[svn-r15237] Description:

	Merge revisions 14900:15037 from trunk into metadata journaling branch

Tested on:
        FreeBSD/32 6.2 (duty) in debug mode
        FreeBSD/64 6.2 (liberty) w/C++ & FORTRAN, in debug mode
        Linux/32 2.6 (kagiso) w/PGI compilers, w/C++ & FORTRAN, w/threadsafe,
                                in debug mode
        Linux/64-amd64 2.6 (smirom) w/default API=1.6.x, w/C++ & FORTRAN,
                                in production mode
        Linux/64-ia64 2.6 (cobalt) w/Intel compilers, w/C++ & FORTRAN,
                                in production mode
        Solaris/32 2.10 (linew) w/deprecated symbols disabled, w/C++ & FORTRAN,
                                w/szip filter, in production mode
        Mac OS X/32 10.5.2 (amazon) in debug mode
        Linux/64-ia64 2.4 (tg-login3) w/parallel, w/FORTRAN, in production mode

8 files changed, 267 insertions, 182 deletions

diff --git a/release_docs/INSTALL b/release_docs/INSTALL
index 4a9a567..9f18c55 100644
--- a/release_docs/INSTALL
+++ b/release_docs/INSTALL
@@ -622,11 +622,6 @@ A. Warnings about compilers
 A.1. GNU (Intel platforms)
         Versions before 2.8.1 have serious problems allocating registers
         when functions contain operations on `long long' datatypes.
-        Supplying the `--disable-hsizet' switch to configure (documented
-        in Appendix B, "Large (>2GB) versus small (<2GB) file capability,")
-        will prevent HDF5 from using `long long' datatypes in
-        situations that are known not to work, but it limits the HDF5
-        address space to 2GB.
 
 A.2. COMPAQ/DEC
         The V5.2-038 compiler (and possibly others) occasionally
@@ -656,10 +651,8 @@ B. Large (>2GB) versus small (<2GB) file capability
         than 2GB, it is necessary to use the non-ANSI `long long' data
         type on some platforms. However, some compilers (e.g., GNU gcc
         versions before 2.8.1 on Intel platforms) are unable to produce
-        correct machine code for this datatype. To disable use of the
-        `long long' type on these machines, say:
+        correct machine code for this datatype. 
 
-            $ ./configure --disable-hsizet
 
 C. Building and testing with other compilers
 C.1.  Building and testing with Intel compilers
diff --git a/release_docs/INSTALL_Cygwin.txt b/release_docs/INSTALL_Cygwin.txt
index b63d294..20da44a 100644
--- a/release_docs/INSTALL_Cygwin.txt
+++ b/release_docs/INSTALL_Cygwin.txt
@@ -23,16 +23,15 @@ Preconditions:
 
 2. Compilers Installed
 
-   2.1 C/C++ Compilers HDF5-1.8.0 Supported
+   2.1 C/C++ Compilers HDF5-1.8 Supported
 
        gcc-3.4.4 is included in Cygwin, which includes: 
        gcc    : GNU C compiler
        gcc-g++: GNU C++ compiler
-       gcc-g77: GNU Fortran 77 compiler
 
-   2.2 Fortran Compiler HDF5-1.8.0 Supported
+   2.2 Fortran Compiler HDF5-1.8 Supported
        
-       HDF5-1.8.0 supports g95(GCC 4.0.1 (g95!) Jul 22 2005) and higher.
+       HDF5-1.8 supports g95(GCC 4.0.1 (g95!) Jul 22 2005) and higher.
        
        g95 is a free, open source Fortran 95 compiler. Users can 
        download the g95 binaries for Cygwin in the following website: 
@@ -84,21 +83,30 @@ Install HDF5 on Cygwin
 
    The HDF5 source code is distributed in a variety of formats which
    can be unpacked with the following commands, each of which creates 
-   an `hdf5-1.8.0' directory.
+   an `hdf5-1.8.1' directory.
 
    2.1 Non-compressed tar archive (*.tar)
 
-            $ tar xf hdf5-1.8.0.tar
+            $ tar xf hdf5-1.8.1.tar
 
    2.2 Gzip'd tar archive (*.tar.gz)
 
-            $ gunzip < hdf5-1.8.0.tar.gz | tar xf -
+            $ gunzip < hdf5-1.8.1.tar.gz | tar xf -
 
    2.3 Bzip'd tar archive (*.tar.bz2)
 
-            $ bunzip2 < hdf5-1.8.0.tar.bz2 | tar xf - 
+            $ bunzip2 < hdf5-1.8.1.tar.bz2 | tar xf - 
+
+2. Setup Environment
+
+    In Cygwin, most compilers and setting are automatically detected during
+    the configure script.  However, if you are building Fortran we recommend 
+    that you explicitly set the "FC" variable in your environment to use the 
+    g95 Fortran compiler.  For example, issue the command:
+    
+            $ export FC=g95
             
-3. Configuring 
+4. Configuring 
      
    Notes: See detailed information in hdf5/release_docs/INSTALL, 
           part 5. Full installation instructions for source 
@@ -112,19 +120,19 @@ Install HDF5 on Cygwin
      
    In short,
      
-   3.1 To configure HDF5 C Library, using 
+   To configure HDF5 C Library, using 
             
             $ ./configure
                    
-   3.2 To configure HDF5 C/C++ Library, using
+   To configure HDF5 C/C++ Library, using
 
