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project summary
 
JFlex - The Fast Scanner Generator for Java

Current stable version is JFlex 1.4 released at April 12, 2004
 

What is it?

JFlex is a lexical analyzer generator (also known as scanner generator) for Java(tm), written in Java(tm). It is also a rewrite of the very useful tool JLex which was developed by Elliot Berk at Princeton University. As Vern Paxson states for his C/C++ tool flex: They do not share any code though.

JFlex is designed to work together with the LALR parser generator CUP by Scott Hudson, and the Java modification of Berkeley Yacc BYacc/J by Bob Jamison. It can also be used together with other parser generators like ANTLR or as a standalone tool.

Why should I use JFlex and not JLex? Well, you might want to take a look at the features of JFlex.
 
 

Is it free?

Yes. It is released under the GPL and available for free download. See also Copyright, License & Warranty. Code you generate with JFlex is not covered by the GPL, it is yours.
 
 

What's new in version 1.4?

Version 1.4 is adds a lot of new features and fixes all known bugs of 1.3.5. Most notable new features are

  • new, very fast minimization algorithm
  • new --jlex option for strict compatibility to JLex
  • support for even larger scanners (up to 64K DFA states)
  • faster character classes
  • new %apiprivate switch that causes all generated and skeleton methods to be made private
  • allow user defined javadoc class comments
  • optional parameter to %eofclose: "%eofclose false" turns off %eofclose if it was turned on previously (e.g. by %cup)
  • some internal changes: jflex build script switched to ant, better integration with build tools and IDEs, change scheme for generated names to comply with Java naming standard
     
See also the change log file for the complete list of changes.

What's new on these pages?

You might want to check out the list of files on this website ordered by modification date.
 
 

What platforms does JFlex support?

JFlex should run on any platform that supports a JRE/JDK 1.1 or above. I have compiled a list of platforms JFlex has been positively tested on.

Java is a trademark of Sun Microsystems. JFlex is not sponsored by or affiliated with Sun Microsystems

most recently modified at 2004-06-21 23:43 UTC by Gerwin Klein