much to flee the <tt/a.out/ executable format
       as it was their inflexible jump-table based shared library
@@ -78,15 +78,19 @@
       migration cost was accepted as necessary and the transition
       made.
 
-      <p>In FreeBSD's case, it's not quite so simple since our shared
+      <p>In FreeBSD's case, our shared
       library mechanism is based more closely on Sun's
       <tt>SunOS</tt>-style shared library mechanism and, as such, is very
-      easy to use.  The only thing we actually lack with <tt/a.out/
-      which <tt/ELF/ would give us is cleaner support for C++ constructors
-      and destructors, among other similarly esoteric things, and it
-      simply hasn't become much of a problem yet (and there is quite
-      a bit of C++ code in FreeBSD's source tree).  Should that change,
-      a migration may, at some point, be more seriously contemplated.
+      easy to use.  
+	  However, starting with 3.0, FreeBSD will offically support <tt/ELF/
+	  binaries as the default format.  Even though the <tt/a.out/
+	  executable format has served us well, the GNU people, who author the
+	  compiler tools we use, have dropped support for the <tt/a.out/
+	  format.  This has forced us to maintain a divergent version of
+	  the compler and linker, and has kept us from reaping the benefits
+	  of the latest GNU development efforts.  Also the demands of
+	  ISO-C++, notably contstructors and destructors, has also led to
+	  native <tt/ELF/ support in future FreeBSD releases.
 
     <sect1>
       <heading>Why won't chmod change the permissions on symlinks?</heading>
@@ -132,13 +136,13 @@
     <sect1>
       <heading>Can I run DOS binaries under FreeBSD?</heading>
 
-      <p>Not yet, though BSDI has just donated their <tt/rundos/ DOS emulation
-      subsystem which we're now working on integrating and enhancing.  Send
-      mail to <url url="mailto:emulation@freebsd.org"
+      <p>Yes, starting with version 3.0 you can using BSDI's <tt/rundos/
+	  DOS emulation which has been integrated and enhanced.
+	  Send mail to <url url="mailto:emulation@freebsd.org"
       name="The FreeBSD emulation discussion list"> if you're interested in
-      joining this effort!
+      joining this ongoing effort!
 
-      <p>For now, there is a neat utility called 
+      <p>For pre-3.0 systems, there is a neat utility called 
       <htmlurl url="http://www.freebsd.org/cgi/ports.cgi?^pcemu" name="pcemu">
       in the ports collection which emulates an 8088 and enough BIOS services
       to run DOS text mode applications.  It requires the X Window