             $ ./configure --enable-cxx
                    
-   3.3 To configure HDF5 C/Fortran Library, using
+   To configure HDF5 C/Fortran Library, using
 
             $ ./configure --enable-fortran
                    
-   3.4 To configure HDF5 C with Szip library, using
+   To configure HDF5 C with Szip library, using
 
             $ ./configure  --with-szlib="path to szlib"
            
@@ -135,15 +143,15 @@ Install HDF5 on Cygwin
            
             $ ./configure --with-szlib=/cygdrive/c/szip
                    
-   3.5 To configure HDF5 C without Zlib,
+   To configure HDF5 C without Zlib,
      
        To disable zlib, using
 
            $ ./configure --without-zlib
            
-   3.6 Two ways to configure HDF5 C with specified Zlib
+   Two ways to configure HDF5 C with specified Zlib
      
-     3.6.1 Using
+      Using
 
            $ ./configure --with-zlib=INCDIR,LIBDIR
 
@@ -153,7 +161,7 @@ Install HDF5 on Cygwin
 
  $ ./configure --with-zlib=/cygdrive/c/usr/include,/cygdrive/c/usr/lib
 
-     3.6.2 Through the CPPFLAGS and LDFLAGS Variables
+      Through the CPPFLAGS and LDFLAGS Variables
            
        For example, if zlib was installed in the directory 
        /cygdrive/c/usr then using the following command to configure 
@@ -163,7 +171,7 @@ Install HDF5 on Cygwin
            $ LDFLAGS=-L/cygdrive/c/usr/lib \
            $ ./configure
 
-   3.7 To specify the installation directories, using 
+    To specify the installation directories, using 
 
             $ ./configure --prefix="path for installation"
                  
@@ -174,7 +182,7 @@ Install HDF5 on Cygwin
        the path with the `--prefix=PATH' switch as in the above
        command.
 
-   3.8 Combination of Switches 
+    Combination of Switches 
 
        All of the above switches can be combined together. For 
        example, if users want to configure HDF5 C/C++/Fortran 
@@ -209,7 +217,7 @@ Install HDF5 on Cygwin
              --enable-fortran 
              <"If no more switches, then hit Enter">
                           
-4. Make and Make Check
+5. Make and Make Check
 
    After configuration is done successfully, run the following series of
    commands to build, test and install HDF5
@@ -220,19 +228,19 @@ Install HDF5 on Cygwin
    Before run "make install", check output file for "make check", there
    should be no failures at all.
 
-5. Make Install
+6. Make Install
 
             $ make install  > "output file name"
    
      
-6. Check installed HDF5 library
+7. Check installed HDF5 library
 
-   After step 4, go to your installation directory, there should be 
+   After step 6, go to your installation directory, there should be 
    three subdirectories: "bin" "include" and "lib".
 
-7. Known Problems 
+8. Known Problems 
    
-   Shared libraries can not be built on Cygwin In release 1.8.0.
+   Shared libraries can not be built on Cygwin In release 1.8.
 
 -----------------------------------------------------------------------
 
diff --git a/release_docs/INSTALL_MinGW.txt b/release_docs/INSTALL_MinGW.txt
index 47dcadd..75ef07f 100644
--- a/release_docs/INSTALL_MinGW.txt
+++ b/release_docs/INSTALL_MinGW.txt
@@ -5,7 +5,7 @@
 Preconditions:

 --------------

 

-1. Installed MinGW (5.1.2 or higher) and MSYS (1.0.10 or higher)

+1. Installed MinGW (5.1.4 or higher) and MSYS (1.0.10 or higher)

 

    To install the MinGW net release, go to http://www.mingw.org and 

    click on "Install or update now!" icon. This will download a GUI 

@@ -15,7 +15,7 @@ Preconditions:
 

 2. Compilers Installed

 

-   2.1 C/C++ Compilers HDF5-1.8.0 Supported

+   2.1 C/C++ Compilers HDF5-1.8.1 Supported

 

        gcc-3.4.2 is included in MinGW, which includes: 

        gcc    : GNU C compiler

@@ -31,7 +31,9 @@ Preconditions:
        try to set the following variables to override the default 

        choices.

        

+       CC  : C compiler command

        CXX : C++ compiler command

+       FC  : Fortran compiler command

        

 3. HDF5 Dependencies

 

@@ -61,28 +63,51 @@ Build HDF5 on MinGW
 

    The HDF5 source code is distributed in a variety of formats which

    can be unpacked with the following commands, each of which creates 

-   an `hdf5-1.8.0' directory.

+   an `hdf5-1.8.1' directory.

