grumbling again, the daemon says:
it's amazingly hot, but
> The following information was provided by the package's contributor.
>
> Name of contribution: siunitx
> Author's name: Joseph Wright
> Author's email: joseph.wright at morningstar2.co.uk
> Location on CTAN: /macros/latex/contrib/siunitx/
> Summary description: A comprehensive (SI) units package
> License type: lppl
>
> Announcement text given by the package's contributor:
> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
> ----------------------------------------------------------------
> ----------------------------------------------------------------
> The siunitx package --- A comprehensive (SI) units package
> ----------------------------------------------------------------
>
> Typesetting values with units requires care to ensure that the
> combined mathematical meaning of the value plus unit combination
> is clear. In particular, the SI units system lays down a
> consistent set of units with rules on how these are to be used.
> However, different countries and publishers have differing
> conventions on the exact appearance of numbers (and units).
>
> The siunitx package provides a set of tools for authors to
> typeset numbers and units in a consistent way. The package has
> an extended set of configuration options which make it possible
> to follow varying typographic conventions with the same input
> syntax. The package includes automated processing of numbers and
> units, and the ability to control tabular alignment of numbers.
>
> ----------------------------------------------------------------
> Version 2
> ----------------------------------------------------------------
>
> Over the past two years siunitx has developed to include many
> features not originally foreseen when development began. While
> it has been possible to add a range of new features, some of the
> underlying limitation of the version 1 code have made this
> difficult. At the same time, renewed effort by the LaTeX Team on
> the development of LaTeX3, and in particular the expl3
> programming system, has offered a more robust method to create
> the internal structure of siunitx. As a result, version 2 of
> siunitx has been almost completely re-written internally.
>
> As well as fixing a number of bugs and limitations in the
> original release, version 2 is also much better written to work
> quickly. As a result, most users should see performance
> enhancements with this new release of siunitx.
>
> As part of the revision of siunitx, the option system and user
> macros have been completely re-thought. The options now have
> longer, descriptive names and also a much clearer range of input
> values. The options which in version 1 took either a key word or
> a literal value have been replaced by ones which take literals
> only: in some cases this means that advice has been added to the
> documentation on how to get particular output effects.
>
> ----------------------------------------------------------------
> Moving from version 1 to version 2
> ----------------------------------------------------------------
>
> Depending on how you use siunitx, there may be very little to do
> to move to version 2. The new version includes a compatibility
> support file, meaning that loading siunitx using:
>
> \usepackage[load-configurations = version-1]{siunitx}
>
> should mean that existing documents compile with very few
> changes.
>
> There are some changes to standard settings between version 1
> and version 2, which may lead to some alterations in documents.
> At the same time, a small number of the features of siunitx
> version 1 which I feel did not work cleanly have been dropped.
> At present, some of these are scheduled to be re-examined for
> inclusion in later releases of siunitx.
>
> While there is a back-compatibility layer for users upgrading,
> it is strongly recommended that documents are updated to use the
> new option names and functions. The new approach has been chosen
> as it is an improvement on the previous version, and in the
> longer term this layer may be removed.
>
> ----------------------------------------------------------------
> Installation
> ----------------------------------------------------------------
>
> Most users will obtain siunitx as part of their TeX distribution.
> MiKTeX 2.8 should include siunitx version 2 after a short delay (a few
> days after CTAN upload); TeX live users won't see the package in their
> distribution until after the 2010 release has appeared. Both
> distributions also include the necessary support packages, and so
> simply updating will in due course lead to a working siunitx version 2
> installation.
>
> For users who wish to install siunitx themselves, the package is
> available as a pre-extracted zip file, siunitx.tds.zip. Simply
> unzip this in your local texmf directory and run 'texhash' to
> update the database of file locations. Version 2 of siunitx
> requires up to date versions of the LaTeX3 packages expl3 and
> xpackages. These are also available from CTAN in ready to
> install format (as expl3.tds.zip and xpackages.tds.zip), and can
> be installed in the same way if necessary.
>
> If you want to unpack the dtx yourself, running 'tex
> siunitx.dtx' will extract the package whereas 'latex
> siunitx.dtx' will extract it and also typeset the documentation.
