LispWorks Personal Edition (PE) is a free, limited version of the professional Common Lisp development environment, designed for learning and evaluation rather than commercial production. It includes a robust Integrated Development Environment (IDE), a compiler, and a CAPI GUI toolkit. IDE Features
Graphical Tools: Includes a graphical stepper, tracer, code coverage browser, and class browser, which some users find more accessible than slime in Emacs.
Integrated Listener and Editor: Offers a robust listener (REPL) and editor with color-coded syntax and source navigation.
Advanced Debugger: Features a process browser to view, stop, or debug running processes, along with easy-to-use break points.
CAPI GUI Toolkit: Allows for building portable, native graphical user interfaces, a strong feature for GUI applications.
Cross-Platform: The IDE runs on Windows, Linux, macOS, and allows targeting different architectures. Limitations of Personal Edition
Session Time Limits: The IDE expires after a set time (e.g., 5 hours) and must be restarted. Heap Size Limit: The memory usage is strictly limited.
No Delivery (No Executables): The deliver function is unavailable, meaning you cannot create standalone executable binaries (.exe).
No Init Scripts: You cannot use init scripts to load libraries (like Quicklisp) automatically on startup.
Old Version/Modules: LispWorks PE is often based on older versions and lacks many of the specialized modules included in the Professional and Enterprise editions.
“Cons: It is 7 years old and seems way behind a professional and enterprise editions. Thus it will not let you evaluate the features available in editions the company tries to sell. ASDF is very old and need to be upgraded somehow before real usage….” Reddit · r/Common_Lisp · 6 years ago
Note: For non-commercial use, LispWorks now offers a Hobbyist Edition that removes many of these severe restrictions (no time limit, no heap limit) while still preventing commercial delivery.
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