 

    2.1 Non-compressed tar archive (*.tar)

 

-            $ tar xf hdf5-1.8.0.tar

+            $ tar xf hdf5-1.8.1.tar

 

    2.2 Gzip'd tar archive (*.tar.gz)

 

-            $ gunzip < hdf5-1.8.0.tar.gz | tar xf -

+            $ gunzip < hdf5-1.8.1.tar.gz | tar xf -

 

    2.3 Bzip'd tar archive (*.tar.bz2)

 

-            $ bunzip2 < hdf5-1.8.0.tar.bz2 | tar xf - 

+            $ bunzip2 < hdf5-1.8.1.tar.bz2 | tar xf - 

             

 3. Setup Environment

 

-   Building HDF5 1.8.0 requires an explicit link to libws2_32.a

+   Building HDF5 1.8.1 requires an explicit link to libws2_32.a

    to handle Windows Sockets.  To do this, issue the command:

    

             $ export LIBS=-lws2_32

+            

+   Also, the default search path can cause trouble using ./configure in HDF5

+   1.8.1.  Check that non-MinGW or non-msys directories are not added to the

+   PATH.  You can do this by:

+   

+            $ echo $PATH

+            

+   If there are spurious entries, specifically those related to other Windows

+   compilers or tools, remove them by setting a new PATH without them.  For

+   example,

+   

+            $ export PATH=.:/usr/local/bin:/mingw/bin:/bin

 

-4. Remove Tests

+            

+4. Remove Unsupported Source

+

+   There are some projects which are built by default to test performance on

+   POSIX systems.  They are irrelevent on MinGW, and can cause compiler errors.

+   

+   To remove these projects from the build script, open ./perform/Makefile.in

+   Find all instances of "h5perf_serial", and remove them (along with their

+   respective extension or targets, if they exist).  Then save the file.

+   

+   

+5. Remove Tests

    

    When building with MinGW, many tests must be removed from the

    test suite run with "make check".  This is because of the way

@@ -111,33 +136,26 @@ Build HDF5 on MinGW
         

         - ./tools/misc/Makefile.in: "testh5mkgrp.sh"

         

-        - ./tools/h5jam/Makefile.in: "testh5jam.sh"

-        

         - ./tools/h5copy/Makefile.in: "testh5copy.sh"

         

         - ./tools/h5ls/Makefile.in: "testh5ls.sh"

         

         - ./tools/h5stat/Makefile.in: "testh5stat.sh"

-   

         

-5. Configuring 

+        

+6. Configuring 

      

    Notes: 

-       1) The stream vfd in HDF5 is not supported on MinGW.

-          Therefore, each configuration must incude the parameter

-          "--disable-stream-vfd".

-          

-       2) Building Fortran libraries is also currently unsupported.  This is

+       1) Building Fortran libraries is also currently unsupported.  This is

           because the current release of gcc for mingw (3.4.5) is not compatible

           with the current g95 for mingw (g95 0.91!, gcc version 4.0.3).

           

-          However, if you would like to build gcc 4.x on your own, there are

-          instructions for doing so here: 

-          http://www.mingw.org/MinGWiki/index.php/How%20to%20Compile%20GCC%204.1

-          Remember that this is UNSUPPORTED, and any Fortran binaries build

-          should be considered experimental.

+          However, MinGW offers versions of gcc 4.x as a "Technology Preview"

+          or "Testing" release.  These should be compatible with the latest

+          MinGW g95, but is untested.  Keep in mind that this is UNSUPPORTED, 

+          and any Fortran binaries build should be considered experimental.

        

-       4) Shared libraries can not be built on MinGW in release 1.8.0.

+       2) Shared libraries can not be built on MinGW in release 1.8.1.

           

        3) See detailed information in hdf5/release_docs/INSTALL, 

           part 5. Full installation instructions for source 

@@ -145,40 +163,40 @@ Build HDF5 on MinGW
      

    In short,

      

-   5.1 To configure HDF5 with C Library, use 

+   To configure HDF5 with C Library, use 

             

-            $ ./configure --disable-stream-vfd

+            $ ./configure

                    

-   5.2 If you would like to build the C++ library, add the parameter:

+   If you would like to build the C++ library, add the parameter:

 

             --enable-cxx

                                                          

-   5.3 If you would like to build without the Zlib library, add the parameter:

+   If you would like to build without the Zlib library, add the parameter:

      

            --without-zlib

            

-   5.4 If you would like to specify the the Zlib library, there are two ways:

+   If you would like to specify the the Zlib library, there are two ways:

      

-     5.4.1 Using

+     Using

 

            --with-zlib=INCDIR,LIBDIR

 

        For example, if the zlib library is installed in

-       /c/usr, which is the parent directory of directories

+       /usr, which is the parent directory of directories

        "include" and "lib", 

 

-           --with-zlib=/c/usr/include,/c/usr/lib

+           --with-zlib=/usr/include,/usr/lib

 

-     5.4.2 Through the CPPFLAGS and LDFLAGS Variables

+     Through the CPPFLAGS and LDFLAGS Variables

            

        For example, if zlib was installed in the directory 

        /c/usr then using the following command to configure 

        HDF5 with zib

 

-           $ export CPPFLAGS=-I/c/usr/include

-           $ export LDFLAGS=-L/c/usr/lib

+           $ export CPPFLAGS=-I/usr/include

+           $ export LDFLAGS=-L/usr/lib

 

-   5.6 If you would like to specify the install directory, add the parameter:

+   If you would like to specify the install directory, add the parameter:

 

             --prefix="path for installation"

                  

@@ -189,7 +207,7 @@ Build HDF5 on MinGW
        the path with the `--prefix=PATH' switch as in the above

        command.

