closes #56

this is a stripped down version of #56 as `isEmpty` is not available
in Java5.

reviewed use of multiple-choice attributes and definition of “unix” (see conditions)

this failure has been crying wolf for so long we hardly notice
something else might be broken in all the noise of failed Jenkins
builds.

also, loose is mostly used as an adjective

uniform style of notes and new feature markers

- stripped trailing whitespace;
- corrected the tag soup;
- corrected Java versions (1.4 followed by 5);
- stripped inline styling (use CSS for uniformity).