Here is a list of the documents that I found helpful while studying this issue. These links were valid and checked at the time this paper was put together. Google (or it's cache) can always help you locate a copy if these links aren't valid anymore.

• Linux Kernel 2.4 Internals by Tigran Aivazian at The Linux Documentation Project.

• ELF:From the Programmer's Perspective by Hongjiu Lu linked to from UNIX Systems Programming

• The info page for "ld".

• The GNU GCC Manual, specifically the parts about specifying attribtues:

  • attribute syntax

  • function attributes

  • variable attributes

  • type attributes