 

-   5.7 Combination of Switches 

+   Combination of Switches 

 

        All of the above switches can be combined together. For 

        example, if users want to configure HDF5 C/C++

@@ -198,10 +216,9 @@ Build HDF5 on MinGW
        gcc/g++ as C/C++ compiler:

      

            $ ./configure

-             --with-zlib=/c/usr/include,/c/usr/lib

+             --with-zlib=/usr/include,/usr/lib

              --prefix=/c/hdf5

              --enable-cxx

-             --disable-stream-vfd

              <"If no more switches, then hit Enter">

 

        Notes: The command format above is for readilibity. In practice,

@@ -212,16 +229,15 @@ Build HDF5 on MinGW
  

      or do it through CPPFLAGS and LDFLAGS variables:

      

-           $ CPPFLAGS=-I/c/usr/include \

-           $ LDFLAGS=-L/c/usr/lib \

+           $ CPPFLAGS=-I/usr/include \

+           $ LDFLAGS=-L/usr/lib \

 

            $ ./configure

              --prefix=/c/hdf5

              --enable-cxx

-             --disable-stream-vfd

              <"If no more switches, then hit Enter">

                           

-6. Make and Make Check

+7. Make and Make Check

 

    After configuration is done successfully, run the following series of

    commands to build, test and install HDF5

@@ -232,12 +248,12 @@ Build HDF5 on MinGW
    Before run "make install", check output file for "make check", there

    should be no failures at all.

 

-7. Make Install

+8. Make Install

 

             $ make install  > "output file name"

    

      

-8. Check installed HDF5 library

+9. Check installed HDF5 library

 

    After step 4, go to your installation directory, there should be 

    three subdirectories: "bin" "include" and "lib".

diff --git a/release_docs/INSTALL_Windows.txt b/release_docs/INSTALL_Windows.txt
index 1facd81..76b0c09 100644
--- a/release_docs/INSTALL_Windows.txt
+++ b/release_docs/INSTALL_Windows.txt
@@ -33,7 +33,11 @@ Contents:
 
 Preconditions:
 
-   1. Installed Microsoft Visual Studio 2005.
+   1. Installed Microsoft Visual Studio.  This document is written for Visual
+      Studio 2005, although we also support Visual Studio .NET 2003.  Most of 
+      the instructions are the same, although some features are unsupported in
+      Visual Studio .NET.  For simple Visual Studio .NET instructions, see the
+      document INSTALL_Windows_NET.TXT.
    
    2. (Optional) Installed Intel Compiler 9.1 if you want to build HDF5 Fortran 
       libraries.
@@ -79,9 +83,9 @@ Preconditions:
           to download the Zlib library.
 
 
-      6.2 HDF5 uses Szip version 2.0 for compression and Szip compression 
-          software is provided with HDF5 products in 1.8.0 release.  To use 
-          Szip 2.0 library, you can download Szip source codes and binaries from
+      6.2 HDF5 uses Szip version 2.1 for compression and Szip compression 
+          software is provided with HDF5 products in 1.8.1 release.  To use 
+          Szip 2.1 library, you can download Szip source codes and binaries from
           ftp://ftp.hdfgroup.org/lib-external/szip/2.1/bin/windows
 
           Please note that Szip is not a totally open-source free software.  
@@ -135,29 +139,35 @@ Preconditions:
 
       Invoke Microsoft Visual Studio and go to "Tools" and select "Options", 
       find "Projects", and then "VC++ Directories".
+      
+      6.1 If you are building on 64-bit Windows, find the "Platform" dropdown
+          and select "x64".
 
-      6.1 Find the box "Show directories for", choose "Include files", if you 
+      6.2 Find the box "Show directories for", choose "Include files", if you 
           can not find your Zlib and Szip header path (for example, 
           c:\zlib123\include, c:\szip\include) from the directory list, add the 
           header path (c:\zlib123\include, c:\szip\include) to the included 
           directories.
 
-      6.2 Find the box "Show directories for", choose "Library files".  If you 
+      6.3 Find the box "Show directories for", choose "Library files".  If you 
           cannot find your Zlib and Szip library path (for example, 
           c:\zlib123\lib, c:\szip\dll) from the directory list, add the library 
           path (c:\zlib123\lib, c:\szip\dll) to the library directories.
+          
+      6.4 If building Fortran libraries, you will also need to setup the path
+          for the Intel Fortran compiler.  Please see Section VI.
 
 Notes:
 
-   1. In release 1.8.0, all.zip is deprecated. Users should go to hdf5/windows 
-      directory, run copy_hdf.bat first and then open all.dsw under 
+   1. As of 1.8.0, all.zip is deprecated. Users should go to hdf5/windows 
+      directory, run copy_hdf.bat first and then open all.sln under 
       hdf5/windows/proj/all to start building process.
 
    2. Visual Studio 6.0 will not be supported in HDF5 1.8 or later release.
 
    2. Users who prefer to use Visual Studio .NET can follow instructions in 
       INSTALL_Windows_Short_Net.txt.  Note, however,  HDF5 Fortran product
-      will not be supported in HDF5 1.8 release.
+      will not be supported in HDF5 1.8 release with Visual Studio .NET.
 
    3. For users who want to quickly build HDF5 library or do not want to know 
       HDF5 building and installation details, please read the 
@@ -230,7 +240,7 @@ STEP 1: Building HDF5 Libraries and Tools
    1. Run batch file copy_hdf.bat
 
       Go to  c:\MyHDFstuff\hdf5\windows and run copy_hdf.bat. This process will 
-      copy all the necessary batch files, windows specific source codes and 
+      copy all the necessary batch files, Windows-specific source code and 
       text files saved under c:\MyHDFstuff\hdf5\windows directory to the 
       corresponding directories under hdf5.
 
