HTML-Hypertext
Ada 9X Reference Manual

User's Guide

This guide provides information on the following topics:

1. Navigation
2. Format of the Hyper-RM95
3. Table of Contents
4. Index
5. Structured Navigation
6. Search

7. Credits
8. Copyright
9. Author

Navigation

Format of the Hyper-RM95

The reference manual has been subdivided into hypertext "pages," one page for each section, annex, clause, and subclause. This guarantees that when you access a new page you will not wait forever to download and display it.

A few icons are used in this document: is an icon of Lady Ada Lovelace, which stands for a link to the HBAP Ada WWW Server: Home of the Brave Ada Programmers, URL http://www.adahome.com/ . If you are accessing this document offline (i.e. without Internet connection) you will not be able to follow this link. The other icons are used for structured navigation.

Table of Contents

To navigate within a section or annex, the corresponding table of contents is included (with links to clauses and subclauses, if any) at the end of the page. Similarly, within each clause, a table of contents includes links to its subclauses, if any. Good examples are section 1, "General" and clause 1.1, "Scope of the Standard."

In addition, whenever a section or clause needs a local TOC, there is an associated TOC page which simply contains the title of the section or clause and its local TOC (see for instance section 1, "General" and the associated TOC of section 1, "General"). Thus the titles of sections and clauses listed in each TOC are links to the corresponding text, and these titles are followed by an additional link to their corresponding local TOC, if any. This should prove quite helpful for those who have little screen estate and do not wish to scroll pages in order to reach local TOCs. Good examples are the TOC of section 4, "Names and Expressions" and TOC of clause 4.1, "Names."

If you are familiar with the Ada 83 RM, you might have noticed a change of terminology in this description. ISO requires that the first-level subdivisions of a standard be called "sections," the second-level subdivisions "clauses," and the third-level "subclauses." (In LRM 83. those were respectively called "chapters," "sections," and "subsections.")

Index

Structured Navigation

If you are using a graphical browser, you will see the following equivalent menu:
| | | |
TOC -- / --.-- / --.--.-- | Index | Search | Syntax | Help

The five links on the first line are "directional" links. The first three ("Prev," "Up," and "Next") will only appear when appropriate, and the next two ("Back" and "Forward") are always available. They are described in detail below.

The others, on the second line, have the following functions:

• TOC -- opens the table of contents (no zoom).
• --.-- opens the table of contents at the clause level.
• --.--.-- opens the table of contents at the subclause level.
• Index opens the index.
• Search opens the search page, for direct access to the numbered contents of the reference manual.
• Syntax opens access to the syntax summaries of the language; one lists the syntax rules in their order of appearance, each rule being linked to its point of origin, the other is a cross reference of all non-terminals.
• "Help" opens the page you are reading now.

is a link to the previous section, annex, clause, or subclause, depending on where you are and if there is a previous one.

For instance, in section 3, "Declarations and Types," is a link to section 2, "Lexical Elements," and in subclause 12.5.2, "Formal Scalar Types," it is a link to subclause 12.5.1, "Formal Private and Derived Types."

If there is no previous section, clause, or subclause, the link is inactive and looks like this: .

is a link to the next section, annex, clause, or subclause, depending on where you are and if there is a next one.

For instance, in section 3, "Declarations and Types," is a link to section 4, "Names and Expression," and in subclause 12.5.2, "Formal Scalar Types," it is a link to subclause 12.5.3, "Formal Array Types."

If there is no next section, clause, or subclause, the link is inactive and looks like this: .

is a link to the enclosing section, annex, or clause, depending on where you are. In sections and annexes, it is a link to the global table of contents.

For instance, in section 3, "Declarations and Types," is a link to the TOC -- but in subclause 12.5.2, "Formal Scalar Types," it is a link to clause 12.5, "Formal Types," where it is a link to section 12, "Generic Units."

is a back link to the previous page, as if browsing some sort of paper version of the reference manual.

For instance, in section 3, "Declarations and Types," is a link to clause 2.9, "Reserved Words," and in subclause 12.5.2, "Formal Scalar Types," it is a link to subclause 12.5.1, "Formal Private and Derived Types," where it is a link to clause 12.5, "Formal Types," where it is a link to clause 12.4, "Formal Objects."

is a forward link to the next page, achieving the inverse "paper version" effect of back links.

For instance, in section 3, "Declarations and Types," is a link to clause 3.1, "Declarations," and in subclause 12.5.3, "Formal Array Types," it is a link to subclause 12.5.4, "Formal Access Types," where it is a link to clause 12.6, "Formal Subprograms."

Direct Search

To access directly a specific section, clause, or subclause, just type the section, clause, or subclause number that you want in the entry box and then press the Return key on your keyboard. With some browsers, you may have to place the pointer in the box before you can enter any text.

You may even specify a paragraph number in parenthesis, e.g. '1', '1.1' and '1(2)' are valid search keys. If the section, clause, or subclause specified does not exist, you will land in the table of contents. If the paragraph number specified does not exist, you will land at the top or bottom (depending on your browser) of the section, clause, or subclause you requested.

For direct composition of URL references into the reference manual, note that the filenames are constructed as follows:

• Sections and annexes in "rm9x-X.html" where X is a two-digit number (e.g. "01") for a section and a single character (e.g. "A") for an annex.

• Clauses in "rm9x-X-Y.html" where Y is a two-digit number for the clause in section/annex X (see above).

• Subclauses in "rm9x-X-Y-Z.html" where Z is a two-digit number for the subclause in clause Y in section/annex X (see above).

• Add "#N" to the filename to directly access paragraph "N" in a section, annex, clause, or subclause (e.g. "rm9x-01.html#2" for paragraph 2 in section 1).

• The corresponding local table of contents of a section, annex, or clause has the prefix "rm9x-toc-" instead of "rm9x-" (e.g. "rm9x-toc-01.html" for the TOC of section 1).