Erlang Programming

Appendix A. Using Erlang

This appendix begins by helping you to get started with Erlang. We then recommend a number of tools to help you to develop Erlang-based systems more effectively. Finally, we tell you where you can find out more about Erlang, particularly from the many web-based resources for Erlang.

Getting Started with Erlang

This section tells you how to get started with Erlang: first, how you install it, and then how to run Erlang programs. We conclude by showing you the various commands in the Erlang shell that help you to be a power user of the shell, using the history mechanism and the line editing commands.

Installing the System

The Erlang distribution is available from the Erlang website, http://erlang.org/download.html or one of the many mirror sites. You can also download Erlang using BitTorrent, as well as find it bundled in many of the major Linux distributions. The sources are provided for compilation on Unix operating systems, including Linux and Mac OS X; for Windows, use the binary installer. When building from source, follow the instructions that come with the distribution.

Running the Erlang Shell

In Unix, Linux, and Mac OS X, you can run the Erlang shell from the command line by typing the erl command, setting whatever options you require.

To open an Erlang file in Windows, double-click the file icon; this will ensure that the system is opened in the correct directory. There are two variants of the system on Windows, available under “Open With” when you right-click ...