@@ -276,6 +286,11 @@ STEP 1: Building HDF5 Libraries and Tools
              hl_test_dsdll
              hl_test_packet
              hl_test_packetdll
+             
+       Note: Disabling some projects will likely produce false errors in the
+             testing script.  Check the output carefully to ensure that the
+             errors are related to the disabled projects, and then safely
+             ignore them.
 
 
    4. Select "Build", then Select "Configuration Manager".
@@ -292,7 +307,7 @@ STEP 1: Building HDF5 Libraries and Tools
       Select "Build" -> "Build Solution" or "Rebuild Solution" to build release 
       version of project "all".
 
-      Both debug and release versions must be built.
+      Both debug and release versions must be built for testing.
 
       Warning messages can be ignored.
 
@@ -410,6 +425,18 @@ STEP 2: Testing HDF5 Libraries and Tools
 HDF5 libraries and tools should be tested to make sure that they were built 
 correctly.
 
+Note:   The complete testing suite can take a long time to run on even fast
+        machines.  Some of the longer tests can be automatically shortened by
+        defining an environment variable HDF5TestExpress.  Set HDF5TestExpress
+        to 3 for fastest, or 0 for slowest.  For example:
+        
+            set HDF5TestExpress=3
+            
+        If the variable is unset, it takes on the value 1.  Note that when
+        HDF5TestExpress is set to 2 or 3, some features may not be thoroughly
+        tested.  For most users, we recommend not setting this variable.
+        
+
 We provide 2 options for users to test HDF5 libraries and tools.
 
    Option 1: Automatic testings
@@ -539,29 +566,7 @@ We provide 2 options for users to test HDF5 libraries and tools.
       Use a text editor to check results. You should not find any FAILED marks 
       in your output files.
 
-   4. HDF5 Fortran library test
-
-      Skip this step UNLESS you have built HDF5 Fortran libraries in Section 
-      VII, and want to test them.
-
-      Open a command prompt in the hdf5\fortran\test directory
-      
-         a) Release Static, type:
-            checkfortrantests release >"Your output filename"
-
-         b) Release DLL, type:
-            checkfortrantests release dll >"Your output filename"
-
-         c) Debug Static, type:
-            checkfortrantests debug >"Your output filename"
-
-         d) Debug DLL, type:
-            checkfortrantests debug dll >"Your output filename"
-
-      Use a text editor to check results. You should not find any FAILED marks 
-      in your output files.
-
-    5. HDF5 High-Level library test
+    4. HDF5 High-Level library test
 
     Skip this step UNLESS you have built HDF5 High-Level libraries and want to 
     test them.
@@ -583,7 +588,7 @@ We provide 2 options for users to test HDF5 libraries and tools.
       Use a text editor to check results. You should not find any FAILED marks 
       in your output files.
 
-    6.  HDF5 High-Level C++ library test
+    5.  HDF5 High-Level C++ library test
 
     Skip this step UNLESS you have built HDF5 High-Level C++ libraries and want 
     to test them.
@@ -605,28 +610,7 @@ We provide 2 options for users to test HDF5 libraries and tools.
       Use a text editor to check results. You should not find any FAILED marks 
       in your output files.
 
-    7. HDF5 High-Level Fortran library test
-
-    Skip this step UNLESS you have built HDF5 High-Level Fortran libraries and 
-    want to test them.
-
-      Open a command prompt in the hdf5\hl\fortran\test directory
-
-         a) Release Static, type:
-            checkhlfortrantests release >"Your output filename"
-
-         b) Release DLL, type:
-            checkhlfortrantests release dll >"Your output filename"
-
-         c) Debug Static, type:
-            checkhlfortrantests debug >"Your output filename"
-
-         d) Debug DLL, type:
-            checkhlfortrantests debug dll >"Your output filename"
-
-      Use a text editor to check results. You should not find any FAILED marks 
-      in your output files.
-
+    Note: See Section VI for instructions on testing Fortran libraries.
       
  STEP 3: Installing HDF5 Libraries
 
@@ -888,8 +872,6 @@ the HDF static library, for example:
 c:\MyHDFstuff\hdf5\hdf5lib\release\include
 c:\MyHDFstuff\hdf5\hdf5lib\release\lib
 
-If you have installed HDF5 library in Section II, step 3.
-
 We assume that you will use Zlib and Szip compression with HDF5 library.
 
 1. Specifying Include Directories
@@ -929,21 +911,65 @@ project, you may choose one of the following two methods.
   Method Two: Visual Studio Settings
 
     1. In Visual STudio, go to Tools->Options->Projects->
-       VC++ Directories.
+       VC++ Directories.  Under "Show Directories For", select "Include files"
 
-    2. Insert the correct HDF5, Zlib, Szip paths for both headers(include)
-       and libraries.  For example,
+    2. Insert the correct HDF5, Zlib, Szip paths for headers(include).  For 
+       example,
 
           c:\MyHDFstuff\hdf5\hdf5lib\release\include
-          c:\MyHDFstuff\hdf5\hdf5lib\release\lib
           c:\zlib123\include
-          c:\zlib123\lib
           c:\szip\include
+
+    
+2. Specifying Library Directories
+
+To specify the library directories in the settings for your Visual Studio 
+project, you may choose one of the following two methods.
+
+  Method One: Project-wide Settings
+
+    1. Open your project in Microsoft Visual Studio and make sure it is the 
+       active project.
+
+    2. Go to the Project menu and chose the "Properties" option.
+
+    3. Choose the build configuration you would like to modify in the drop 
+       down menu labeled "Configuration:"
+
+    4. Choose the "Linker" tab, anc select "General".
+
+    5. In a text-area labeled with "Additional Library Directories:", add 
+       HDF5, Zlib, and Szip library files directories.  For example:
+
+          c:\MyHDFstuff\hdf5\hdf5lib\release\lib
+          c:\zlib123\lib
           c:\szip\dll
+          
+      Note: To link with HDF5 DLLs rathern that static libraries, simply
+            specify the "dll" directory rather than "lib", and link with the
+            corresponding DLL link library below.
 
