.IH "2	MAIN PROGRAMS and PROGRAMS in ALPHA-TESTING"
.LP
This chapter describes the
syntax and use of GRASS 5.0 programs that have undergone (and survived)
alpha- and beta-testing (i.e., initial testing by program developers,
and subsequent testing by out-of-house users).  These programs constitute
the bulk of GRASS and are respectively referred to in the
documentation as "Main Programs" and "Alpha Programs."  Main programs,
which receive both alpha- and beta-testing prior to their release and
are located in the \fIsrc\fR directory.  
Alpha programs receive only alpha-testing
prior to release and are located in the \fIsrc.alpha\fR directory.  For the
GRASS 5.0 release, both types of programs compile automatically during
general GRASS compilation.  The GRASS \fIInstallation Guide\fR
distributed with GRASS 5.0 software explains the compilation procedure.