> Typesetting the documentation requires a number of packages in
> addition to those needed to use siunitx. These should all be
> available in a complete TeX Live 2009 or MiKTeX 2.8
> installation.
>
> ----------------------------------------------------------------
> Development code and bug database
> ----------------------------------------------------------------
>
> In order to help users see what is happening, and also to allow
> me to work efficiently, the development code for siunitx is
> available on the code hosting site BitBucket:
>
>
http://bitbucket.org/josephwright/siunitx
>
> You can download the very latest code from there: of course,
> this may or may not work properly depending on exactly what I
> have added to the code.
>
> The BitBucket site includes an issue tracker, where you can
> report bugs or make feature requests. I also add bugs to the
> database from e-mails I get from users. Filling in the bug
> database helps to make sure that I do not forget things, and
> also helps other users see what issues are known.
>
> If you want to contribute code to siunitx, you can of course
> send patches directly to me. Alternatively, the code is hosted
> using the revision control system Mercurial, which was chosen as
> it is decentralised and is easy to install on a range of
> operating systems (I use MacOS X, Windows XP, Windows 7 and
> Ubuntu!). I'm happy to explain to potential contributors how
> Mercurial works for developing siunitx.
>
> ----------------------------------------------------------------
> Roadmap for future releases
> ----------------------------------------------------------------
>
> The bug database already includes a number of feature requests
> which are marked to be looked at for version 2.1: see
>
http://tinyurl.com/2b6flkt. The current intention is that the
> next few months will be devoted to bug fixes in this release
> (v2.0), with moves to add features for v2.1 beginning in the
> late summer. I anticipate that v2.1 will be released toward the
> end of 2010.
>
> It is likely that not all of the features currently marked as to
> be looked at for v2.1 will be fully working by the time it is
> released. At the same time, there are some longer term areas
> which may also need attention. Version 2.2 of siunitx is
> therefore planned, but with no current list of features marked
> for inclusion. This version is likely to appear in Spring 2011.
>
> One longer term aim is to include LuaTeX support in siunitx, so
> that the entire package can work much more rapidly with LuaTeX
> than when using TeX macros alone. This is not likely to happen
> until next year (2011), but is in the bug database and is part
> of the longer term development plan for siunitx.
>
> ----------------------------------------------------------------
> The internals of siunitx
> ----------------------------------------------------------------
>
> Currently, the only documented interface to any of the
> functionality of siunitx is via the key--value control system
> and functions described in the manual. The internal code of the
> package is not documented, and there is therefore no guarantee
> of stability of internal functions. While it is common for users
> to have to modify the internals of LaTeX2e packages as part of
> their documents, this is not good programming practice and is
> not encouraged for siunitx, or indeed in general.
>
> If there is a user function that you require that is not
> available using the documented tools, please either e-mail or
> report a bug in the database. One of the general aims of siunitx
> is to provide a proper documented interface for all of the
> functions of the package. I am therefore very happy to add
> interfaces to internal processes as necessary.
>
> Programmers should note that siunitx is coded using the LaTeX3
> 'expl3' programming system. This looks somewhat different to
> traditional TeX or LaTeX programming. Details of the programming
> environment are documented as part of the expl3 bundle.
> Currently, none of the internal functions or interfaces are
> documented, and so are not meant for use outside of siunitx.
> Other programmers wanting to make use of internal siunitx
> functions are encouraged to get in contact with me. This will
> enable me to ensure that the parts of siunitx which are needed
> by others are documented and are not changed without
> consultation.
>
> ----------------------------------------------------------------
> Joseph Wright <joseph.wright at morningstar2.co.uk>
> ----------------------------------------------------------------
> ----------------------------------------------------------------
thanks for the upload. i've installed the new version and updated the
catalogue repository.
> Users may view the package catalogue entry at
>
http://mirror.ctan.org/help/Catalogue/entries/siunitx.html
> or they may browse the package directory at
>
http://mirror.ctan.org/macros/latex/contrib/siunitx/
the catalogue entry won't appear at all until some time tonight. all of
the files will be subject to mirroring delays.
Robin Fairbairns
For the CTAN team