-    3. Go to the Project menu and choose the "Settings" option.
+       Then click OK.
 
-2. Specifying Linking Directories
+          
+  Method Two: Visual Studio Settings
+
+    1. In Visual STudio, go to Tools->Options->Projects->
+       VC++ Directories.  Under "Show Directories For", select "Library files"
+
+    2. Insert the correct HDF5, Zlib, Szip paths for link libraries.  For 
+       example,
+
+          c:\MyHDFstuff\hdf5\hdf5lib\release\lib
+          c:\zlib123\lib
+          c:\szip\dll
+          
+       Note: To link with HDF5 DLLs rathern that static libraries, simply
+            specify the "dll" directory rather than "lib", and link with the
+            corresponding DLL link library below.
+
+    
+3. Specifying Libraries to Link
 
   To link the HDF5 static library with your application:
 
@@ -1016,6 +1042,10 @@ Warning: When you modify the H5pubconf.h file as described below, DO NOT just
    To disable Gzip and Szip at the same time, just make the appropriate
    modifications to H5pubconf.h and the environmental variables all together,
    and then Run-compile.
+   
+   These instructions assume that copy_hdf.bat has already been run in Section
+   II.  If you can't find H5pubconf.h file in the specified directory, please
+   verify that this script has been run.
          
    1. Disable Gzip (Zlib) Compression
 
@@ -1075,11 +1105,13 @@ Warning: When you modify the H5pubconf.h file as described below, DO NOT just
           library and header path should also be set up accordingly (refer to 
           precondition 6).
 
-      3.2 Run-compile HDF5 library according to Section II.
+      3.2 Run-compile HDF5 library according to Section II.  The encoding
+          functionality is detected dynamically.
 
 ========================================================================
-          Section VI: How to build HDF5 with Intel Fortran 9.1
+          Section VI: How to build HDF5 with Fortran Support
 ========================================================================
+
 Notes:  1. For Intel Compiler users, Intel fortran Compiler 9.1 is currently
         supported-- please see below.  Intel Compiler verion 7.x and 8.x are no 
         longer supported.
@@ -1089,16 +1121,15 @@ Notes:  1. For Intel Compiler users, Intel fortran Compiler 9.1 is currently
         3. Intel Fortran 9.1 works only under Visual Studio 2005 environments.
         
         4. Parallel builds should be disabled.  To do so: Go to  Tools > 
-        Options > Projects and Solutions > Build and Run. Set "Maximum Number of
-        Parallel Project Builds" to 1.
+           Options > Projects and Solutions > Build and Run. Set "Maximum Number
+           of Parallel Project Builds" to 1.
         
 
   Preconditions:
 
      a. Setup Szip Library for Intel Compiler.
 
-     Intel compilers use different Szip library from other compilers.
-     Szip source codes or binaries for Intel compiler can be downloaded
+     Szip source codes or binaries for Windows compilers can be downloaded
      from the following address:
 
      ftp://ftp.hdfgroup.org/lib-external/szip/2.1/bin/windows.
@@ -1356,14 +1387,14 @@ Notes:  1. For Intel Compiler users, Intel fortran Compiler 9.1 is currently
 Notes: In Visual Studio 2005, the Single-threaded runtime libraries have been
        depreciated, and Multi-threaded is built by default.  Therefore, no extra
        work needs to be done to build Multi-threaded libraries in Visual Studio
-       2005.
+       2005.  This section applies only to Visual Studio .NET
 
        Preconditions and Section I also apply to this section. Users who
        want to build Multi-threaded version of HDF5 library, please read
        those two sections carefully before go to the following part.
 
        
-In Visual Studio.Net, users have the option of building multi-threaded
+In Visual Studio .NET, users have the option of building multi-threaded
 libraries by manipulating the project settings.  Otherwise, the build process
 is very much the same.  Therefore, follow the instructions below, and refer
 to the earlier sections of this document for details on building and testing.
@@ -1416,9 +1447,9 @@ to the earlier sections of this document for details on building and testing.
    Posix Threads for Windows is a open source free software. Users can download 
    it from http://sources.redhat.com/pthreads-win32/.
 
-   HDF5 release 1.8.0 supports Pthread-Win32 2.7.0 (2005-06-04) or later. Since 
-   pthreadVC2.dll used by HDF5 1.8.0 is the release version dll of 
-   pthread-win32, ONLY HDF5 1.8.0 release dll are supported and tested on 
+   HDF5 release 1.8 supports Pthread-Win32 2.7.0 (2005-06-04) or later. Since 
+   pthreadVC2.dll used by HDF5 1.8 is the release version dll of 
+   pthread-win32, ONLY HDF5 1.8 release dll are supported and tested on 
    Windows XP.
 
