  
  [1m[4m[31m1. Introduction[0m
  
  [1msimpcomp[0m  is  a  [1mGAP[0m  package  that  provides  the user with functions to do
  calculations  and constructions with simplicial complexes (see abstract). It
  builds on top of the [1mGAP[0m packages [1mhomology[0m [DH+04] by J.-G. Dumas et al. and
  [1mGRAPE[0m [S06] by L. Soicher.
  
  Most parts of this manual can be accessed directly from within [1mGAP[0m using its
  internal help system.
  
  
  [1m[4m[31m1.1 Why [1msimpcomp[1m[4m[31m[0m
  
  The  origin  of [1msimpcomp[0m was a collection of scripts of the two authors that
  provide  basic  and  often-needed  functions and operations for working with
  simplicial complexes.
  
  [1msimpcomp[0m  is written entirely in the [1mGAP[0m scripting language, thus giving the
  user  the possibility to see the behind the scenes and to customize or alter
  [1msimpcomp[0m functions if needed.
  
  The  main  benefit  when  working with [1msimpcomp[0m over implementing the needed
  functions  from  scratch  is  the  fact  that  [1msimpcomp[0m  takes  care  of the
  error-prone  vertex labeling of a complex and the fact that it transparently
  caches  properties  already  calculated,  thus preventing unnecessary double
  calculations  of the same property. It also provides the user with functions
  to  save  and load the simplicial complexes to and from files and ships with
  an   extensive   library   of   known   triangulations   of   manifolds  and
  pseudomanifolds.  This  allows  the  user  to work with many different known
  triangulations without having to construct them first.
  
  In  contrast  to  a  fully  fledged  software  package  like polymake [GJ00]
  providing  the  most  efficient  algorithms  for  each  task  in  form  of a
  heterogeneous   package   (where   algorithms  are  implemented  in  various
  languages),  the  primary  goal  when  developing [1msimpcomp[0m was not efficieny
  (this  is already limited by the [1mGAP[0m scripting language), but rather ease of
  use  and  ease of extensibility by the user in the [1mGAP[0m language with all its
  mathematical and algebraic capabilities.
  
  Extending  [1msimpcomp[0m  is possible directly from within [1mGAP[0m, without having to
  compile anything, see chapter [1m12.[0m.
  
  
  [1m[4m[31m1.2 How to save time reading this document[0m
  
  The   core   component   in  [1msimpcomp[0m  is  the  newly  defined  object  type
  [22m[32mSCSimplicialComplex[0m.  When  working  with  this  package  it is important to
  understand  how  objects of this type can be created, accessed and modified.
  The reader is therefore advised to first skim over chapter [1m3.[0m.
  
  The  impatient  reader may then directly skip to chapter [1m11.[0m to see [1msimpcomp[0m
  in action.
  
  The next advised step is to have a look at the functions for creating object
  of type [22m[32mSCSimplicialComplex[0m, see the first section of chapter [1m4.[0m.
  
  The  rest  of  chapter  [1m4.[0m  contains  most  of  the  functions that [1msimpcomp[0m
  provides, except for the functions related to (co-)homology, bistellar flips
  and the simplicial complex library that are described in the chapters [1m5.[0m, [1m6.[0m
  and [1m8.[0m.
  
  
  [1m[4m[31m1.3 Organization of this document[0m
  
  This manual accompanying [1msimpcomp[0m is divided into eleven chapters.
  
  --    The  second  chapter  provides a short introduction into the theory of
        simplicial complexes and PL-topology.
  
  --    The third chapter is devoted to the description of the [1mGAP[0m object type
        [22m[32mSCSimplicialComplex[0m that is defined by [1msimpcomp[0m.
  
  --    In  the fourth chapter functions for working with simplicial complexes
        that are provided by [1msimpcomp[0m are described.
  
  --    Chapter  five describes the homology- and cohomology-related functions
        of [1msimpcomp[0m.
  
  --    Chapter  six  contains  a  description  of  the  functions  related to
        bistellar flips provided by [1msimpcomp[0m.
  
  --    In  chapter  seven the simplicial complex library and the input output
        functionality that [1msimpcomp[0m provides is described in detail.
  
  --    Chapter  eight  contains  descriptions of functions not fitting in the
        other  chapters, such as the error handling and the email notification
        system of [1msimpcomp[0m.
  
  --    Chapter  nine  contains the transcript of a demo session with [1msimpcomp[0m
        showing  some  of  the  constructions and calculations with simplicial
        complexes that can also be used as a first overview of things possible
        with this package.
  
  --    Chapter  ten  contains  a  transcript of a demo session with [1msimpcomp[0m,
        showing some of its functionality.
  
  --    Finally,  chapter  eleven  focuses  on the description of the internal
        structure  of  the  [1msimpcomp[0m  and  deals with aspects of extending the
        functionality of the package.
  
  
  [1m[4m[31m1.4 How to assure [1msimpcomp[1m[4m[31m works correctly[0m
  
  As  with  all  software,  it is important to test whether [1msimpcomp[0m functions
  correctly  on  your  system after installing it. [1mGAP[0m has an internal testing
  mechanism and [1msimpcomp[0m ships with a short testing file that does some sample
  computations and verifies that the results are correct.
  
  To  test  the  functionality  of [1msimpcomp[0m you can run the function [1m[34mSCRunTest[0m
  ([1m9.3-1[0m) from the [1mGAP[0m console:
  
  [22m[35m-----------------------------  Log  ------------------------------[0m
    [22m[35mgap> SCRunTest();[0m
    [22m[35m+ test simpcomp package, version 1.1.21[0m
    [22m[35m+ GAP4stones: 69988[0m
    [22m[35mtrue[0m
    [22m[35mgap> [0m
  [22m[35m------------------------------------------------------------------[0m
  
  [1m[34mSCRunTest[0m ([1m9.3-1[0m) should return [22m[32mtrue[0m, otherwise the correct functionality of
  simpcomp cannot be guaranteed.
  
  
  [1m[4m[31m1.5 How to cite [1msimpcomp[1m[4m[31m[0m
  
  If  you  would like to cite [1msimpcomp[0m using BibTeX, you can use the following
  BibTeX entry for the current [1msimpcomp[0m version:
  
  
  @manual{simpcomp,
  	author = "Felix Effenberger and Jonathan Spreer",
  	title  = "{\tt simpcomp} - a {\tt GAP} toolkit for simplicial complexes,
  	          {V}ersion 1.1.21}",
  	year   = "2009",
  	url    = "\url{http://www.igt.uni-stuttgart.de/LstDiffgeo/simpcomp}",
  }
  If  you  are  not  using  BibTeX, you can use the following entry inside the
  bibliography environment of LaTeX.
  
  
  \bibitem{simpcomp}
  F.~Effenberger and J.~Spreer,
  \emph{{\tt simpcomp} -- a {\tt GAP} toolkit for simplicial complexes},
  Version 1.1.21, 
  2009,
  \url{http://www.igt.uni-stuttgart.de/LstDiffgeo/simpcomp}.
