changes in sbcl-0.8.4 relative to sbcl-0.8.3:
* fixed compiler performance when processing loops with a step >1;
- * optimization: restored some effective method precomputation
- (turned off by an ANSI fix in sbcl-0.8.3); the amount of
+ * bug fix: DOCUMENTATION now retrieves generic function
+ documentation. Also, DOCUMENTATION and (SETF DOCUMENTATION)
+ support has been systematized, and now supports the methods
+ specified by ANSI, along with a default method and a method for
+ slot documentation. (reported by Nathan Froyd)
+ * bug fix: effective methods associated with a generic function are
+ no longer cached over a change of that generic function's method
+ combination. (reported by Andreas Fuchs)
+ * bug fix: RUN-PROGRAM now does not fail if some element in $PATH
+ names a non-existent directory. (thanks to Andreas Fuchs)
+ * optimization: restored some effective method precomputation in
+ CLOS (turned off by an ANSI fix in sbcl-0.8.3); the amount of
precomputation is now tunable.
+ * optimization: compiler-internal data structure use has been
+ reviewed, and changes have been made that should improve the
+ performance of the compiler by about 20%.
+ * microoptimization: the compiler is better able to make use of the
+ x86 LEA instruction for multiplication by constants.
+ * bug fix: in some situations compiler did not report usage of
+ generic arithmetic in (SPEED 3) policy.
planned incompatible changes in 0.8.x:
* (not done yet, but planned:) When the profiling interface settles