    Pre2. Set Path for Pthread-Win32 header and library
@@ -1484,7 +1515,7 @@ to the earlier sections of this document for details on building and testing.
    1.1 Run batch file copy_hdf.bat.
 
    Go to  c:\MyHDFstuff\hdf5\windows and run copy_hdf.bat. This process will 
-   copy all the necessary batch files,windows specific source codes and text 
+   copy all the necessary batch files, Windows-specific source code and text 
    files saved under c:\MyHDFstuff\hdf5\windows directory to the corresponding 
    directories under hdf5.
 
@@ -1545,7 +1576,7 @@ to the earlier sections of this document for details on building and testing.
 
    Right-click on project ttsafedll and click "Build" to build release version 
    of Project ttsafedll.exe.
-
+   
    2.3 Install hdf5dll.dll
 
    Invoke a comand prompt, change directory to c:\MYHDFSTUFF\hdf5, run batch 
@@ -1591,8 +1622,8 @@ Visual Studio 2005 for 64-bit builds.
 Notes:
   
     1. Building 64-bit HDF5 from a 32-bit machine is also unsupported.  Because 
-       we generate H5tinit.c from a generated 64-bit executable, this must be
-       done on a 64-bit machine.
+       we generate source file H5tinit.c from a generated 64-bit executable, 
+       this must be done on a 64-bit machine.
     
     
 Prerequisites:
@@ -1613,12 +1644,7 @@ Building:
            "Configuration Manager".  In the "Active solution platform" box, 
            select "x64", and press "Close".
            
-        2. If building Fortran libraries, the 64-bit Intel Fortran compiler
-           must be selected.  In Visual Studio, go to "Tools", "Options".  In
-           the right pane, select "Intel(R) Fortran", "General".  In the 
-           "Target Platform" box, select "x64".
-           
-        3. 64-bit HDF5 must be built with 64-bit external libraries, unless
+        2. 64-bit HDF5 must be built with 64-bit external libraries, unless
            external library support is disabled.  You must add the include and
            library paths for x64 configurations as you have in the 
            "Prerequisites" section.  This is also true for Intel Fortran if
@@ -1628,7 +1654,7 @@ Building:
 Testing:
     
     We provide a test suite to verify all libraries and tools were built
-    successfully.  This test suite should work identically on 32- and 64- bit
+    successfully.  This test suite should work identically on 32- and 64-bit
     builds.  Therefore, you may follow the instructions in Section II about
     testing.  Note that because 64-bit binaries were built, these tests must 
     run on a 64-bit machine.
@@ -1639,7 +1665,7 @@ Installing:
     into one folder, hdf5lib.  This script should work identically on 32- and 
     64-bit  builds.  Therefore, you may follow the instructions in Section II 
     about installing.  
-	
+
 ========================================================================
             Section X: How to build HDF5 on Windows Vista
 ========================================================================
@@ -1724,7 +1750,18 @@ using the Visual C++ Development Environment.
 
     If you create your own project, the necessary settings can be read
     from the all.vcproj file (as text), or from the Project Settings in the
-    Developer Studio project settings dialog.
+    Visual Studio project settings dialog.
+    
+    1.3 FAQ
+    
+    Many other common questions and hints are located online and being updated
+    in the HDF5 FAQ.  For Windows-specific questions, please see:
+    
+        http://www.hdfgroup.uiuc.edu/windows/faq.html
+        
+    For all other general questions, you can look in the general FAQ:
+    
+        http://hdfgroup.org/HDF5-FAQ.html
 
     
 ************************************************************************
diff --git a/release_docs/INSTALL_Windows_From_Command_Line.txt b/release_docs/INSTALL_Windows_From_Command_Line.txt
index 4d550e3..79b4eb6 100755
--- a/release_docs/INSTALL_Windows_From_Command_Line.txt
+++ b/release_docs/INSTALL_Windows_From_Command_Line.txt
@@ -9,7 +9,7 @@ Note: This instruction is written for users who would like to build HDF5
       Currently, we support 
       
       1. Building and testing HDF5 C/C++/Fortran libraries on command line with 
-         Microsoft Visual Studio 2005
+         Microsoft Visual Studio 2005 for 32- or 64-bit Windows.
       
       For all other Windows development tools, HDF5 should be built in
       the development environment.  Please refer to INSTALL_Windows.txt
@@ -61,8 +61,8 @@ notes in INSTALL_Windows.txt before starting below procedures.
     Similarly, set HDF5_EXT_SZIP to the name of the szip library on your system.
     
     (Optional) If you will be building using the /useenv switch, you must also
-    define variables INCLUDE and LIBPATH with a semi-colon deliminated list of
-    paths for szip and zlib include files, and libraries, respectively.  Set
+    define variables INCLUDE and LIB with a semi-colon deliminated list of
+    paths for szip and zlib include files and libraries, respectively.  Set
     these variables in the same way you set HDF5_EXT_ZLIB and HDF5_EXT_SZIP.
 
       
diff --git a/release_docs/INSTALL_Windows_Short_NET.TXT b/release_docs/INSTALL_Windows_Short_NET.TXT
index c60021c..cabd665 100755
--- a/release_docs/INSTALL_Windows_Short_NET.TXT
+++ b/release_docs/INSTALL_Windows_Short_NET.TXT
@@ -7,6 +7,11 @@ Notes: This short instruction is written for users who want to quickly
        build HDF5 library and tools from the HDF5 source code package
        with Microsoft Visual Studio .NET 2003 but do not want to know 
        HDF5 building and installation details on Windows XP.
+       
+       Visual Studio .NET 2003 is NOT supported on Windows Vista, as Microsoft
+       has ended their support.  Also, we do not support building 64-bit
+       libraries or Fortran libraries with Visual Studio .NET 2003.  If you
+       need any of these features, please upgrade to Visual STudio 2005.
          
        For detailed HDF5 build and install information, or if you have
        trouble following any steps in the instructions, please refer to
@@ -14,7 +19,8 @@ Notes: This short instruction is written for users who want to quickly
       
        For users who would like to build and test HDF5 package from the
        command line, please refer to
-       INSATLL_Windows_From_Command_Line.txt.
+       INSATLL_Windows_From_Command_Line.txt.  Note, however, that building
+       from the command line requires Visual Studio 2005.
 
 WARNINGS:
 
@@ -136,19 +142,12 @@ HDF5 libraries and tools should be tested to make sure that they were
 built correctly. c:\MyHDFstuff\hdf5\hdf5check.bat was provided to test
 HDF5 libraries and tools.
 
-hdf5check.bat has four options:
+hdf5check.bat has the following options:
    
    hdf5check                     test HDF5 C library and tools only
       
    hdf5check enablecpp           test HDF5 C/C++ libraries and tools
-         
-   hdf5check enablefortran       test HDF5 C/Fortran libraries and tools
-         
-   hdf5check enableall           test HDF5 C/C++/Fortran libraries and tools
-   
 
-Notes: Users who only build HDF5 C/C++ libraries ONLY have the first 
-       two options.
 
 Invoke a command prompt window and run hdf5check with appropriate option.
 Users are encouraged to pipe the test output into a file.  You should find
diff --git a/release_docs/INSTALL_Windows_Short_VS2005.TXT b/release_docs/INSTALL_Windows_Short_VS2005.TXT
index c205852..86068bf 100755
--- a/release_docs/INSTALL_Windows_Short_VS2005.TXT
+++ b/release_docs/INSTALL_Windows_Short_VS2005.TXT
@@ -14,6 +14,17 @@ Notes: This short instruction is written for users who want to quickly build
       
        For users who would like to build and test HDF5 package from the
        command line, please refer to INSATLL_Windows_From_Command_Line.txt.
+       
+       Notes:
+       
+         1. HDF5 1.8 can also be built using Visual Studio 2005 on Windows
+            Vista.  For details, please see Section X of INSTALL_Windows.txt.
+            
+         2. 64-bit builds are also supported in Visual STudio 2005.  For details
+            please see Section IX of INSTALL_Windows.txt.
+            
+         3. Fortran libraries can be built with Visual Studio 2005 and Intel
+            Fortran 9.1.  For details, see Section VI of INSTALL_Windows.txt.
 
 WARNINGS:
 
diff --git a/release_docs/RELEASE.txt b/release_docs/RELEASE.txt
index 881865b..ff8e0c3 100644
--- a/release_docs/RELEASE.txt
+++ b/release_docs/RELEASE.txt
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-HDF5 version 1.9.5 currently under development
+HDF5 version 1.9.6 currently under development
 ================================================================================
 
 
@@ -40,6 +40,18 @@ New Features
     Configuration:
     -------------
 
+    - Configuration suite now uses Autoconf 2.61, Automake 1.10.1, and 
+      Libtool 2.2.2 (MAM - 2008/05/05)
+
+    - There is a new build command, 'make check-perform', which will
+      run the tests in the perform directory. This is an optional step
+      afer 'make check' in the build process. (MAM - 2008/05/12)
+
+    - The new configure option "--disable-sharedlib-rpath" disables
+      embedding the '-Wl,-rpath' information into executables when
+      shared libraries are produced, and instead solely relies on the
+      information in LD_LIBRARY_PATH. (MAM - 2008/05/15)
+
     Library:
     --------
 
@@ -56,6 +68,15 @@ New Features
     Tools:
     ------
 
+     - h5dump: added a printing of the compression ratio of uncompressed and compressed 
+         sizes for cases where compression  filters are present. (PVN - 2008/05/01)
+     - h5dump: added an option to allow a user defined formatting string for printf 
+         regarding floating point numbers. (PVN - 2008/05/06)
+     - h5dump: support for external links, display the object that the external link 
+         points to. (PVN - 2008/05/12)
+
+
+
     High-Level APIs:
     ------
     
@@ -74,12 +95,12 @@ Bug Fixes since HDF5-1.8.0 release
 	  The searching pattern will depend on whether the target file's
 	  pathname is an absolute or a relative path. Please see the description
 	  in the RM for H5Lcreate_external().  (VC - 4/8/08)
-        - Fixed possible file corruption bug when encoding datatype
+      - Fixed possible file corruption bug when encoding datatype
             descriptions for compound datatypes whose size was between
             256 & 511 bytes and the file was opened with the "use the
             latest format" property enabled (with H5Pset_libver_bounds).
             (QAK - 2008/03/13)
-        - Fixed bug in H5Aget_num_attrs() routine to handle invalid location
+      - Fixed bug in H5Aget_num_attrs() routine to handle invalid location
             ID correctly.  (QAK - 2008/03/11)